U.S. Route 301 in Maryland

This article is about the section of U.S. Route 301 in Maryland. For the entire length of the highway, see U.S. Route 301.

U.S. Route 301
Route information
Maintained by MDSHA
Length:	123.30 mi[1] (198.43 km)
Existed:	1940 – present
Major junctions
South end:	US 301 at Governor Harry W. Nice Memorial Bridge
	MD 5 in Brandywine MD 4 in Upper Marlboro US 50 in Bowie I-97 in Annapolis MD 2 in Annapolis MD 18 near Queenstown MD 213 near Centreville MD 313 near Galena
North end:	US 301 in Warwick
Highway system
United States Numbered Highways List • Bannered • Divided • Replaced Maryland highway system Interstate • US • State • Minor • Former • Turnpikes ← MD 300 MD 301 →

"Blue Star Memorial Highway (Maryland)" redirects here. See also, U.S. Route 50 in Maryland#Blue Star Memorial Highway

U.S. Route 301 in Maryland is a major highway that runs from Delaware to the Governor Harry W. Nice Memorial Bridge into Virginia. It passes through three of Maryland's four main regions: the Eastern Shore, the Baltimore-Washington Metropolitan Area, and Southern Maryland. US 301 serves mainly as a bypass of Baltimore and Washington from Delaware to Virginia.

Route description

Robert Crain Highway

The Robert Crain Highway in Prince George's County

US 301 is a minimum of four lanes throughout the state of Maryland. It enters the state via the Governor Harry W. Nice Memorial Bridge and joins the original route of Maryland Route 3 near the town of Newburg in Charles County. Between the Potomac River and the city of Bowie, the route is known as the Robert Crain Highway. Running north, the highway serves the towns of La Plata, Waldorf (where it briefly overlaps MD 5), Brandywine, Upper Marlboro (where it interchanges with MD 4), and Bowie before joining US 50 in Bowie and meeting the southern terminus of MD 3, which continues along the Crain Highway to I-97 and MD 32.

John Hanson Highway

Now following US 50 (and secret I-595) east along the John Hanson Highway, the route serves Annapolis and crosses the Severn River via the Pearl Harbor Memorial Bridge before traversing Sandy Point State Park to the foot of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge. The route meets the southern terminus of Interstate 97, which connects to the highway near the western terminus of MD 665, a freeway spur into downtown Annapolis. US 301 connects to other local highways such as MD 450, MD 2 (which joins the route at this interchange), and MD 70. At MD 70, secret I-595 ends, and US 50, US 301 and MD 2 continue across the Severn River. Both highways form an effective freeway bypass of Annapolis, but both highways also experience enormous backups in the eastbound direction during the summer months due to heavy tourist traffic attempting to cross the Chesapeake Bay. Along the Annapolis section, the freeway takes on a blue star memorial highway designation.

Blue Star Memorial Highway

After crossing the Severn River, the blue star memorial highway designation becomes the road's name, Blue Star Memorial Highway. Upon crossing the Chesapeake Bay, US 301 enters Queen Anne's County at Kent Island. Continuing east, the highway leaves the island and enters the Delmarva Peninsula as it crosses the Kent Narrows via a high-level bridge (with MD 18 making use of the original drawbridge). US 301 and US 50 separate near Queenstown. At the split, US 50 continues as the Ocean Gateway to Ocean City. The segment between the Chesapeake Bay Bridge and the 50-301 split is noted for the many right-in/right-out interchanges with MD 18 and MD 835, a legacy of the days when the route was a four-lane at-grade expressway.

Downgrading from a six-lane freeway to a four-lane at-grade expressway, the route runs north, serving as one of the backbones of the Delmarva Peninsula. Still known as the Blue Star Memorial Highway, the route connects with several major highways in the northern segment of the Eastern Shore, including MD 213 and MD 313. It narrows abruptly to a two-lane country road as it enters the state of Delaware.

History

In 1940, the completion of the Harry W. Nice Memorial Bridge heralded the entry of US 301 into Maryland. A short connector between the northern end of the bridge and MD 3 resulted in the majority of the latter route being taken over by US 301, with only a small portion remaining signed as MD 3 (this portion is now MD 257).

Originally, the route went all the way along former MD 3 into Baltimore and ended near present-day Maryland Route 295 Russell Street. As US 301, it was upgraded into a four- and six-lane divided highway throughout in the 1940s and 1950s. In the 1960s, the route was rerouted along US 50 to the Eastern Shore where it was routed up former Maryland Route 71 into Delaware. Today, Route 301 is a multi-lane highway throughout its path through the state with the exception of the Governor Harry W. Nice Memorial Bridge; the nine miles (14 km) of MD 3 between US 50 and Interstate 97 is also a four- and six-lane divided highway and is part of the same continuous physical route.

