Misplaced Pages

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50-473: MD 4 is one of the original Maryland state highways. The state highway followed roughly its present alignment through Prince George's County, then headed east through Anne Arundel County along what is now MD 408 . In the 1960s, MD 4 took over MD 416 (Southern Maryland Boulevard) southeast to Sunderland and joined MD 2 all the way to Solomons . After the Governor Thomas Johnson Bridge opened in

100-518: A macadam road by 1915, the same year the highway from the eastern limit of Upper Marlboro to the Patuxent River was constructed as a 14-foot-wide (4.3 m) concrete road. The portion of the highway through Upper Marlboro was built as a concrete road between 1916 and 1919. Marlboro Pike was widened with a pair of 3-foot-wide (0.91 m) concrete shoulders and resurfaced in 1926. The road through Meadows, now Old Marlboro Pike and several roads on

150-553: A 1982 murder . The subsequent legal process spurred the victims' rights movement and led to the 2004 federal Crime Victims' Rights Act . The Roper name was added to the highway by an October 23, 2012, proclamation by then- Governor Martin O'Malley . MD 4 is part of the National Highway System between MD 235 in California and its northern terminus. MD 4 begins at an intersection with MD 5 (Point Lookout Road) just east of

200-469: A modified diamond interchange with Ritchie Marlboro Road, the portion of which between the highway and parallel Old Marlboro Pike to the north is another segment of MD 980. MD 4 has a partial cloverleaf interchange with the eastern end of MD 223 (Woodyard Road) in Melwood before the freeway ends and the highway expands to six lanes at Dower House Road. The highway heads northwest along the northeastern edge of

250-471: A northbound ramp to Marlboro Pike and a southbound ramp from Green Landing Road, which is unsigned MD 726 . MD 4 has a cloverleaf interchange with U.S. Route 301 (Robert Crain Highway) and crosses over CSX 's Pope's Creek Subdivision rail line. The freeway continues to the south of the town of Upper Marlboro, which is accessed via MD 4's diamond interchange with MD 717 (Water Street), which heads north toward

300-586: A planning study underway to explore building a new bridge adjacent to the Governor Thomas Johnson Bridge and expanding MD 4 to a four-lane divided highway between MD 2 at Solomons and MD 235 in California. Maryland Route 408 Maryland Route 408 ( MD 408 ) is a state highway in the U.S. state of Maryland . Known as Mount Zion-Marlboro Road , the highway runs 5.62 miles (9.04 km) from MD 4 at Waysons Corner east to MD 2 and MD 422 in Lothian . MD 408

350-608: Is a right-in/right-out intersection with northbound MD 2-4; the MD 264 intersection is a directional crossover. MD 2-4 meets the eastern end of MD 506 (Sixes Road) and curves north toward the unincorporated town center of Prince Frederick. MD 765 (Main Street) splits to the northbound side of the main highway shortly before the highways cross Parker Creek, and MD 2-4 expands to six lanes ahead of its intersection with MD 231 , which heads west as Hallowing Point Road and east as Church Street toward

400-456: Is known for the abundance of mainly Middle Miocene sub-epoch fossils that can be found on the shoreline. The park contains the type locality site of the Early to Middle Miocene Calvert Formation . These rocks are the sediment from a coastal ocean that covered the area during that time. The age of the formation is (19-)18–15(-14) million years ago ( Ma ), i.e. it extends essentially over

450-668: Is the longest state-numbered-highway concurrency in Maryland. MD 4 is known as Southern Maryland Boulevard from MD 2 in Sunderland to MD 258 in Bristol . From Bristol to MD 717 in Upper Marlboro, the route is named Stephanie Roper Highway. MD 4 is named Pennsylvania Avenue from MD 717 to the same-named avenue at the District of Columbia boundary. Stephanie Roper Highway commemorates the victim of

500-413: Is the old alignment of MD 4 in southern Anne Arundel County . The highway was constructed in the late 1910s and became the easternmost part of MD 4 in 1927. The highway received its present designation in the mid-1960s when MD 4 was rerouted south into Calvert County . MD 408's western end was relocated when MD 4 was upgraded to a freeway through Waysons Corner in the early 1990s. MD 408 was also applied to

