U.S. 50 West / U.S. 301 South - Queenstown to Bay Bridge




U.S. 50/301 overlap along a six lane freeway from Queenstown nine miles west to the Chesapeake Bay Bridge. The first of several exits for the community of Grasonville links with Nesbit Road.
12/27/22
Winchester Creek Road (MD 835J / MD 835H) comprises the north side frontage road for U.S. 50/301 over the ensuing stretch.
12/27/22
A modified diamond interchange (Exit 45B) connects U.S. 50/301 with Winchester Creek Road (MD 835J) and Nesbit Road (MD 835K) south 0.31 miles to MD 18B (Main Street).
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Exit 45 B departs U.S. 50/301 west for adjacent Winchester Creek Road (MD 835J). An unsigned route, MD 835J runs west 0.67 miles from Blackbeard Road to Hissey Road (MD 835I).
12/21/22
Nesbit Road (MD 835K) ties into MD 18 (Main Street) west of Bennett Point Road south to Bryantown.
09/25/04
12/21/22
A set of Right in Right Out (RIRO) ramps links U.S. 50/301 with Hissey Road (MD 835I) north and Hess Road (MD 18X) south at Exit 45 A.
12/21/22
Winchester Creek Road (MD 835H) runs along the north side of U.S. 50/301 for 0.74 miles between Homeport Drive and VFW Avenue (MD 18W) at Exit 44 B.
12/21/22
VFW Avenue (MD 18W) stems 0.28 miles north from the RIRO ramps at Exit 44B and Winchester Creek Road to Chester Beach Road (MD 18V).
12/21/22
The entrance ramp from Chester River Beach Road (MD 18V) for an auxiliary lane west to the RIRO ramps (Exit 43A) with Saddler Road (MD 835B).
12/21/22
U.S. 50/501 advance west from Grasonville toward Kent Narrows.
12/21/22
Kent Narrows Road (MD 835G) separates from the RIRO ramps at Exit 42 ahead of Kent Narrows East.
12/21/22
Kent Narrows Road (MD 835G) parallels U.S. 50/301 west 0.40 miles to Kent Narrows Way N. MD 18B runs along the south side of the freeway on Main Street.
12/21/22
A folded diamond interchange (Exit 41) joins U.S. 50/301 (Blue Star Memorial Highway) next with Kent Narrows Road to the north and MD 18 (Main Street) to the south.
12/21/22
The steel stringer bridge spanning Kent Narrows was built in 1990. The 3,001.1 foot long bridge rises to a height of 62.3 feet.1
12/21/22
Exit 21 to Interstate 97 north to Thurgood Marshall Baltimore Washington International Airport (BWI) departs 17.8 miles west from this sign posted ahead of Exit 40 A.
12/21/22
RIRO ramps links U.S. 50/301 with adjacent Piney Creek Road at Exit 40 A near the Gibson's Grant development.
12/21/22
Continuing west into the community of Chester, U.S. 50/301 proceed to RIRO ramps with Chester Station Road (MD 552A), a 0.08 mile connector to Piney Creek Road.
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Pine Creek Road continues west from Chester Station Road (MD 552A), 0.38 miles as MD 18T to MD 18 Segment B on Main Street.
12/21/22
MD 18 (Main Street) angles across U.S. 50/301 by the commercial center of Chester. MD 18 and U.S. 50/301 (Blue Star Memorial Highway) both advance west to Stevensville.
12/21/22
Castle Marina Road (MD 18H) stems 0.19 miles north from Exit 39 A to a roundabout with Main Street (MD 18A/18B). Castle Marina Road extends beyond Main Street to the Four Seasons at Kent Island and Bayside developments.
12/21/22
The capital city of Annapolis is 16 miles away. Baltimore is 43 miles to the north via I-97 and Washington 44 miles to the west via U.S. 50.
12/21/22
Located on the adjacent service road, an escort area precedes the Chesapeake Bay Bridge for permit loads and others requiring assistance crossing the span. A similar service is implemented at the Delaware Memorial Bridge as well.
12/27/22
Two exits remain along U.S. 50 west / U.S. 301 north on Kent Island ahead of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge.
12/27/22
Duke Street links the RIRO ramps at Exit 38 A with MD 18 (Main Street), 0.15 miles to the north in Stevensville.
12/21/22
The last exit before the Chesapeake Bay Bridge is the diamond interchange (Exit 37) joining U.S. 50/301 with MD 8 (Business Parkway / Romancoke Road). MD 8 is an 8.35 mile long route.
12/21/22
MD 8 (Business Parkway) concludes 0.32 miles to the north at MD 18 (Main Street). MD 18 spurs 3.01 miles north to Love Point. The remainder of MD 8 follows Romancoke Road south to Normans, Mattapex and Romancoke along Eastern Bay.
12/21/22
A safety initiative, headlight use is required by motorists crossing the Chesapeake Bay Bridge.
12/21/22
During periods of heavy traffic such as Summer weekends and holidays, the MDTA can implement contraflow on the Chesapeake Bay Bridge westbound span.
12/21/22
Maintained by the Maryland Transportation Authority (MDTA), the Chesapeake Bay Bridge honors William Preston Lane, Jr. Tolls are collected in the eastbound direction.
12/21/22
Congestion occurs regularly across the Chesapeake Bay Bridge during Summer weekends due to heavy beach traffic.
12/21/22
Indicating lane closures due to construction, accidents or during contraflow, a system of lane control signals operate along both the approaches and spans of the William Preston Lane, Jr. Memorial Bridge.
12/21/22
Chesapeake Bay spreads north to the Susquehanna River and Northeast River in Cecil County and south to the Atlantic Ocean by Virginia Beach, Virginia.
12/21/22
The William Preston Lane, Jr. Memorial Bridge consists of a three lane span westbound and a two lane span eastbound.
12/21/22
Costing $45 million to build, the eastbound crossing on the Chesapeake Bay Bridge opened to traffic on July 30, 1952.2
12/21/22
The cantilever truss sections of the William Preston Lane, Jr. Memorial Bridge span the east channel of Chesapeake Bay.
12/21/22
The westbound span accommodate three lanes across a 41.0 foot wide deck.3 The eastbound bridge carries two lanes on a 31.2 foot wide deck.4
12/31/16
The westbound bridge across Chesapeake Bay opened to traffic on June 28, 1973.2 The span was reconstructed in 2001.3
12/21/22
References:
- US 50/301 over KENT ISLAND NARROW, Queen Anne's County, Maryland. BridgeReports.com.
- The William Preston Lane, Jr. Memorial Bridge. Maryland Transportation Authority (MDTA), fact sheet.
- US RTE 50 EB over CHESAPEAKE BAY, Anne Arundel County, Maryland. BridgeReports.com.
- US RTE 50 WB over CHESAPEAKE BAY, Anne Arundel County, Maryland. BridgeReports.com.
Photo Credits:
- Alex Nitzman: 09/25/04, 12/31/16, 12/21/22, 12/27/22
Page Updated Wednesday January 11, 2023.