I travel up and down GA Ave every day (Layhill Rd to Walter Reed just over the district line). The morning commute has gotten incredibly worse since Montgomery County in their money grubbing wisdom put parking meters on GA Ave between Spring St and Colesville Road. Not only do you have to watch for the regular insane traffic but now you have to dodge cars, trucks and buses who suddenly find a parked car in front of them.
The commute home used to take 25 mins but in the last six months has increased to almost 40 mins. I take 16th St to GA Ave and it is backed up all the way to second street at 3:45 pm. From there almost all the way to Layhill Road is agonizingly slow and painful.

I concur about Georgia Avenue around the entire Wheaton Mall complex! It's so bad when you have to resort to Black Friday tactics just to double-park! It makes me want to Howard Dean scream.

I used to drive up Rockville Pike home from work and would first run into the intersection with Cedar Lane and then 1 mile later, the intersection with Pooks Hill (that's two intersections in the top ten for all those at home counting). It's good to know it wasn't just my imagination that it was unbelievable painful. Although the drive up Wisconsin in Bethesda was much worse. Small wonder that I am willing to walk a mile to the metro these days... at least there's no traffic walking.

I'm surprised that the intersection of Georgia and Randolph Rd. didn't make the list. I usually find that far more backed up than Georgia/Forest Glen. Note to KB: Have you ever tried taking Sligo Creek Parkway instead of Georgia? Once it dumps you onto University Blvd, you can take Arcola to Kemp Mill Road and wind up on Randolph Rd. near Kennedy High School. It might take a few minutes more, but at least you're driving, rather than sitting on Georgia.

I want to know what method they used for determining the most congested intersections seeing as I have never had problems with some intersections on the list. Cedar lane is nowhere near as bad as 355 and South Drive just a few hundred yards down. Also there is no mention of Georgia avenue and Norbeck Road which almost on a nightly basis causes backup on Norbeck to nearly a mile and a half back from the intersection. Some intersections they got right though like Conneticut and University. It doesn't matter what time of day, or what day it is you are guaranteed to hit traffic there.

Montgomery County needs to keep a close eye on Virginia's plans to introduce High Occupancy Toll (HOT) lanes to the Beltway. This will increase the volume of traffic as it crosses the bridge and enters Maryland. When the Beltway goes down to TWO lanes at the Wisconsin exit, my guess is you can expect more people bailing at Wisconsin and further jamming that legal u-turn at Pooks Hill, etc. etc.

If Virginia builds it, they will come. And they're coming your way, Monkey County!

Here is a real problem Duncan should be working on. Hey Dougie boy, how about taking some time out from slinging mud at O'Malley and Ehrlich and doing something for the folks back home?

The problem at Connecticut and University is not only that Connecticut and University merge at that point but also that eastbound traffic on Knowles Avenue must first turn left on Connecticut to cross the Connecticut Avenue bridge over the railroad tracks and then turn right on Plyers Mill Road. Westbound traffic does the reverse. Thus, for two critical blocks (between Knowles and Plyers Mill), Connecticut Avenue is carrying both north-south traffic and east-west traffic. Obvious solutions would be to either build another bridge for the east-west traffic or widen Connecticut Avenue for the two-block stretch. Not much chance of either of those things happening.

According to county officials, a study of the traffic light timing on Connecticut is underway, and, once it's completed, they'll retime the lights on Connecticut. But I think the volume is too heavy to make all that much difference during rush hour.

How about Germantown Road (MD 118) at Frederick Road (MD 355)? It often takes at least two light cycles to turn left from 355 to 118, plus going up that hill often means you can't see the intersection just past the top of it, often making it necessary to suddenly slam on the brakes.

Also, turning left from eastbound Veirs Mill Road to eastbound University Boulevard in Wheaton. This has gotten better since an additional turn lane was added, but the timing of the left turn lane is too short meaning that it still often takes more than one light cycle to get through.

And then there's everyone's favorite--Rockville Pike at Montrose Road, in any direction.

I grew up near the University/Connecticut intersection and drive through it now at different times of the day. I have to agree with the assessment of the east/west traffic from Knowles to Plyers Mill being a primary problem. I always felt like the backup was the worst at Connecticut and Knowles and continuing through till Plyers Mill (coming northbound), while Connecticut and University always seemed busy, but rather smooth. Southbound also seems to be worst at Connecticut and Knowles, though the back up seems to start at Plyers Mill.

And since I'm coming through the area at varying times of the day (and not every day), from rush hour to scary Saturday afternoons, I'd say the problem is universal.

I agree with Junior that Randolph/Georgia ought to have been listed. No matter what time of day you go there you wait in traffic. Plus the turn signals are too short!

Conneticut/University is congested, but it's such a weird set of intersections for such busy streets I think it's inevidable.

Rockville Pike @ Randolph/Montrose should have been at least #5. And you could make a case for every intersection on Wisconsin in Bethesda. Some of these intersections would get better if drivers would take off a little quicker from the light. It's hard to get traffic moving with the lead car in the left lane going 10 mph...

Why is Rt. 29 the only non-Interstate road in Mont. Co. with overpass interchanges? I realize that interchanges are quite expensive and time-consuming to build, and take up a ton of land, but they do keep the traffic flowing once built. Then again, would it just create a new bottleneck down the road from the old one?