550-661: The Andrews Air Force Base to an intersection with Suitland Parkway , which provides access to the military installation and leads west to MD 337 (Allentown Road). North of the parkway, MD 4 drops to four lanes at its cloverleaf interchange with I-95/I-495 (Capital Beltway) in Forestville . The highway intersects Forestville Road, which leads to the parallel Marlboro Pike. MD 4 intersects MD 458 (Silver Hill Road) south of District Heights , then parallels Oxon Run between Coral Hills and Cedar Hill Cemetery before reaching

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600-510: The Hemingfordian stage . This formation occurs in Maryland and neighboring Virginia . The cliffs are between 66–131 feet (20–40 m) high and extend for 25 miles (40 km) along the coast. In addition, rocks of the younger Choptank and the St. Marys Formations are exposed here. This makes Calvert Cliffs State Park extremely interesting for its paleoclimatology and paleontology , because

650-483: The Calvert County courthouse and offices. Further north, the highway receives the north end of MD 765. The routes leave Prince Frederick after their junction with MD 402 (Dares Beach Road) and the roadway reduces to four lanes before passing west of Calvert Health Medical Center . MD 2-4 cross Hunting Creek immediately after their directional crossover intersection with MD 263 (Plum Point Road). The highway parallels

700-512: The District of Columbia boundary on the northern edge of Suitland at Southern Avenue. Pennsylvania Avenue continues northwest straight toward downtown Washington. MD 4 in Prince George's County was originally the Washington and Marlborough Turnpike, which exited the District of Columbia on Bowen Road, headed east to Forestville, south to Meadows, then east through Upper Marlboro to Hills Bridge on

750-591: The Eastern Branch of the St. Mary's River on its way to California , where the highway intersects MD 235 (Three Notch Road). The highway continues as Patuxent Beach Road, a two-lane controlled-access highway . The highway curves to the east and back northeast again, crossing Mill Creek and Kingston Creek before crossing Town Creek and the Patuxent River on the high-level Governor Thomas Johnson Bridge. MD 4 descends from

800-546: The Maryland Crime Victims' Resource Center, Inc. In 2010, construction took place to improve the intersection of MD 2-4 and MD 231 in Prince Frederick, widening the road to six lanes in the vicinity of the intersection. This project was the first phase of a larger project to expand MD 2-4 to six lanes between MD 765 south of Prince Frederick and Stoakley Road north of Prince Frederick. In 2018, construction began on

850-570: The Patuxent River between 1959 and 1962. The freeway was extended west to Dower House Road beyond the MD 223 interchange in 1964. In 1965, MD 408 was assigned to Marlboro Pike from Dower House Road to MD 223, Old Marlboro Pike from MD 223 to Upper Marlboro, Main Street through Upper Marlboro, and Marlboro Pike from Upper Marlboro to the freeway just west of the Patuxent River. These roads were transferred to county maintenance in 1977 except from Brown Station Road through Upper Marlboro to US 301; that stretch

900-549: The Patuxent River. An unnamed road continued east to Solomons Island Road in Lothian . When the Maryland State Roads Commission was established in 1908, this route became one of the original state roads. In 1910, the highway was paved from the D.C. border to what is today District Heights, as well as from Hills Bridge to Waysons Corner, where MD 4 meets MD 408 today. Marlboro Pike from the D.C. line to Hills Bridge and Mt. Zion Road between Hills Bridge and Lothian

950-514: The Prince George's County courthouse and county offices in the center of town and the Prince George's Equestrian Center and Show Place Arena to the south. MD 4 continues west as Pennsylvania Avenue and crosses the Western Branch of the Patuxent River just west of MD 717. West of Upper Marlboro, the freeway has a half-diamond interchange with Old Crain Highway allowing access to and from the west and

1000-534: The accessible strata provide a good record of the Middle Miocene Climate Transition and document a minor mass extinction event — the " Middle Miocene disruption ." Fossil collecting and " rockhounding " are permitted on the beach; the cliffs are closed due to the dangers of erosion. The Calvert Formation is notable for its plentiful fossil shark teeth. Especially popular among "rockhounds" are those from giants such as Carcharocles and

1050-537: The bridge into Calvert County just north of Solomons. The highway's name becomes Solomons Island Road and it expands to a four-lane divided highway. MD 4 has a compact interchange with MD 2, which leads south toward the Calvert Marine Museum and joins MD 4 in a long concurrency, during which the highway is often denoted MD 2–4. MD 2-4 heads north between the Solomons Naval Recreation Center to