The segment of the highway between the eastern end of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge and the US 50/US 301 split in Queenstown was originally built as a four-lane at-grade divided expressway. By the late 1980s, traffic levels were so high that the route was upgraded into a six-lane grade-separated limited-access expressway, with most of the intersections converted into right-in/right-out interchanges, and a few others being converted into more standard interchanges. The upgrade of the route was completed by the early 1990s.

Future developments

• As the route enters Delaware, it becomes a two-lane roadway. However, plans exist to replace U.S. Route 301 in Delaware with a tolled freeway that will link the divided US 301 in Maryland with Delaware Route 1, providing a multi-lane alternative to Interstate 95 between Northern Delaware and Washington, D.C.
• A group known as the Eastern Shoreway Alliance is seeking to have US 301 from Queenstown to the Delaware line redesignated as the Eastern Shoreway [1], similar to the Ocean Gateway designation of US 50 to the south.

Junction list

County	Location	Mile	Exit	Destinations	Notes
Governor Harry W. Nice Memorial Bridge over Potomac River
Charles	Newburg	3.8		MD 257 east (Rock Point Road) – Cobb Island	Former MD 3
		5.7		MD 234 east (Budds Creek Road) – Chaptico
				To MD 6 (Chapel Point Road, Bel Alton Newtown Road) – Newtown, Chapel Point State Park
	La Plata	14.8		MD 6 (Port Tobacco Road, Charles Street) – Port Tobacco, Charlotte Hall
		15.5		MD 225 west (Hawthorne Road) – Indian Head
	White Plains	19.6		MD 227 west (Marshall Corner Road) – Pomfret
	Waldorf	20.8		MD 925 north (Old Washington Road)	Former US 301
		23.3		MD 5 Bus. east (Leonardtown Road) / MD 228 north (Berry Road) – Accokeek, Bryantown
		26.3		MD 5 south (Mattawoman Beantown Road) – Bryantown	South end of MD 5 overlap
Prince George's	Brandywine	28.9		MD 5 north (Branch Avenue) to I-95 to I-495 - Andrews Air Force Base	North end of MD 5 overlap
		29.2		MD 381 east (Brandywine Road) – Aquasco
	Cheltenham			Frank Tippett Road north - Cheltenham Veterans Cemetery
		36.6		MD 382 south (Croom Road) – Croom
				To MD 202 (Old Crain Highway north) – Upper Marlboro	Former US 301
	Upper Marlboro	40.4		MD 4 (Pennsylvania Avenue) to I-95 to I-495 – Dunkirk, Washington D.C.	Interchange
		46.2		MD 978 (Old Central Avenue) – Davidsonville, Largo	Former MD 214
		46.3		MD 214 (Central Avenue) to I-95 to I-495 – Davidsonville, Washington D.C.	Interchange
	Bowie	49.4		MD 197 north (Collington Road) – Laurel
		50.3		US 50 west (John Hanson Highway) to I-95 to I-495 / MD 3 north (Robert Crain Highway) – Crofton, Washington D.C.	South end of US 50/unsigned I-595 overlap Mileposts switch to US 50 series
South end of expressway section
Anne Arundel		16.5	16	MD 424 (Davidsonville Road) – Davidsonville, Crofton
	Annapolis	21.2	21	I-97 north / MD 665 east – Baltimore, Downtown Annapolis
		23.0	22	MD 450 (Defense Highway) to MD 178 – Parole, Crownsville
		23.5	23	MD 2 south (Solomons Island Road) – Edgewater	South end of MD 2 overlap
		24.8	24A-B	MD 70 south (Rowe Boulevard-Bestgate Road) – Annapolis	Signed as exits 24A (MD 70 south) and 24B (Bestgate Road) westbound Eastern terminus of unsigned I-595
	Pearl Harbor Memorial Bridge over Severn River
	Arnold	26.7	27	MD 2 north / MD 450 south (Governor Ritchie Highway) – Baltimore, Severna Park, Naval Academy	Signed as exits 27A (MD 450 south) and 27B (MD 2 north) westbound; North end of MD 2 overlap
				MD 648 north (Baltimore-Annapolis Boulevard)	direct turnoff from westbound carriageway
		27.6	28	Bay Dale Drive - Bay Hills Golf Club
		29.2	29	MD 179 / MD 908 / MD 931 (St. Margarets Road, Busch's Frontage Road, Cape St. Claire Road, East College Parkway)	Signed as exits 29A (MD 179) and 29B (Cape St. Claire Road) eastbound
	Sandy Point	30.6	31	MD 908 east (Whitehall Road)	direct turnoff from eastbound carriageway
