Interstate 270 (Maryland) - History

History

In 1947, plans were made to construct a freeway called the Washington National Pike parallel to U.S. Route 240 (present-day MD 355) between Bethesda and Frederick. This road was completed in 1953, and the US 240 designation was moved to it. As a result, suburban growth began along the corridor between Washington, D.C. and Frederick, with several federal agencies including the United States Atomic Energy Commission, the National Bureau of Standards, and the National Institutes of Health moving their headquarters to Montgomery County. Following the creation of the Interstate Highway System in 1956, Interstate 70S was designated along with US 240 on the Washington National Pike. It was a suffixed while the bypassed portion of the original US 240 north of the current interchange between I-495 and I-270 was designated as MD 355 by 1960. A western spur that provided access to southbound I-495 was eventually built and became I-270.

I-70S was projected to continue past the Capital Beltway into Washington, D.C. on the North Central Freeway to connect directly to Interstate 95. Plans for this freeway initially began in 1959 when a freeway was called for along the Georgia Avenue corridor. In the mid 1960s, a study was proposed for the freeway that recommended several different routings between Washington, D.C. and the Capital Beltway. By 1966, a route for the North Central Freeway was planned along a Baltimore & Ohio Railroad line running through the northeastern part of Washington and Takoma Park north to the Capital Beltway. In a 1971 study by DeLeuw, Cather Associates and Harry Wesse & Associates, LTD, I-70S was planned to run from its southern terminus at I-495 and run concurrent with that route before turning south on the North Central Freeway and ending at I-95 in Washington. The routing of the freeway through residential areas of Washington drew opposition from residents of the Takoma Park, Brookland, and Michigan Park neighborhoods who were successful in getting the freeway cancelled through their neighborhoods in 1970. The North Central Freeway within Maryland was cancelled by the MDSHA in 1972 due to opposition from officials in Montgomery County. In 1975, the Federal Highway Administration officially approved withdrawal of plans to construct the road south of the Capital Beltway.

On May 18, 1975, I-70S was designated I-270 and the US 240 designation was removed from the road. The western spur is now signed and publicly known simply as Interstate 270 Spur. By the 1980s, traffic congestion had grown on I-270 in Montgomery County; as a result, a $200 million project widened the road between I-495 and MD 118 to its current configuration, with some portions being widened to twelve lanes. This widening led to growth of residences and businesses along the I-270 corridor as far north as Germantown and increased traffic counts along the road. Much of I-270 in Montgomery County is now a hub for biotech firms. By 1999, congestion on the road grew to then-projected 2010 levels.