Red Line (Baltimore) - Community Opposition To Alternative 4C

Community Opposition To Alternative 4C

Since late 2008, Baltimore City has favored the "4C Alternative" selected by Governor O'Malley in 2009, which was endorsed by Mayor Sheila Dixon. However, the 2008 Citizens Advisory Council annual report commented on the opposition of community groups to surface rail alignments through residential neighborhoods.

A letter from the Allendale Community Association, read at a meeting of the Citizens Advisory Council on December 11, 2008, expressed the Association's opposition to Alternative 4C and any surface rail construction along Edmondson Avenue.

The West-East Coalition (WEC) Against Red Line Alternative 4C, established in June 2009, represents community associations, homeowners groups, businesses and religious groups opposed to the Alternative 4C. Its website explains that the organization considers the proposed light rail alignment to be a detriment to communities on both the East and West sides of Baltimore.

In a letter to Governor Martin O'Malley, Senator Barbara Mikulski, Senator Benjamin Cardin, Congressman Elijah Cummings, Congressman John P. Sarbanes, and Mayor Sheila Dixon on July 13, 2009, the WEC described concerns about the effects of double-tracked surface rail, traffic congestion, and safety concerns.

In 2009, the WEC circulated a petition against the surface Red Line in the Canton neighborhood. It delivered 1,350 signed cards to Governor O'Malley on July 31, 2009.