U.S. ROUTE 29 IN MARYLAND


'U.S. Route 29' in Maryland emerges from Washington D.C. and runs north into central Montgomery County. It serves the communities of Columbia and Ellicott City and provides the westernmost north-south route between Washington D.C. and Baltimore.

Contents
Counties traversed
Cities and towns
Route description
Georgia Avenue and Colesville Road
Columbia Pike
29th Infantry Division Memorial Highway
Points of interest
Junction list
History
MD 27 and MD 29
U.S. 29 Alternate
The new Columbia Pike
U.S. 29 Freeway
Baltimore Outer Beltway
See also
References

Counties traversed



Montgomery County

Howard County

Cities and towns


US 29 directly serves the following towns (bolded entries are control cities):

Washington D.C.

★ 'Silver Spring

White Oak

Burtonsville

Scaggsville

★ 'Columbia'

★ 'Ellicott City'

★ 'Baltimore' (via I-70)

Route description


Georgia Avenue and Colesville Road

US 29 emerges from D.C. along Georgia Avenue. Running alongside the Jessup Blair Park it intersects MD 410, the East-West Highway, just outside the D.C. border. It then meets the northern terminus of MD 384 and the southern terminus of MD 97 at a four-way intersection in Silver Spring; US 29 subsequently becomes Colesville Rd., taking over from MD 384, while MD 97 continues as Georgia Ave.
Crossing Sligo Creek Park the highway intersects the Sligo Creek Parkway just to the south of Interstate 495 (Capital Beltway); a partial cloverleaf interchange between the highways prevents direct access from US 29 south to I-495 east and I-495 west to US 29 north. Now a divided highway, US 29 continues north, intersecting MD 193 just beyond the Capital Beltway; this highway provides access to I-495 that is not available at the aforementioned interchange.
Columbia Pike

After crossing the Northwest Branch Park the route is now known as 'Columbia Pike' and becomes a four-lane divided expressway. It interchanges with MD 650 to the northwest of the Naval Surface Weapons Center. The route passes through Paint Branch Park, over the Paint Branch, before meeting Randolph Rd. at a recently constructed diamond interchange. Continuing northeast the route intersects Fairland Rd. before meeting Briggs Chaney Rd. at another recently constructed diamond interchange.
Running northwest of Fairland Regional Park US 29 reaches its first major freeway segment at Burtonsville, bypassing a former, heavily curved at-grade expressway portion through the town. The bypass incorporates the southern end of the former alignment and a diamond interchange with MD 198 within its southern endpoint; US 29 continues straight ahead through the combined interchange, meeting the northern end of the former alignment at a partial diamond interchange.
The route crosses the Rocky Gorge Reservoir and enters Howard County just beyond the northern end of the bypass. It intersects Old Columbia Rd. just beyond the reservoir and then upgrades into a six-lane grade-separated almost-freeway within its interchange with MD 216 at Scaggsville. Continuing as an almost-freeway it interchanges with Johns Hopkins Rd. after two miles, then intersects Rivers Edge Rd. at a half-signalled intersection (Rivers Edge Rd. intersects the southbound carriageway, which has the signals; the northbound carriageway has an unsignalled turn lane and an unsignalled acceleration lane, both within the median).
Next, US 29 encounters MD 32 at a symmetrical cloverleaf; for an extended period this interchange marked the southern end of US 29's grade separation, with the entire route south of there being an at-grade expressway. North of the interchange, US 29 intersects several major routes that serve the town of Columbia: Shaker Drive/Seneca Drive, Broken Land Parkway, MD 175, and MD 108. Between Broken Land Parkway and MD 175, US 29 has a right-in/right-out interchange between the southbound carriageway and S Entrance Rd; the northbound carriageway has two at-grade direct turnoffs to Gates Lane and Old Columbia Rd, with median crossovers provided for southbound traffic. Near the MD 108 interchange the northbound carriageway has another direct turnoff to Diamondback Drive.
Beyond the MD 108 interchange, US 29 upgrades again into a fully limited-access six-lane grade-separated freeway as it encounters the western terminus of MD 100. The heavy flows to and from MD 100 result in US 29 widening again to eight lanes within the interchange, which also incorporates a three-quarter diamond interchange with the western terminus of MD 103. The eight-lane segment narrows to six lanes again as it encounters the historic northern end of the US 29 expressway at U.S. Route 40 within Ellicott City.
29th Infantry Division Memorial Highway

The entire route in Maryland is also known as the '29th Infantry Division Memorial Highway', and some trailblazer assemblies in the Ellicott City area are marked with the division's distinctive yin-yang symbol. At the US 40 interchange, a monument dedicating the highway to the division has been installed and can be seen from both carriageways.
Beyond US 40, US 29 interchanges with Interstate 70 at a modified directional cloverleaf, and finally terminates at an at-grade intersection with MD 99 near Mount Hebron.