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1100-423: The divided highway between Calvert Cliffs Parkway, which leads to the power station, and Flag Pond Parkway, which leads to Flag Ponds Nature Park . After crossing Quaker Swamp, also known as Woodland Branch of St. Leonard Creek, MD 2-4 enters the community of St. Leonard and is paralleled to the east by another segment of MD 765, St. Leonard Road. At the intersection with Ball Road/Calvert Beach Road in St. Leonard,

1150-669: The east (Fishers Station Road) and then on the west (MD 4 Service Road); both are segments of MD 980 . A park and ride lot serving MTA Maryland commuter buses is located east of MD 4 north of the Lower Pindell Road intersection, with access from MD 980B service road. The divided highway and service road run north to Bristol, where the divided highway has a diamond interchange with MD 258 (Bay Front Road), which leads to MD 259 (Greenock Road) and MD 794 (Southern Maryland Boulevard). MD 4 continues northwest as Stephanie Roper Highway, with MD 794 (Southern Maryland Boulevard) paralleling on

1200-512: The famous megalodon (which is often included in Carcharocles ). The ancestral baleen whale Eobalaenoptera harrisoni and the merganser Mergus miscellus were described from the Virginian part of the formation. From the uppermost layer, deposited 15–14 Ma, they represent the oldest known member of their family and genus , respectively. Some remains of a prehistoric loon ( Gavia ) from

1250-445: The grounds of Andrews Air Force Base, was bypassed along MD 4's modern alignment in 1939. Along its concurrency with US 301 through Upper Marlboro, MD 4 was widened with a pair of 3-foot-wide (0.91 m) concrete shoulders in 1946. MD 4 was widened to 24 feet (7.3 m) and resurfaced from US 301 at Wells Corner to the Patuxent River in 1948. MD 4's freeway bypass of Upper Marlboro was built from Ritchie–Marlboro Road east to

1300-472: The highway was included in the original state road system designed by the Maryland State Roads Commission in 1909 as part of the main road between Washington and Annapolis. The highway was constructed as a 14-foot-wide (4.3 m) gravel road between 1916 and 1919 and designated the eastern end of MD 4 in 1927. MD 4 was paved and widened from Waysons Corner to Lothian by 1946. The highway

1350-449: The historic home Quarter Place . MD 408 reaches its eastern terminus in Lothian at a four-way roundabout from which MD 2 (Solomons Island Road) heads northeast toward Annapolis and southeast in the direction of Prince Frederick, and MD 422 heads northwest along Bayard Road. MD 408 is the old alignment of MD 4 from Waysons Corner to Lothian. With the road from Washington to Waysons Corner,

1400-485: The interchange as MD 980A , a service road that curves east and parallels southbound MD 4 toward Bristol . The missing ramp in the diamond interchange, the movement from northbound MD 4 to MD 408, is made via MD 794 (Southern Maryland Boulevard) just to the southeast. MD 408 continues east as a two-lane undivided road through a mix of commercial development, residences, and farmland. The highway veers northeast beyond its intersection with MD 259 (Greenock Road) and passes

1450-574: The late 1970s, MD 4 was extended west from Solomons to Leonardtown. MD 4 has been upgraded to a divided highway for most of its length, beginning in the early 1960s from Washington, reaching Solomons in the mid-1980s, and expected to continue into St. Mary's County in the future. MD 4 has several names over its course. The highway is named St. Andrew's Church Road and Patuxent Beach Road west and east of MD 235 , respectively, in St. Mary's County. The highway follows Solomons Island Road throughout its concurrency with MD 2, which at 27.40 miles (44.10 km)

1500-723: The loop of MD 524 (Old Town Road), which leads to MD 521 , through Huntingtown . A park and ride lot is located southwest of the intersection with the southern terminus of MD 524. Within Huntingtown, the divided highway passes west of Huntingtown High School . From Huntingtown, the divided highway continues straight north to the split of MD 2 and MD 4 at a directional crossover intersection in Sunderland . MD 4 continues northwest as four-lane divided Southern Maryland Boulevard while MD 2 heads northeast as Solomons Island Road toward Annapolis . MD 4 immediately intersects MD 262 (Lower Marlboro Road) at another directional crossover intersection;