Georgia Ave at the Beltway (Forest Glen) is terrible and dangerous. Just last week, a parent and two children were struck at that intersection. But there is a solution. Extend the tunnel from the parking lot under Georgia Ave. Last year, WMATA (Metro) did the engineering study that demonstrated the technical and economic feasibility of a pedestrian tunnel. We just need the will of the government.

Speed up traffic and improve pedestrian safety. Do it!

Yes, Connecticut Ave and University Blvd has gotten much worse in the past year. From my house, the only way out is onto Conn Ave. I've been commuting south on Conn Ave for more than 25 years, and where I've been working for the last two years public transportation is not feasible. Just lately getting from Adams through Knowles has gotten 3 times as bad! Sometimes taking many light cycles for both Denfeld and University. Sometimes I can't even get out of Adams -- and there is no "back way" out!

Georgia and Forest Glen needs pedestrian fences along the medians to keep the people crossing against the light in the middle of block out of traffic. People turn the corner towards the Metro and then wander into traffic half way down the block.

It seems to me that the biggest problem with Connecticut and University at morning rush hour is the traffic turning left from southbound Connecticut onto Plyers Mill. (Fortunately, except when I'm taking my car to the shop, I don't have to go that way during morning rush hour.)

I agree with the comment about pedestrians and would like to add that when they cross against the light (as I see every morning all the way down GA Ave) it slows the traffic in both directions even more.

Georgia and Forest Glen is the most dangerous intersection I've ever seen in this country. The hundreds of daily commuters whol walk to/from Forest Glen station only have 18 seconds to cross all six lanes of Georgia Ave. Many of the walking commuters are sick, elderly, or pregnant people going to local doctors offices or Holy Cross hospital.

It seems that Montgomery County has become obsessed with pedestrian safety to the point that it has tremendously impacted the traffic flow on Veirs Mill from University Blvd. to Georgia Avenue. Eventhough they scaled the traffic lanes down to 2 lanes passing by the mall, pedestrians still cross in the middle of the block. It used to take less than a minute to get through this 2 block area, now it takes anywhere from a minute to 5 because of the traffic light sequence.

As for the meters on Georgia Avenue from Colesville to Spring Street, DUMB, DUMB, DUMB. Instead of 3 passing lanes that was reduced to 2 when someone was double parked illegally, it is now 1 lane because of someone waiting in the center lane to park in the curb lane. Talk about traffic!!!

I wonder if any of the traffic people in MoCo read this and might actually take note of some of the issues???

I encounter the madness that is 355 all day, every day. It's frustrating BEYOND BELIEF! Lights during the week are not coordinated as well as they are on the weekend. The OTHER crazy intersection? 355 and Summit. Trying to get in and out of Old Towne Gaithersburg is MADNESS. Add a train coming thru at -5 miles an hour, it can take forever to get out or into that area...*sigh*

Steve, I invite you to come out to one of the top congested intersections in Gaithersubrg - Great Seneca Highway and Muddy Branch Road. This intersection represents all that is wrong with urban planning in our area. Let's take a look...

The intersection was just "improved", which means that they found a way to allow fewer cars back up onto Sam Eig Highway in the evening with an extra turn lane at the expense of another stoplight. Now I have seen at least 4 collisions due to the terrible design of this mini-ramp since they completed the construction less than a year ago.

It takes at least another 3 minutes to get through this area due to the additional stoplight - whichever direction you are coming from you are guaranteed to hit an extra red light and have to wait. No turns allowed. 3 minutes doesn't sound like much - but when you have a bunch of people saying "It's only 3 minutes" all of a sudden you are talking about an extra half hour, and that's real time.

The city of Gaithersburg allowed a developer to cram in a bunch of townhouses on the side of Sam Eig highway. Not only will they be ugly and expensive (starting in the $700k range), but limit the ability of the state to do anything to improve Sam Eig highway, which already received a failing grade for congestion.

Look right next to it - Crown Farm, huge piece of open development. Let's cram another 2200 homes in there and see what happens. Oh yes, require the developer to provide a bus to Shady Grove metro, great idea, that will take 15 cars a day off the road. But we can't get the state to decide, define, and set a route for the CCT, which has major support in upper MoCo and might actually do something. So the developer will just allow this right-of-way to be abolished, exponentially increasing the cost of it if it ever gets built, instead of the state saying "this is where it will go, dig a hole in the ground while this is still farmland and you're grading the land anyways for this transit and save everyone bunches of money and time and headache".

Now why are there so many cars on Great Seneca Highway? People from Germantown and further upcounty trying to get downcounty or god forbid, to Virginia, since there is no physically possible way to get to Fairfax, Loudoun or even further without going over one of the two bridges that are 35 miles apart. Don't bring up the ferry - a tourist relic, not useful for real commuting, especially because the roads to get to it are ridiculously underbuilt. Do we see restritions on building in Germantown and further upcounty? No! It's being encouraged.

The reason this area is so congested is no one bothers to make a comprehensive plan where development is going to go and then build out the infrastructure to meet up with it. The lack of foresight is maddening. Our "leaders" just stick their heads in the ground and think everything is merry and wonderful. I can't wait to move and never look back.