Allow Bicyclists and Pedestrians to Use Hatem Bridge

from Jeffrey H. Marks

Sen Nancy Jacobs, Annapolis, correctly indicates that the local Hatem bridge that links Havre de Grace and Perryville, and allows fisherman and canoeists access to recreation, should remain affordable to motorists (see "Columnist Gets it Half Right on Proposed Toll Increases)". But Sen Jacobs also only gets it half right. What about people who can't afford a car, one car families, and other recreational users? Why aren't people allowed to walk or bicycle across this one mile bridge?

Transportation officials will chime in that the bridge was designed only for motorists, and that walking or bicycling is unsafe. But Interstate 95, less than a mile away, parallels the four lane Hatem Bridge. Trucks and through traffic should use the Interstate, and the Hatem should be reconfigured into a full service bridge for local traffic. Sidewalks and bikelanes should replace the outer lane on this local bridge that connects these two communities. The reconfigured Hatem Bridge would look similar to the two lane, full service bridge that bicyclists, pedestrians, and motorists use to enter Annapolis near the Naval Academy.

An added benefit would be to remove a major barrier to the East Coast Bicycle Trail that needs to cross the Susquehanna River. Local residents would gain mobility by having other travel options besides driving. . Opportunities to exercise and see one's neighbors would be enhanced. And local residents could still drive across the Hatem. Slowing down from 45mph on the current bridge to say 30mph on the reconfigured bridge would add less than a minute to travel time. And having a two lane bridge instead of a four lane would encourage trucks and through traffic to use the Interstate instead of cutting through local communities.

by B' Spokes

Like most people I live a hectic life and who has the time for much exercise? Thanks to xtracycle now I do. By using my bike for daily activities I can get things done and get an hour plus work out in 15 minutes extra of my time, not a bad deal and beats taking the extra time going to the gym. In case you are still having trouble being motivated; the National Center of Disease Control says that inactivity is the #2 killer in the United States just behind smoking. ( http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/bb_nutrition/ ) Get out there and start living life! I can carry home a full shopping cart of groceries, car pool two kids or just get lost in the great outdoors camping for a week. Well I got go, another outing this weekend.
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I agree. I feel pressed to go as hard as possible traveling across the Conowingo.Dam to get across the Susquehanna River, plus it adds 20+ miles to a trip compared to going straight up Route 40 across the Hatem Bridge. -- Isaias . /
While I supporting biking, you obviously haven't crossed the Hatem bridge during construction. One lane each way = MAJOR bottlenecks. They should have added a small pedestrian/bike lane during the resurfacing, but that would have required forward-thinking from the MdTA; something they are apparently incapable of.
One thing Jeffery failed to mention is that the Hatem Bridge has (had) a $10/year pass which put a lot of unnecessary traffic on that bridge. So essentially the situation is that bike/peds are prohibited to accommodate a lot of toll cheaters.