Drivers and pedestrians alike will see some changes in downtown Towson, starting tonight.

The often-dreaded Towson circle will be permanently reduced to a single lane in some parts — between southbound York Road and eastbound Joppa Road, as well as at the entrance from Allegheny Avenue and the exit to eastbound Joppa Road. The changes are meant to reduce speed and confusion, plus make the crossings safer for pedestrians. Work is expected to be completed by Wednesday.

York Road will also lose a lane. Three blocks between the roundabout and Towsontown Boulevard will be converted to parking spaces — another effort to slow traffic and also provide easier pedestrian access to businesses.

The overly enthusiastic director of the Towson Chamber of Commerce said of the project: “We can’t stand ourselves, we are so excited.”

This is the first step of the “Walkable Towson” program, designed to make the area more inviting to pedestrians, while encouraging drivers to bypass downtown by using alternate routes. So my only question is: how are the pedestrians from elsewhere supposed to get to downtown Towson? There’s certainly no viable public transportation option — unless you have a few hours to kill.

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