The AARoads Blog

Put the finishing touches on a major overhaul and update for the Maryland section of AARoads. Finally added photos dating from trips between August 2005 and July 2010, covering mostly the Interstate 95 corridor, Baltimore, Washington, and areas in between. Things updated within the Maryland Highway guides include:

• Maps covering Baltimore, Cecil and Harford Counties extracted from a geodatabase built of northeastern Maryland, including a shapefile created that covers some of the abandoned freeway proposals such as the defunct Interstate 70, the Windlass Freeway, the Jones Falls Expressway northern extension.
• A look at surface routes through Baltimore from several drives through the city during Summer 2010, including looks at Maryland 2, Maryland 25, Perring Parkway south, Maryland 129 north, Maryland 139 south, Maryland 144/Frederick Avenue west, Maryland 147 north, and various other smaller segments.
• An overhaul of all freeway pages, covering new Clearview-based sign assemblies on Interstates 83, 95, 395, 695, etc.
• New highway construction such as the I-95 Express Toll Lanes and the new Woodrow Wilson Bridge.
• Several road enthusiast items of interests including:

The new stack interchange between Interstates 95 & 695 east of Baltimore, including a stub for an eventual direct ramp with the new I-95 Express Toll Lanes.

A southbound look at the new Woodrow Wilson Bridge.

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The first section of Maryland’s 6-lane toll freeway the Intercounty Connector opened yesterday. The project, which has some of the highest tolls in the United States, has its own website complete with interactive maps. It is the first new freeway in the Washington DC area in several decades.

Suitland Parkway links southeast Washington, D.C. with Andrews Air Force Base at Maryland 4 (Pennsylvania Avenue) near Forestville. The highway carries four lanes overall along a 9.35-mile controlled-access route. Several interchanges and a handful of at-grade intersections lie along the route. Like the George Washington Memorial and Clara Barton Parkways, the Maryland section is maintained by the National Park Service.

Suitland Parkway begins at a signalized intersection with Maryland 4 (Pennsylvania Avenue) near its interchange with Interstate 95. Departing westward, the parkway first interchanges with Patrick Avenue at the north gate to Andrews Air Force Base. From there the route continues west underneath Interstates 95 & 495 (there is no direct access between the parkway and Capital Beltway).

Originally constructed during World War II by the Bureau of Public Roads (now the FHWA), Suitland Parkway was built to link the military facilities of Bolling Field Air Force base with Camp Springs (Andrews A.F.B.). Opened December 9, 1944 the parkway later became part of the National Capital Parks system, which preserves the forest and rural scenery along the route. This designation led to Suitland Parkway inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places on June 2, 1995.

Suitland Parkway continues west and north to a three-quarter cloverleaf interchange with Maryland 458 (Silver Hill Road). National Park Service maintained sections of the road include brown signs with Clarendon font in most places. However replacement signs feature Arial font and some signs, such as those for the Maryland 5 interchange, are simply missing. Just before the Silver Hill Road interchange is an at-grade intersection for Meadowview Drive and the Meadowview subdivision. Meadowview is only accessible via the NPS-maintained Suitland Parkway.

Suitland Parkway gains an urban feel upon crossing the District of Columbia line at the Southern Avenue overpass. Sign standards decrease within Washington, with substandard guide signs for the ramps to Alabama Avenue, Sheridan Road and Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue. Pictured here is the approach to the Sheridan Road slip ramp for MLK Jr. Avenue.

The roadway is used by commuters and visitors alike. Connections with South Capitol Street to the north provide a direct route into downtown Washington and the United States government center. Additionally drivers bound for the new Washington Nationals baseball park can use Suitland Parkway from the south, as the new stadium lies along South Capital Street north of the Frederick Douglass Memorial Bridge.

A modified cloverleaf interchange joins Suitland Parkway, South Capitol Street / Douglass Memorial Bridge, and Interstate 295 (Anacostia Freeway). Suitland Parkway merges with South Capitol Street ahead of the Douglass Memorial Bridge.

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South Capitol Street travels north from the Interstate 295 interchange with Suitland Parkway at Anacostia Park. The route utilizes the Frederick Douglass Memorial Bridge across the Anacostia into south central Washington. Following a four-lane boulevard, South Capital Street first passes by the new Washington Nationals stadium site before diving below M Street. Four blocks north of the M Street overpass are ramps to the Southeast Freeway (Unsigned Interstate 695) directing motorists to Interstate 395 north and south.  

