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Facilitated by the Maryland Department of Transportation State Highway Administration, the open house served as an opportunity for residents to ask questions about the agency’s working study of a 1.6-mile stretch of the busy two-lane road.

A SHA team first began considering environmental, community and economic goals in terms of improvements along Matthewstown Road this past spring as part of a Planning and Environmental Linkages Study.

According to survey data collected by SHA, residents primarily like the road’s traffic lights and convenience. However, concerns were raised about extensive traffic congestion, timing issues with the traffic light at Elliot Road, speeding, excess development and a lack of sidewalks.

Those concerns were echoed at Tuesday’s open house, where residents were able to view an aerial map of the portion of the road being studied and place sticky notes on areas of concern.

Notes included adding left turn lanes at the intersection of Matthewstown Road and Black Dog Alley and the road’s intersection with Dyott Court, changing speed limits and coordination of signals to lessen traffic.

Residents also highlighted the number of dense housing developments along the road, some of which have yet to be built, like Gannon Range.

To Easton Police Chief Alan Lowrey, who lives near Matthewstown Road, the lack of pedestrian and bicycle access along the road could stand to be improved.

Efforts have been made to improve pedestrian access on the west side of Easton, particularly west of Route 50, but dense development on both sides of the highway necessitate taking steps to handle the additional volume. Adding sidewalks — and dedicated center turn lanes to avoid cars traveling around others on the shoulders — would be great, he said.

But above all, Lowrey hopes the community will be engaged with the process of improving the busy road.

Hunters Mill resident John Franczak raised concerns about the significant traffic on Matthewstown Road, noting long wait times for lights to change.

Franczak said he would be willing to look at the possibility of a traffic circle somewhere along the road stretch in question to slow speeding traffic down, though he also voiced a request to lower the speed limit from 50 mph to 35 mph between the Hunters Mill neighborhood and Route 50.

The SHA study is set to finish by spring 2024. The agency is still accepting survey comments, which can be accessed via the SHA project page.