Greetings friends and neighbors,

The University Park Town Council’s Committee on Police, Traffic, and Public Safety (PTPS) has diligently worked for more than a year to find sensible solutions to the myriad traffic problems we all struggle with. Speeding, stop sign running, and unsafe cut-through traffic seem to get worse by the week. 

There has been much discussion and debate on the listserv in recent days. This is my attempt to address many of the questions that were asked and to dispel some rumors and misinterpretations of what is happening.

Safety First

We strive to be a walkable community. We want our streets to be safe for pedestrians, cyclists, parents pushing strollers, people using wheelchairs, etc. But we have some problems and problematic trends that make some streets less safe than others. 

Drivers speed and run stop signs every single day at all times of day in Ward 3, where I live. And other parts of Town have it much worse. Sometimes violators are residents, but often they are not. I’ve seen shockingly egregious traffic infractions, especially during and after 2020. Personally, I would welcome speed bumps on my streets (I live on a corner) and traffic diverter, but those decisions are up to the elected Council. 

The Council will weigh all the data and considerations before finalizing any plans and committing dollars to a project. Nothing is being rushed through. We are at the beginning of this project, not the end.

The Council is trying to strike a balance between ease of traveling for our residents and providing solutions that many residents have literally begged for. Some residents (in Ward 5, for example) experience shocking numbers of cars from outside of town that drive fast and don’t stop at stop signs. Wards 1, 2, and 3 also have significant problems with the same three issues: Speeding; stop sign running; and unsafe cut-through traffic.

The PTPS Committee is working on choosing from the many options (aka “menu items”) in the various proposals reviewed and discussed at their Dec. 3 meeting, but they are far from a decision. Those options include speed bumps, diverters, no entry signage and enforcement and many other options.

With the input we've received in the past couple of weeks, we expect it will take another one or two more PTPS Committee meetings to define realistic scenarios to propose.  Then we hope to have an informational meeting for residents to express questions and concerns.  After that, allowing time to process everything thoughtfully, we hope to put the first group of recommended traffic measures in place in the first half of 2026.

If you want to be informed about future Committee meetings, please sign up for email notifications about upcoming meetings and agendas. 

Where is Information About the Committee’s Meeting Agendas and Traffic Study Documents?

We’ve updated the Committee page with more information about Committee members, their meeting schedule, and how they are empowered by Town Code to work on issues affecting police, traffic, and public safety: https://upmd.org/190/Police-Traffic-Public-Safety-Committee 

There is also a new webpage devoted to all the studies and other documents associated with their efforts: https://www.upmd.org/396/Traffic-Studies-Reports-and-Data-Collect. Both pages contain links to videos of stop sign running in our town.

You can also get to this information from the upmd.org homepage, as shown below:

Committee Meetings and Announcements About This Project

There have been 10 PTPS Committee meetings in 2025 (and more in prior years) when these issues were discussed. Meeting agendas are posted at least 24 hours prior to each meeting, in compliance with the Maryland Open Meetings Act.

In 2025, six UP Newsletter Mayor’s columns included updates and announcements about traffic control and mitigation efforts.

Speed Limit

In November 2022, the Town lowered the speed limit from 25 MPH to 20 MPH in accordance with Safe Routes to School guidelines. It is highly unlikely that we will lower the speed limit again.

Stop Sign Violations

Check out these videos of stop sign running in several spots in UP. You’ll see how egregious this behavior is. Ex. One intersection in Ward 2 had a 93% violation rate. 

Installation of stop sign cameras is imminent, pending the finalization of a contract and decisions about their placement. The plan is for warnings to be sent first and then tickets. 

What is Cut-Through Traffic? 

Trips that originate outside of University Park, enter town, and then exit town via another town street within a certain amount of time (~3.5 minutes). Delivery trucks are not included in the count. The cut-through counts were taken during both morning and evening rush hours. 

Why is Cut-Through Traffic a Problem?

Vehicular traffic passing through a residential area without stopping (or without an origin or destination within the area) uses a local residential street rather than larger roads whose primary function is to accommodate through traffic. Add speeding and stop sign running to the mix and that’s why so many residents (me included) are fed up.

Below is a graphic showing the areas in UP with the highest volume of cut-through traffic. Note that no one’s license plate numbers were stored or shared with any law enforcement agency.