South Capitol Street touches down at a signalized intersection with Potomac Avenue at the north end of the Douglass Bridge. Construction is well underway at the Washington Nationals ball park, with opening day slated for March 30, 2008. The stadium will seat 41,000.

Looking northward along South Capitol Street at P and O Streets, adjacent to the new Nationals baseball stadium. Two years ago this scene existed underneath the South Capitol Street viaduct.

$27 million construction involving the Frederick Douglass Memorial Bridge continues with an expected completion of April 2008. Work already completed includes the removal of a 400′ viaduct section (between Potomac Avenue and O Street) at the north end of the bridge and lowering of the north approach of the bridge to blend the span into the surrounding area. This work is part of an urban renewal project centered around the new Nationals ball park. An intersection with Potomac Avenue on the north side of the bridge begins the new urban boulevard leading north. Before this was completed, an industrial style viaduct carried motorists northward into a blighted area. The bridge carries an average of 77,000 vehicles per day.

A study is still underway on the overall replacement of the 1950-built Frederick Douglass Memorial Bridge with a new signature span. Design concepts include some elaborate draw and swing spans on cable-stayed and arch bridges. Details of the study are available at South Capitol Street Bridge Study and JD’s “Near Southeast” DC Redevelopment blog.

South Capitol Street sinks below M Street on the approach to Interstate 695 and the United States Capitol complex. Ramps ahead join Interstate 695 west at its interchange with Interstate 395.

For much more on the Nationals ball park, redevelopment of the South Capitol Street corridor, and the Douglass Bridge, please see JD’s “Near Southeast” DC Redevelopment.

Sources:

1. Suitland Parkway, National Park Service.
2. “Douglass Bridge Closure Marks The Start of Construction Season.” Washington Post, January 25, 2007.
3. “Near Southeast” DC Redevelopment

Constructed between August 2003 and October 2006, Maryland 43 (White Marsh Boulevard) was extended 3.8 miles from a premature end at U.S. 40 (Pulaski Highway) to Maryland 150 (Eastern Boulevard). The new state highway consists of a four-lane divided highway with expressway like characteristics. While there are no private driveways, seven at-grade intersections exist along the route to accommodate future development, including that with the proposed Campbell Boulevard.

Maryland 43 (Whitemarsh Boulevard) briefly exists as a freeway between Interstate 95 and U.S. 40. A full cloverleaf-interchange joins the freeway with Interstate 95 followed by a folded-diamond interchange at Maryland 7 (Philadelphia Road). The interchange between White Marsh Boulevard and Interstate 95 is in the process of upgrade to a directional-cloverleaf interchange associated with the Interstate 95 Express Toll Lane project. The missing sign pictured here once held a panel that displayed “Lane Ends 1000 Feet”.

Originally Maryland 43 ended at a partial trumpet interchange with U.S. 40. That connection was reconfigured into an at-grade intersection with a short access road joining both highways. 1970s highway maps show Maryland 43 proposed to the southeast as a freeway to Maryland 150.

The project opened to traffic on October 23, 2006 at a cost of $76.5 million with private contributions in the form of $2.4 million and 34 acres from the AV Williams Trust. The AV Williams Trust element results in the construction of four intersections to serve their land that is already accommodating new commercial development.

Maryland 43 (White Marsh Boulevard extended) eastbound at the future intersection with Campbell Boulevard. Rural lands surround the four-lane highway presently from U.S. 40 southward to Maryland 150 (Eastern Boulevard). Visible in the distance is a clearing associated with new commercial development at the AV Williams Trust land.

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A $1 billion project is underway in the state of Maryland along Interstate 95. Being constructed are the Interstate 95 Express Toll Lanes. Beginning at the Interstate 895 merge in Baltimore and ending at the Joppatowne Road overpass, the express toll lanes project will widen Interstate 95 from eight general purpose lanes to eight general purpose lanes and four tolled express lanes.

Elements of the project include the reconstruction of the Interstate 95/895 partial “Y” interchange to relocate the Interstate 895 southbound split from a left-hand to a right-hand ramp and the addition of direct ramps between Interstate 895 and the new express toll lanes. Work began on this project in October 2006 and should be completed by October 2008.

