TOWSON, Md. — This summer, a busy stretch of York Road in Towson is scheduled for a major facelift. A roughly half-mile section from Newell Avenue at Towson University to the roundabout will undergo infrastructure improvements.
The Maryland State Highway Administration, in partnership with Baltimore County, has planned comprehensive improvements:
- Replacement of an aging water main
- Road resurfacing with new pavement and striping
- Upgraded lighting and traffic signals
- ADA-compliant sidewalks, ramps, and business entrances
More than 16,000 people drive the route daily, according to the state. College students walk it to class, and office workers use it to reach lunch spots.
According to Nancy Hafford, Executive Director of the Towson Chamber of Commerce, York Road is like the 'front door' of the Towson Community.
"We're just glad it's happening, because we've wanted to do this for a long time," Hafford said.
Crews will replace water main, resurface road
Residents, commuters, business owners, and anyone else set to be impacted by the construction are asked to attend a virtual meeting on April 8 at 6:30pm. The link to join is right here.
“The thing about this- it is going to be kind of an intrusive project in that they’re going to have to dig the road up to replace the water main, and that’s right through the heart of Towson’s business district. So we really are encouraging people to watch this public meeting this evening,” Gischlar added.
"The county is going to be replacing a water main in those project limits, which is about a half mile. And then we'll come on top of that and improve the surface," Charlie Gischlar, deputy director of communications for the Maryland State Highway Administration, explained in a Tuesday interview with WMAR.
To reduce impact on the heavily-traveled corridor, construction work will primarily take place at night, Gischlar explained.
"When it's finished, you'll have a brand new road surface, you'll have great access to the sidewalks," Gischlar added.
Hafford hopes the improved streetscape will encourage more people to slow down and explore what Towson has to offer.
"Everyone knows," Hafford added, "whenever you do major construction jobs like this, you're going to run into a few headaches and it's going to be uncomfortable for a while. But at the end you get a beautiful project."
Construction is scheduled to begin summer 2025, with completion expected in late 2027.
This report was converted from its original broadcast television script to a web article with the assistance of an AI tool. A WMAR-2 News journalist thoroughly reviewed its contents before posting it to our website.
