A dispute between the city of Havre de Grace and the Maryland State Highway Administration over how to address a hazardous, unsignaled intersection along Route 40 has now led to a lawsuit.

At issue is the increasing number of serious vehicle accidents at the intersection of Route 40 and the entrance to the Greenway Farm development, Martha Lewis Boulevard, which has no traffic signals or stop signs. The State Highway Administration has ordered the city to stop issuing building permits for the 570-home project until the city submits another Traffic Impact Study and a traffic signal warrant analysis.

The city, which filed the lawsuit on Sept. 16, wants to know who will pay the $300,000 to $500,000 cost of doing so.

The lawsuit names the State Highway Administration, Harford County, the developer of Greenway Farms, Forestar Real Estate Development Group, and the nation’s largest homebuilder, D.R. Horton.

The city argues in the lawsuit that flex posts have been implemented at the intersection, making the entrance to Greenway Farm a “right-in, right-out” roadway. They stated in the lawsuit that if a traffic signal analysis and implementation are still necessary and are something the city would be responsible for, the city cannot afford it.

“The city does not have funding in place in its current fiscal year budget to cover the cost of conducting a traffic signal warrant analysis or the construction and installation of a traffic signal at [the intersection],” the lawsuit states. “The city is unable to seek funding through general obligation bonds until approximately 2028.”

If Havre de Grace is required to pay for the traffic signal study and possible implementation, the city would be “required to adopt and approve a special taxing district for the Greenway Farm community to cover those costs,” meaning the development’s residents would be charged for the work, the lawsuit states.

The city approved the development, which encompasses more than 150 acres, in 2005 and is expected to be completed within the next two years.

Upon its approval in 2005, the traffic impact study and the state administration did not indicate a need for traffic safety enhancements at the intersection, the suit stated. However, project officials were required to conduct another traffic impact study once the city issued its 500th home building permit for the development to determine if the need changed.

As houses have been built, numerous crashes have occurred at the intersection of Route 40 and Martha Lewis Boulevard, according to residents and Maryland State Police Crash Data.

That intersection and others along Route 40 have concerned the Chief of the Susquehanna Hose Company, Scott Hurst, who sent an email to the city on Aug. 17 explaining the need for a traffic light.

Hurst said that, given the ongoing development of Greenway Farm, traffic entering and exiting Route 40 from Martha Lewis Boulevard has tripled and caused the hose company’s calls for service to the intersection to increase.

He urged the city to install a traffic signal at the intersection to slow trafficand reduce the number of crashes.

“These motor vehicle accidents at these locations are never minor, they are always serious in nature with traumatic injuries, some life-threatening,” Hurst wrote. “There will continue to be serious accidents at these locations and, unfortunately, deaths, until something is changed … Susquehanna Hose Company feels this intersection is long overdue for a traffic signal.”

Residents of the new development also submitted about 200 emails to the city with concerns about the intersection.

“It should not have taken the city of Havre de Grace two years of citizens, state delegates and SHA pushing the city to what should have been done all along,” said Greenway Farm resident, Courtney Bridges. “We need to hold municipalities and builders accountable for not completing developments correctly.”

According to the lawsuit, the city argues that public works agreements relating to the project from 2005, 2009 and 2024 did not mention the necessity of a traffic signal warrant analysis upon the 500th home building permit. To date, city officials said they have issued 482 building permits for Greenway Farm.

Additionally, the city said other reports and analyses from as recent as 2020 did not recommend any improvements be made to the intersection.

However, an unrelated Traffic Impact Study completed by Street Traffic Studies, Ltd. for the proposed Sheetz near the intersection of Route 40 and Post Road in the former location of the Cecil Bank, indicated that their traffic study of the intersection found that “signalization would be justified with or without the additional trips generated by the proposed Sheetz.”

The study noted that the possible signalization at the intersection should also “be the responsibility of these developments (Greenway Farm and Bulle Rock) and not Sheetz.”

According to state law, the outcome of the declaratory judgment will decide which party is responsible for a traffic study and possible signalization of the Route 40 and Martha Lewis Boulevard intersection.

The Harford County government and the Maryland State Highway Administration said they have not yet been served with the lawsuit. D.R. Horton and Forestar Real Estate Development Group did not respond to a request for comment.

Have a news tip? Contact Matt Hubbard at mhubbard@baltsun.com, 443-651-0101 or @mthubb on X.