		31.4	32	MD 908 north (Oceanic Drive) - Sandy Point State Park
Chesapeake Bay Bridge over Chesapeake Bay
Queen Anne's	Stevensville	37.2	37	MD 8 (Romancoke Road) to MD 18 – Stevensville, Romancoke
		37.9	38A	MD 835A north (Thompson Creek Road, Duke Street)	Thomspon Creek Rd: roundabout on ramp, eastbound exit and entrance; Duke Street: westbound entrance and exit (right-in/right-out)
		38.9	38B	Shopping Center Rd. - to Main St.	westbound entrance and exit
		39.0	39A	MD 18 (Castle Marina Road, Cox Neck Road)	Castle Marina Rd: westbound entrance and exit; Cox Neck Rd: eastbound exit and entrance
	Chester	39.5	39B	MD 552 (Dominion Road, Chester Station Lane) to MD 18	MD 552: eastbound exit and entrance; Chester Station Ln: westbound entrance and exit
		40.1	40A	Piney Creek Road	right-in/right-out entrance/exit
		40.5	40B	Dundee Avenue	eastbound exit and entrance
	Kent Narrows	40.8	41	MD 18 (Main Street, Piney Narrows Road) – Kent Narrows West	MD 18: eastbound exit and entrance; Piney Narrows Rd: westbound entrance and exit
		Kent Narrows Bridge over Kent Narrows
		41.9	42	MD 18 (Main Street) / MD 835 west (Kent Narrows Road) – Kent Narrows East	MD 18: eastbound entrance and exit; MD 835: westbound entrance and exit
	Grasonville	42.8	43A	MD 18 (Main Street) / MD 835 (Long Point Road, Jackson Creek Road) – Grasonville	MD 18: eastbound entrance and exit; MD 835: westbound entrance and exit
		43.4	43B	To MD 18 to MD 835 (Chester River Beach Road)	westbound entrance; eastbound entrance and exit
		43.8	44A	To MD 18 (Station Lane, VFW Avenue)	Station Ln: eastbound exit and entrance; VFW Ave: westbound entrance and exit
		44.2	44B	MD 835 (Winchester Creek Road, Evans Avenue) to MD 18	MD 835: westbound entrance and exit; Evans Ave: eastbound exit and entrance
		44.5	45A	To MD 18 to MD 835 (Homeport Drive, Hess Road)	Homeport Dr: westbound entrance and exit; Hess Rd: eastbound exit and entrance
		44.9	45B	To MD 18 to MD 835 (Nesbit Road)
	Queenstown	46.1	46	US 50 east (Ocean Gateway) – Wye Mills, Salisbury, Ocean City	eastbound exit and westbound entrance; North end of US 50 overlap Mileposts return to US 301 series
North end of expressway section
Queen Anne's	Queenstown	84.4		MD 18 (Main Street)
		84.9		MD 456 (Del Rhodes Avenue) to US 50
		89.5		MD 213 (Centreville Road) – Centreville, Wye Mills	Interchange
		92.5		MD 304 (Ruthsburg Road) – Centreville, Ruthsburg
	Carville	94.2		MD 305 (Hope Road) – Centreville
		98.6		MD 405 (Station Road) – Church Hill, Ruthsburg
		100.6		MD 19 (Roberts Station Road) to MD 213 to MD 313 – Roberts, Church Hill, Ingleside
		102.1		MD 302 (Barclay Road, Hall Road) – Barclay
		104.5		MD 300 (Sudlersville Road) to MD 213 to MD 313 – Church Hill, Sudlersville
		106.5		MD 290 (Dudley Corners Road) – Dudley Corners, Crumpton	Interchange Former MD 301
		110.0		MD 544 (Mcginnes Road) to MD 313 – Mcginnes
Kent		112.0		MD 291 (River Road) – Millington	Interchange; routes connected via MD 701
		115.8		MD 313 (Galena Road) – Galena, Massey
		119.2		MD 290 (Galena Sassafras Road) – Galena, Sassafras	Interchange
Cecil		122.0		MD 299 (Sassafras Road) to MD 282 – Sassafras, Warwick
Delaware state line

Notes

The numbering of US 301 coincidentally fits into the Maryland State Highway System as it passes through the area on the Eastern Shore where a route numbered MD 301 would be found, in Kent County and northern Queen Anne's County. It also crosses Maryland Route 300, Maryland Route 302 and even the former Maryland Route 301.

Related routes

• Interstate 97
• U.S. Route 50 in Maryland
• Maryland Route 3
• Maryland Route 71

See also

• List of numbered highways in Maryland
• U.S. Route 301 in Delaware
• U.S. Route 301 in Virginia

References

1. ^ MDRoads: US 301 URL accessed 17 June 2008

External links

• US 301 @ MDRoads.com
• U.S. Route 301 Project in Delaware

U.S. Route 301
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