Whether you’re headed toward Lake Montebello for a brisk walk around its nearly 1 1/2 mile loop or dropping the kids off at the local school, you’ll notice a new lane change at the busy nearby intersection.

Starting Monday, a new traffic pattern at 33rd Street and Hillen Road in Northeast Baltimore will allow motorists, particularly those dropping off and picking up students at Montebello Elementary/Middle School, to enter Lake Montebello from 33rd Street and access the back of the school building.

Councilwoman Odette Ramos, who represents neighborhoods in the area, including Coldstream-Homestead-Montebello, Ednor Gardens and Mayfield, said the new configuration addresses “traffic danger” concerns at the busy four-way with multiple lights.

“Parents were dropping off their students in the front of the school on 32nd Street because of the new traffic patterns, and it was a horrible accident waiting to happen,” Ramos said.

Baltimore City’s Department of Transportation was awarded a “Lake 2 Lake” grant under COVID-era funding relief to increase visibility and access between Druid Hill Park and Lake Montebello, two areas that had significant usage spikes during the pandemic as people sought outdoor exercise.

The funding enabled the first round of reconfigurations to be completed in December 2022, according to Ramos. She said changes that made it easier for people to get to and from each lake were “generally a good thing,” but noted that community input was largely not taken into account when the earlier reconfigurations were made.

“The community had been pretty upset about the intersection for a while,” Ramos said of the changes in 2022.

The city’s transportation department didn’t immediately have a comment on the new traffic pattern.

Residential and commuter traffic along 33rd Street, running roughly east-west, and Hillen Road, heading north-south, is a common spot for congestion with Johns Hopkins University and Morgan State University nearby.

What’s important to remember, according to Ramos, is that while people will now be able to make a left turn into the Lake Montebello area coming off 33rd street, the loop around the lake remains vehicle-free, for only pedestrian and bike use.

“We want people to continue to enjoy the lake, and I also believe this will encourage more visitors,” said Ramos, adding that parking should be easier to access now as well.