1550-541: The lowermost parts of the Calvert Formation, dating back nearly 18 Ma, are the oldest records of that genus from North America, and among the oldest worldwide. Fossils of the sword fish -like Eurhinodelphis longirostris have been found in zone 14 of the formation. Other notable baleen whales from this area include a Cephalotropis coronatus . One was discovered by hobbyist paleontologist Jeffery DiMeglio in 2004 after cliff erosion caused by Hurricane Isabel exposed

Maryland Route 4 - Misplaced Pages Continue

1600-454: The modern, controlled access Patuxent Beach Road was completed to MD 235. MD 4 was then extended west from Solomons along Patuxent Beach Road and St. Andrew's Church Road to its present southern terminus in Leonardtown. MD 2-4 bypassed Port Republic and St. Leonard along a new alignment in 1984. The bypass of the old alignment between Lusby and Solomons was completed in 1985. The MD 4 freeway

1650-459: The northbound side. The southbound side is paralleled by another segment of MD 980 (MD 4 Service Road); there are ramps and right-in/right-out intersections with the parallel service roads on either side of Galloway Creek east of Jug Bay Wetlands Sanctuary . MD 4 curves west at its diamond interchange with MD 408 (Mt. Zion–Marlboro Road) at Waysons Corner . The highway crosses the Patuxent River into Prince George's County on Hills Bridge and has

1700-565: The old sections of MD 4 between Andrews Air Force Base and Upper Marlboro in Prince George's County . The number was assigned after the MD 4 freeway was completed in the mid-1960s. The Prince George's County portions of MD 408 were transferred to county maintenance in the late 1970s except the section through Upper Marlboro, which became MD 725 . MD 408 begins at a three-quarter diamond interchange with MD 4 (Stephanie Roper Highway) just west of Waysons Corner. The roadway continues south from

1750-461: The park beach. Calvert Cliffs State Park is mostly forested, with some wetland areas and a small pond for fishing. The park has 13 miles (21 km) of marked hiking trails. A quarter-mile-long sandy beach is accessible via a 1.8-mile (2.9 km) trail. Some 550 acres are open to hunting upland game, turkey, and deer. The park is rich in biodiversity and is home to numerous species of plants and animals, with at least 163 species of birds observed in

1800-560: The portion of MD 262 east of MD 4 has a right-in/right-out intersection with northbound MD 4. The highway crosses Chew Creek and Hall Creek on either side of Chaneyville , then passes through the town center of Dunkirk . Immediately south of the Calvert–Anne Arundel county line at Lyons Creek , MD 4 has a partial trumpet interchange with MD 260 (Chesapeake Beach Road); there is no access from MD 260 to southbound MD 4. The highway continues north paralleled by service roads briefly on

1850-413: The road passes east of a park and ride lot serving MTA Maryland commuter buses. Calvert Beach Road heads east to serve Calvert Beach . The highway intersects Western Shores Boulevard, which provide access to Long Beach , respectively. In Port Republic , MD 2-4 curve west at MD 509 (Governor Run Road) and has a dual intersection with MD 765 and MD 264 (Broomes Island Road). The junction with MD 765

1900-625: The second phase of widening between north of the MD 231 intersection and Fox Run Boulevard. The widening of this section was completed on November 23, 2020. Another future project along MD 4 involves upgrading the highway between MD 223 in Melwood and the Capital Beltway in Forestville to a freeway featuring interchanges at the Suitland Parkway, Dower House Road, and Westphalia Road. There is also

1950-534: The skull and scapula. Mandibles, neck vertebrae, and scapulae were also found during the dig. The skull and vertebrae are on display at the Calvert Marine Museum . Other items found in the field jackets of the whale were fish bones, hundreds of mollusks, a Hexanchus gigas tooth, and two Carcharodon hastalis teeth. On his 1612 map, Captain John Smith identified the area as "Rickard's Cliffes," having given them his mother's family's name. Some 350 years later,

2000-459: The state park was developed with the General Assembly funding land purchases in each year from 1965 to 1968, then in 1969, dedicating money to the installation of the park's initial roads, parking area, and utilities. The Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant is located a short distance north of the park. The Dominion Cove Point liquid natural gas receiving station is visible off shore from