Points of interest



Jessup Blair Park

Sligo Creek Park

Northwest Branch Park

Naval Surface Weapons Center

Paint Branch Park

Fairland Regional Park

Rocky Gorge Reservoir

Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory

The Mall in Columbia

Lake Kittamaqundi

Centennial Park

Historic Ellicott City

Montgomery Blair High School

Junction list


CountyLocationMile#DestinationsNotes
continues from Washington D.C.
MontgomerySilver Spring0.2
Maryland Route 410 / East-West Highway - Chevy Chase, Takoma Park
0.7

Maryland Route 97 north / Georgia Ave. / Maryland Route 384 south / Colesville Rd. - Olney, Washington D.C.
turns onto Colesville Rd.;
continues on Georgia Ave.
1.4Dale Dr. - Nolte Recreation Centerformer route of
Sligo Creek Park1.6Sligo Creek Parkway - to
MD 650
Four Corners1.7Franklin Ave. - to
MD 193
former route of
2.3
Interstate 495 / Capital Beltway - Rockville (to
I-270), College Park (to
I-95)
grade-separated interchange between routes
2.6
Maryland Route 193 / University Blvd. - Chevy Chase View, University of Maryland
3.8Lockwood Dr. north - to
MD 650
former route of
White Oak4.6
Maryland Route 650 / New Hampshire Ave. - Ashton, Takoma Park
grade-separated interchange between routes
6.7E Randolph Rd.-Cherry Hill Rd. - Paint Branch Park (to
US 1)
new grade-separated interchange between routes; Randolph Rd. connects to former route of
Fairland Rd. - Paint Branch Park
Briggs Chaney Rd. - Fairland Regional Park (via Robey Rd.)new grade-separated interchange between routes
Greencastle Rd. - Fairland Regional Park
Burtonsville10.6
MD 198 / Sandy Spring Rd. / Old Columbia Pike north - Fairland, Laurel (to
I-95)
west via Norbeck Rd. connects to
; southern terminus of former alignment of
Dustin Rd.-Old Columbia Pike southnorthern terminus of former alignment of
HowardOld Columbia Rd. - to Harding Rd.
Scaggsville12.913
Maryland Route 216 / Scaggsville Rd. - Fulton, Laurel (to
I-95)
upgrades into grade-separated almost-freeway
Hammond Dr. - to Crest Rd.direct turnoff from northbound carriageway
14.915Johns Hopkins Rd. - Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory
Rivers Edge Rd.signalled intersection with southbound carriageway; direct turnoff from northbound carriageway
16.616
Maryland Route 32 / Patuxent Freeway - Clarksville, Fort Meade
17.317Seneca Dr.-Shaker Dr. - Atholton Park
Columbia18.318Broken Land Parkway - The Mall in Columbia (to Snowden River Parkway)
S Entrance Rd. - Lake Kittamaqundiright-in/right-out interchange with southbound carriageway
Gates Lanedirect turnoff from northbound carriageway; median crossover provided for southbound traffic
Old Columbia Rd.
20.020

Maryland Route 175 east / Little Patuxent Parkway-Rouse Parkway - The Mall in Columbia, Waterloo (to
I-95)
runs east of
Diamondback Dr.direct turnoff from northbound carriageway
21.221
Maryland Route 108 / Clarksville Pike-Old Annapolis Rd. - Clarksville
former route of
west from interchange;
becomes fully limited access north of interchange
Ellicott City22.422

Maryland Route 100 east / Baltimore Outer Beltway - Dorsey, Glen Burnie (to
I-95)
22.623

Maryland Route 103 east / St. Johns Lane-Montgomery Rd. - Elkridge
connects to former route of
into Ellicott City (formerly designated
)
24.124
US 40 / Baltimore National Pike - West Friendship, Catonsville
former end of
expressway;
once turned east along
25.525
Interstate 70 - Frederick, Baltimore
multiple accesses to
provided
Mount Hebron25.9

Maryland Route 99 west / Old Frederick Rd.-Rogers Ave. - Alpha Ridge Park, Ellicott City
northern terminus of
; route ends in temporary configuration

History


In 1933, the Maryland state government and the D.C. government approached AASHO and the Virginia state government about the possible northern extension of US 29 from its original northern terminus in Culpepper, Virginia on US 15. After much deliberation, AASHO and Virginia assented to the modifications, and US 29 was extended from Culpepper along US 15 and US 211 into D.C. and thence into Maryland. [2]
MD 27 and MD 29


US 29 arrived in Maryland in 1934, a year after the initial creation of the Maryland highway numbering scheme. US 29 followed a route initially designated as 'Maryland Route 27', while today's MD 27 was designated as 'Maryland Route 29'. The first MD 27 emerged from Washington D.C. along Colesville Rd., then followed US 29's existing route as far as White Oak, where it turned north along MD 650 and followed its alignment as far as Ashton. At Ashton, MD 27 then turned east along MD 108 and followed its alignment through Clarksville (multiplexing with MD 32 before 1996) until it reached MD 108's current interchange with US 29's current route. Then, MD 27 turned north and followed Columbia Rd., becoming Old Columbia Pike (formerly designated as MD 987) after crossing MD 103 and continuing north until reaching Main St. (old US 40) in old Ellicott City, where it ended.

