U.S. Route 40 Scenic - History

History

US 40 Scenic is the old alignment of US 40 over Town Hill and Sideling Hill, two of the many north–south ridges of the Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians between Cumberland and Hancock that needed to be crossed first by the Baltimore and Cumberland Turnpike, then US 40, and most recently I-68. The portion of US 40 Scenic from its western terminus over Town Hill to Sideling Hill Creek follows the original alignment of the turnpike and US 40 except for deviations at both ends due to construction of the new alignments of US 40 and I-68. The Baltimore and Cumberland Turnpike and later US 40 rose abruptly from Sideling Hill Creek to climb the west flank of Sideling Hill, following what is today McFarland Road east, turning south at Hixon Road, and continuing south along the same line, now abandoned, to join the present line at the top of the mountain. On the east flank, the old road began along the current alignment, then turned east a short distance south of the present curve to the east for a steeper descent that followed Western Pike before joining the present alignment a short distance west of MD 144.

The original state road between Cumberland and Hancock was paved from Fifteen Mile Creek to Green Ridge in 1913, Green Ridge to Sideling Hill Creek in 1915, and from Sideling Hill Creek to the modern MD 144 junction in 1914. Early improvements to the state road included a new bridge over Fifteen Mile Creek in 1917, a new bridge over Sideling Hill Creek in 1925, and the modification of a nasty curve just east of the new Sideling Creek Bridge at the same time. The road became part of US 40 in 1927. The highway was widened and curves banked and modified in 1929 and 1930 as part of improvements over 47 miles (76 km) of US 40 between Cumberland and Hagerstown. Passing lanes 800 to 1,000 feet (240 to 300 m) in length were added on Sideling Hill around 1942.

Despite the improvements, Sideling Hill remained a formidable obstacle to traffic between Cumberland and Hancock until a construction project began in 1949 to build a new highway over the mountain. US 40 was relocated for 6.94 miles (11.17 km) from just west of Sideling Hill Creek east over the mountain to just west of the modern MD 144 intersection. The relocation involved a box culvert over Little Bear Creek and a high level bridge over Sideling Hill Creek. The new roadway was held to a maximum gradient of 6 percent and had a third climbing lane for 90 percent of the length of the relocation. By the time the project was completed in 1952, over 1,300,000 cubic yards (990,000 m3) of earth had been excavated.

US 40 Scenic was assigned to old US 40 from Fifteen Mile Creek Road over Town Hill to the Mann Road intersection when US 40 was moved to its and I-68's present alignment over Town Hill in 1965. US 40 was expanded to a divided highway and moved to a new alignment from High Germany Road to the sweeping curve that is now Exit 74 in 1983. The section of old US 40 from the 1949–1952 Sideling Hill relocation immediately around Sideling Hill Creek was dismantled. The upgraded US 40 became a part of I-68 that passes through a cut in Sideling Hill around 1987. The old alignment over Sideling Hill was transferred to county maintenance and designated US 40 Scenic around 1989. However, US 40 Scenic temporarily followed the old McFarland Road alignment of US 40 on the west side of Sideling Hill until the completion of Exit 74 in 1991.