2050-437: The town of Leonardtown. The highway heads east as two-lane St. Andrews Church Road. MD 4 crosses several branches of Glebe Run, including Gravelly Run, and then parallels and crosses Glebe Run. The highway crosses the Western Branch of the St. Mary's River west of Indian Bridge Road, which leads south toward St. Mary's River State Park and later becomes MD 471 . MD 4 heads northeast by historic St. Andrew's Church and crosses

Maryland Route 4 - Misplaced Pages Continue

2100-560: The west and MD 765 (Solomons Island Road South) on the east. MD 765 closely parallels the highway through the community of Dowell and intersections with Patuxent Point Parkway and Dowell Road. North of the latter road, MD 765 (H.G. Trueman Road) veers away from MD 2–4, which is also marked as Louis L. Goldstein Highway. MD 2-4 continues northeast through Lusby , where the highway has directional crossover intersections with Southern Connector Boulevard ( unsigned MD 765Z) and MD 760 (Rousby Hall Road). MD 2-4 gradually curves north and meets

2150-535: The western end of MD 497 (Cove Point Road) and a connecting road that leads to the parallel MD 765 and Calvert Cliffs State Park . The highway intersects MD 765 (Pardoe Road) and receives the end of the parallel highway shortly before crossing Johns Creek. MD 2-4 is paralleled to the east by another section of MD 765, Nursery Road, as it passes to the west of the Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant . Another section of MD 765, Saw Mill Road, parallels

2200-413: Was assigned MD 4 Business, a designation that was gone by 1970. Also in 1960, the MD 416 designation was extended south along MD 2 to Solomons. By 1970, the MD 4 freeway between Meadows and Hills Bridge was complete. In addition, MD 4 replaced MD 416 down Southern Maryland Boulevard and Solomons Island Road to Solomons, and the divided highway was extended south from Hills Bridge to MD 263. In turn, MD 408

2250-605: Was designated MD 725 by 1987. The entire route is in Anne Arundel County . Calvert Cliffs State Park Calvert Cliffs State Park is a public recreation area in Lusby , Calvert County , Maryland , that protects a portion of the cliffs that extend for 24 miles along the eastern flank of the Calvert Peninsula on the west side of Chesapeake Bay from Chesapeake Beach southward to Drum Point . The state park

2300-449: Was extended to Bristol in 1993 and the interchange at MD 260 was completed in 2003. In 2012, Maryland Route 4 between Bristol and Upper Marlboro received an additional honorary name for Stephanie Roper, an honor often reserved in Maryland for deceased state troopers and governors. After the murder of Stephanie Roper , her parents Roberta and Vincent Roper became national leaders regarding victims' rights and services including as founders of

2350-459: Was fully paved by 1927, which was the same year MD 4 was assigned to the two named roads. Southern Maryland Boulevard was built between Waysons Corner and MD 2 in Sunderland in 1929 and 1930, and was designated MD 416 by 1933. Pennsylvania Avenue was extended east out of D.C. to Dower House Road as a controlled access four-lane divided highway in 1959 and 1960 and was designated MD 4. Marlboro Pike

2400-408: Was installed in 1995. MD 408 was also assigned to much of the old alignment of MD 4 from Meadows, a community east of Andrews Air Force Base, to the Patuxent River. The highway from Washington to Upper Marlboro was once a turnpike and, as of 1898, was the longest gravel road (12 miles (19 km)) in the state. The old turnpike from Meadows to the western limit of Upper Marlboro was reconstructed as

2450-431: Was placed on what was previously MD 4 between Upper Marlboro and Lothian. The western extent of MD 408 was rolled back to Waysons Corner by 1980. MD 2-4 was also expanded to a divided highway south to Port Republic by 1980. The next major change in the routing of MD 4 came in 1977, when the Governor Thomas Johnson Bridge was completed. The St. Mary's County side of the bridge unloaded onto county highways until 1982, when

2500-462: Was widened from the Patuxent River to MD 416 (now MD 794) as part of intersection improvements at the MD 4–MD 416 intersection in 1950. MD 4 replaced MD 416 on Southern Maryland Boulevard and MD 408 was assigned to the old course of MD 4 between Waysons Corner and Lothian in 1965. MD 408 was relocated at its western end when MD 4 was reconstructed and the MD 4–MD 408 interchange was built in 1993. The roundabout at MD 408's eastern terminus

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