Merging with Interstate 895 north from Interstate 95 north in Baltimore. Construction of the new flyover that will carry Interstate 895 north onto the general purpose lanes of Interstate 95 is well underway.

Further east, the symmetrical directional interchange with Interstate 695 will be completely redesigned into that of a high-speed stack interchange, with connections to both the Interstate 95 mainline and the inner express lanes. Reconfiguration of this interchange will eliminate all of the left-hand movements drivers presently encounter. Phase one of the project began on January 22, 2007 to build a symmetrical stack interchange between the general purpose lanes of Interstate 95 and Interstate 695. Completion is expected in 2010. Phase two, the building of ramps between the new express toll lanes and Interstate 695, as scheduled will begin in May 2008 and end by June 2011.

Towering pillars and the future flyover between Interstate 95 north and Interstate 695 rise above the present interchange in east Baltimore.

Looking north along Interstate 95 at new flyovers to Interstate 695 north from Interstate 95 north and Interstate 695 south to Interstate 95 north. These ramps are slated to open in 2010.

Beginning in Spring 2008, crews will expand their focus to the Interstate 95 interchange with Maryland 43, a current full-cloverleaf interchange. Work includes widening of 1.1 miles of Maryland 43 from four to six lanes and rebuilding of the interchange with directional ramps from the Interstate 95 general purpose lanes and additional ramps from the express toll lanes. Work will take three years to complete.

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And we can now add Maryland to the list of states that now use Clearview…

Interstate 95 northbound approaching Maryland 2 (Exit 54) south. The entire Exit 54 features Clearview, including the Maryland 2 shield.

Have you seen this rendering?

It is the megasized symmetrical stack interchange currently under construction at the eastern junction of Interstate 95 and 695 at Baltimore, Maryland! Construction began in 2006 on a multi-year project that will bring express toll lanes to the busy corridor. Presently Interstate 95 carries eight lanes between Interstate 895 and Maryland 24 (Exit 74). This project expands the overall lanes to 12 with the addition of four express lanes (two per direction) from the merge/split with Interstate 895 to Gunpowder Falls State Park east of Exit 67. Project completion is slated for 2011.

See the project site – http://www.i-95expresstolllanes.com/ for details

Overall the Intercounty Connector (ICC) represents a $2.4 billion project to build an 18-mile long toll road between Interstates 370 in Montgomery County and Interstate 95 in Prince Georges County, Maryland. After years of representing nothing more than just a dashed line on planning maps, the first leg of the (ICC) is set to become reality as construction begins this Summer on the first segment of roadway.

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Today’s thoughts involve reflections on the Interstate 95 corridor between Florida and the northeast U.S. The reviled freeway in some cases, Interstate 95 suffers from overrunning by travelers headed to/from Florida, a number that increases significantly every year. Respective DOT’s are trying to keep up with growth with various expansion and interchange projects throughout the 800-mile drive from Daytona Beach northward to Washington, D.C. Profiled below are some of the construction projects we’ve encountered over the last few weeks. 

Interstate 95 is rather docile in Volusia County south of Interstate 4, but north of it is a different story. The influx of traffic from Orlando and its array of resort areas puts a crush of traffic on the freeway between Daytona Beach and Jacksonville. Surprisingly not all of this corridor is yet to six-lane capacity. St. Johns and Volusia Counties are already six-lanes, but Flagler County is not. Therefore crews are out working on the expansion of Interstate 95 to eliminate the bottleneck between Interstate 4 and Interstate 295. From the FDOT website, expansion of the 18.6-mile stretch in Flagler County began on March 14, 2005. Completion date is unclear.

In a related project pertaining to the Interstate 95 corridor, upgrading of the Florida 9A (Future Interstate 295) diamond interchange with Florida 202 (J. Turner Butler Boulevard – JTB) is also underway. Florida 9A provides an eastern bypass of downtown Jacksonville as well as a commuter route for southeast Jacksonville. The substandard interchange between the two freeways is the only thing preventing the eastern beltway from becoming part of the Interstate 295 corridor. Upon completion of the $80.5-million project, high-speed flyovers will shuttle motorists between Interstate 295 and the JTB. Work began in July 2005 with a 2009 completion date anticipated.

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