Our goal is to make our town the least desirable route for cut-through traffic.

Traffic Apps

Waze and Google Maps will not change their practice of routing traffic through UP. I’ve contacted them, as has former Mayor Carey. We were both told “no,” because our streets are public roads. The only way these companies will change their recommended routes through University Park to eliminate the perceived time savings that bring cars, motorcycles, and scooters to our streets. The other option, declaring our streets private roads, is not feasible. 

I ask residents to consider the value of a small amount of sacrifice for the greater good. Would you drive a slightly different route if it helped make our town an inconvenient cut-through route? Even an extra few minutes could mean the difference between being a recommended Waze or Google route or not.

Police Officer Traffic Enforcement

UP’s Police Department (UPPD) is not a large department, but they do an exemplary job keeping our UP safe and one of the most desirable places to live in the whole DC area. In recent years, the Town has increased the number of sworn officers by two; and officers are required to dedicate time to traffic enforcement across problem spots in UP. Some residents may have seen UPPD’s targeted traffic enforcement efforts. Chief Coleman knows this is many residents’ top concern. Each month, UPPD provides a crime report at our Council meetings.

Contact Chief Coleman if you have concerns, comments, or compliments pertaining to UPPD that you’d like to share with him.

Cameras

Cameras for monitoring Do Not Enter (timed or otherwise) are currently not allowed anywhere in the state of Maryland.  

The speed cameras on Route 1 and Adelphi Road have yielded lots of money during the few years that they’ve been in place. We’ve seen a drastic decrease in speeding ticket revenue in the past year because drivers have slowed down. However, the Town must give the State of Maryland most of the ticket revenue. We only get to keep a dollar amount totaling 10% of our Town budget.

Can We Narrow Some Streets to Slow Down Traffic?

Yes. Placement of sidewalks, or other types of paths, such walker/biker lanes on the streetway are under consideration. A pilot project to place a painted walk area on 44th Avenue was abandoned because of the County’s unwillingness to sanction the project.

Does a Group of Residents on Your Block or Street Want a Speed Bump?

Follow the process for requesting one.

Do you Want to Report a Traffic problem or Issue? 

Fill out this form. 

Town Council

You are represented by a smart and dedicated group of seven elected Councilmembers, who are your neighbors. They share your concerns and frustrations about town traffic and safety. There is diversity in their ages, occupations, and life experiences. They have lived in University Park for a combined total of 130 years. Simply put, they know the Town and the struggles it faces with heavy and dangerous traffic. 

Every single Councilmember is dedicated to wise stewardship of your tax dollars and making informed decisions to help solve residents’ problems and challenges. They are doing their best to weigh the pros and cons of recommended courses of action, and residents have made it clear that doing nothing is unacceptable.

I humbly ask you to put your trust in the process and in your Council. They have my full confidence. 

Open Meetings and Public Comment

We apologize for any misunderstanding about public comment during Committee meetings. The decision to allow public comment during a Committee meeting is at the discretion of Committee Chair, but it is not customary. Work sessions generally do not allow public comment because members are actively working on the issues posted in their meeting agenda. The Maryland Open Meetings Act (OMA) says that the public must be allowed to observe the work of a “public body” (ex. A Council or an official Committee):

The OMA requires State and local public bodies to hold their meetings in a manner that is open to the public, to give the public adequate notice of those meetings and their expected content, and to make minutes and any recordings of the meetings available to the public afterward. In certain circumstances, public bodies may discuss some topics confidentially in a “closed session.”

However, there will be opportunities for residents to provide feedback on proposed traffic mitigation plans, but we are not there yet. UP residents’ respectfully shared opinions and concerns will be welcomed and taken into consideration.

Public comment is welcomed at each Council meeting, and the next meeting is Mon., Jan. 5, 2026. 

As I wrote above, we are at the beginning of this process and careful examination of all factors is underway. I offer my sincere thanks for your patience as the process continues.

This is a lengthy message, and I appreciate your attention to it. This is my sincere attempt to keep you informed. Feel free to reach out to me and/or your Councilmember if you have any questions or information to share. 

Sincerely,

Laurie Morrissey
Mayor, University Park, Maryland
mayormorrissey@upmd.org
240-688-9534