TOMORROW'S ROADS TODAY - Maryland State Highway ...
TOMORROW'S ROADS TODAY - Maryland State Highway ...
TOMORROW'S ROADS TODAY - Maryland State Highway ...
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26<br />
Baltimore city limits in new suburban developments. Traffic in new areas outside the cities was<br />
an unanticipated problem that increased highway congestion and accident rates. A final issue<br />
compounding the SRC’s traffic problems was <strong>Maryland</strong>’s common border with Washington,<br />
DC. The start of the Cold War with the threat of nuclear war required the SRC to improve the<br />
road system for better military readiness and possible civilian evacuations.<br />
When the Baltimore-Washington Parkway opened on October 23, 1954, The Baltimore<br />
Sun reported that travel times between Baltimore and Washington had been reduced to forty-five<br />
minutes compared to the over one-hour commute on US 1. 39 The ease and high speed of<br />
traveling between two distant places on a wide and stoplight-free highway became the hallmark<br />
of <strong>Maryland</strong>’s post-war highway system. During the Five Year Program, in addition to the<br />
construction of the Baltimore-Washington Parkway and the Chesapeake Bay Bridge, the SRC<br />
also worked on a number of other state highways, widening them and building new bridges for<br />
the wider roads. With the large number of projects to complete, the agency used standardization<br />
for every aspect of road construction because it decreased the design and construction periods.<br />
One aspect of the standardization was in the SRC’s incorporation of the AASHO guidelines and<br />
standards for highway and bridge design into the SRC’s own published standards. The AASHO<br />
and SRC guidance did not specify a particular design, but provided information about how to<br />
design safe and adequate roads and bridges and a dependable product.<br />
The Chesapeake Bay Bridge<br />
In 1949, as construction of the Baltimore-Washington Parkway continued, the SRC also<br />
began building the Chesapeake Bay Bridge, including the US 50 approach roads outside of<br />
Annapolis and on the Eastern Shore towards Queenstown. In particular, the SRC confronted a<br />
poor crossing between <strong>Maryland</strong>’s Eastern and Western shores. In addition to the distance of<br />
four miles, the bridge crossed over the main shipping channel leading to the Baltimore port.<br />
Although delayed by World War II, the Section 10 permit that had been issued in 1940 by the<br />
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers was still effective and work began in 1949. 40<br />
The Chesapeake Bay Bridge is a multi-span structure with concrete beam approaches,<br />
Wichert and simple deck trusses and two types of cantilever trusses, which form a suspension<br />
bridge at the main crossing between the two towers. 41 Originally the bridge had a 24-foot<br />
roadway width with two 18 inch emergency footways. One lane of vehicles crossed the bridge<br />
in each direction. 42 When the first bridge was completed in 1952, it was notable as the largest<br />
suspension bridge in the world and for permanently connecting <strong>Maryland</strong>’s Eastern and Western<br />
shores. More importantly, it was the first toll facility constructed under Governor Lane’s Five-<br />
Year Program using money generated from the highway bonds. Unlike the Baltimore-<br />
Washington Expressway, the Chesapeake Bay Bridge was planned as a revenue generating<br />
39 The Baltimore Sun, “45 Minutes to Washington,” October 24, 1954, <strong>Maryland</strong> Department, Enoch Pratt Free<br />
Library Vertical Files.<br />
40 Section 10 of the Harbors and Rivers Act of 1899 permits are issued by the US Army Corps of Engineers.<br />
41 Also known as the William Preston Lane, Jr. Memorial Bridge in honor of the Governor’s patronage 1947-1952.<br />
The <strong>Maryland</strong> Toll Authority (now <strong>Maryland</strong> Transportation Authority or MdTA) added three lanes to the crossing<br />
when the parallel span opened in 1972.<br />
42 The Chesapeake Bay Bridge was widened by removing safety sidewalks and reducing the width of the shoulders.