After US 29's arrival in 1934, MD 27 and MD 29 swapped numbers; today's MD 27 received its current designation and did not physically change, while the original MD 27 was re-designated MD 29, and then immediately ''promoted'' to US 29, thus removing a conflict between the US highway number and the state highway number system, which did not permit duplication between the two systems. US 29 followed MD 29's route all the way into Ellicott City, where it then turned east and multiplexed with US 40 through Catonsville all the way into Baltimore, where it ended at US 1 Monroe St. in southwestern Baltimore. Today, the Baltimore County portion of this multiplexed route is part of MD 144.
U.S. 29 Alternate

On November 11, 1954, the state of Maryland gained AASHO's consent to divert US 29 to a more direct alignment, paralleling the now-defunct MD 196 between MD 650 and MD 198, and then continuing onward to Ellicott City via Scaggsville. [2] Initially, the AASHO Executive Committee, meeting in Seattle, Washington, designated US 29's original route via Ashton as 'U.S. Route 29 Alternate', which would be signed upon the completion of the direct route in late 1955. [2] US 29 Alternate has since vanished, being replaced with a northward extension of MD 650 through Ashton (replacing MD 116 north of Ashton) and an eastward extension of MD 108 as far as MD 175 Waterloo Road (now itself part of MD 108).
The new Columbia Pike

The 1966 expansion of the tiny village of Columbia into a massive planned community under the auspices of the Rouse Company led to the construction of the modern Columbia Pike. It is unclear if US 29 initially followed MD 196 and was then diverted to a new alignment, or if US 29 always followed its existing alignment after the 1954 changes, but by the early 1970s, with the completion of the new Columbia Pike, a four-lane divided at-grade highway, between White Oak and US 40, MD 196 was decommissioned north of Industrial Parkway near White Oak, and became unsigned south of that road. In 1968, the terminus of US 29 was diverted away from Baltimore; it was retracted to US 40 in Ellicott City and then moved north two miles to MD 99, and an interchange similar to the one in place between US 29 and US 40 was built to connect the route with Interstate 70 (then designated 'I-70N'). [2]
U.S. 29 Freeway

Initially, the northernmost 2 miles of US 29 were the only grade-separated limited-access segment of that route in Maryland; however, gradual construction of interchanges south of US 40, starting with Howard County's segment in the late 1980s and continuing to this decade in Montgomery County, has resulted in a full freeway between MD 99/I-70 and MD 108, an almost-freeway between MD 108 and MD 216, and a partially grade-separated expressway between MD 216 and MD 650, with interchanges at Johns Hopkins Rd., and MD 216 completed in the early 2000s. Interchanges were completed in 2004 at MD 198, in 2005 at Randolph Road / Cherry Hill Road, and at Briggs Chaney Road in 2007.
Baltimore Outer Beltway

The four miles of the US 29 freeway between MD 100 and I-70 is part of the Baltimore Outer Beltway. The Outer Beltway was a 3/4 circular beltway designed to provide a route parallel to the Baltimore Beltway. MD 100 represents the major portion that was built; the aforementioned four miles of US 29 is another portion. The Outer Beltway was projected beyond MD 99 to run through Howard and Baltimore Counties and intersect MD 140, Interstate 83, U.S. Route 1, and Interstate 95 before terminating at U.S. Highway 40 northeast of Baltimore.

See also



Maryland Route 32

Maryland Route 99

Maryland Route 100

Maryland Route 103

U.S. Route 40 in Maryland

References


1. Pruett, Mike. US 29 @ MDRoads.com URL accessed 14:03, 21 January 2007.
2. Federal Highway Administration. U.S. 29 Maryland to Florida URL accessed 15:05, 21 January 2007.
3. Federal Highway Administration. U.S. 29 Maryland to Florida URL accessed 15:05, 21 January 2007.
4. Federal Highway Administration. U.S. 29 Maryland to Florida URL accessed 15:05, 21 January 2007.
5. Federal Highway Administration. U.S. 29 Maryland to Florida URL accessed 15:05, 21 January 2007.


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