By Barry O’Connell
This week, the Baltimore Sun reported a brewing fight over infrastructure between Mayor Brandon Scott and Senator Steve Hershey. At the heart of the dispute is the long-canceled Red Line—Baltimore’s once-ambitious east-west light rail vision—and the lingering question of whether its demise was financial prudence or political self-dealing.
Mayor Scott, facing a crumbling Russell Street Viaduct and mounting equity concerns, has urged state support to revive infrastructure dreams delayed since Governor Larry Hogan canceled the Red Line in 2015. Hershey, usually one of the more pragmatic Republican voices in Maryland, appears to be circling back to Hogan’s original talking points: the Red Line was bloated, wasteful, flawed in execution.
But here’s the thing—was it truly flawed? Or was it politically inconvenient for a governor who had other priorities?
When Hogan killed the Red Line
Let’s revisit what happened when Hogan killed the Red Line:
- He rerouted $736 million in state funds earmarked for the transit project to suburban road improvements.
- Investigative overlays show that many of those projects benefited real estate linked to HOGAN, the firm he never divested from during his time in office.
- West Baltimore—largely Black, transit-dependent, and historically underserved—was left behind yet again.
Those maps I published months ago still speak volumes. The dots weren’t just lining the highways—they were lining Hogan’s portfolio.
Now, with a gubernatorial bid rumored for 2026, we see Hershey—perhaps unintentionally—lending legitimacy to Hogan’s narrative. Hershey has built a reputation for being thoughtful and sincere, and it’s precisely because of that reputation that this moment matters. Does he genuinely believe the Red Line was an irresponsible public investment? Or is he stepping into position to rehabilitate Hogan's record ahead of another campaign?
This is not a question about partisanship. It’s about transparency, accountability, and the systemic forces that continue to disenfranchise Baltimore residents under the guise of fiscal discipline.
Governor Hogan has faced little scrutiny from his own party over this redirection of funds—likely because many benefited. But Maryland deserves better than quiet complicity. We need real answers, not recycled talking points.
And if Hershey has them, he owes it to Baltimore, to Maryland, and to his own reputation to say so directly.
📎 Footnotes
1. Politico: “How Larry Hogan Kept Blacks in Baltimore Segregated and Poor”
2. Maryland Democratic Party: “Explained: Governor Larry Hogan’s Conflicts of Interest”
https://mddems.org/news/explained-governor-larry-hogans-conflicts-of-interest/
3. Chesapeake Bay Action Plan: “Hogan’s Record as Governor a Classic Case of Self-Dealing”
https://bayactionplan.com/hogans-record-as-governor-a-classic-case-of-self-dealing/
4. NAACP Legal Defense Fund: “Title VI Complaint Over Red Line Cancellation”
5. WBFF Spotlight on Maryland: “Critical Baltimore Bridge Is Crumbling as Transportation Funding Priorities Are Questioned”