Paul T Pitcher Memorial Highway (MD 100)


	This 2005 photo shows the westbound Paul T. Pitcher Memorial Highway (MD 100) westbound at EXIT 16 (MD 2) in Pasadena. (Photo by Steve Anderson.)


	THE MOUNTAIN ROAD BYPASS: Work began on the first section of MD 100 in 1963. The 3.7-mile-long section was originally called the "Mountain Road Freeway" because it connected Mountain Road with the Glen Burnie Bypass (now I-97). Indeed, this section initially had the MD 177 designation because it was an extension of Mountain Road. The short section of four-lane freeway was completed in 1965 at a cost of $2.4 million. Upon its completion, the short freeway provided a bypass for Annapolis-bound traffic traveling from the Glen Burnie Bypass.

SECTION BY SECTION, ROUTE 100 TAKES SHAPE: The Mountain Road Freeway was conceived as the initial section of the Baltimore Outer Beltway. The Outer Beltway was a lightning rod for controversy not only along its western and northern arcs (which it not survive much beyond the initial design stage), but also through the southern arc through Anne Arundel and Howard counties. This explains the slow progress of construction over the following 35 years.

The following sections of what eventually became known as MD 100 were completed during the early 1970's:

0.7 miles from I-95 to US 1 (Baltimore-Washington Boulevard) in Elkridge: This six-lane freeway opened with the completion of I-95 in 1971. It originally ended at a partially completed, grade-separated interchange.

4.3 miles from MD 2 (Ritchie Highway) to MD 177 (Mountain Road) in Pasadena: This four-lane route was built mostly as a freeway on a six-lane right-of-way except for signalized intersections at MD 607 (Magothy Bridge Road), Magothy Beach Road, and MD 177 (Mountain Road). A wide center median was reserved for the then-unbuilt Arundel Expressway (MD 10). When MD 10 was extended south during the late 1970's, a short overlapping section of MD 100 was widened from two to four lanes in each direction.


	Despite the $55 million allocated for the completion of MD 100 (according to the 1972 statewide highway plan), most state highway funds during the 1970's were diverted to the completion of Maryland's Interstate highway network - particularly within Baltimore city limits. After more than two decades of funding squabbles and environmental studies, the Maryland Department of Transportation received approval to complete the missing links on MD 100. Construction of the two missing links of MD 100 - a 5.4-mile-long, six-lane segment extending west of the existing terminus from I-95 to US 29 (Columbia Pike), and a 7.5-mile-long, four-to-six lane segment connecting the two existing but separated MD 100 sections from US 1 (Baltimore-Washington Boulevard) to I-97 - began in 1994.


	Interchanges along the newer sections of MD 100 were characteristic of those built in the area: one interchange connected to a mass transit facility (EXIT 7 / Dorsey-MARC rail station), another interchange was built as a single-point urban diamond, or "SPUI" interchange (EXIT 11 / MD 170), while small roundabouts were built at the ends of some ramps where they intersect with local roads. MD 100 took over the right-of-way of Dorsey Road (MD 176) in the area of the interchange with MD 295 (Baltimore-Washington Parkway), requiring the reconstruction of that interchange. Greater attention was paid to environmental sensitivity during this period of construction on MD 100. Ten acres of wetlands were created to replace the five acres lost during construction. The 22.1-mile-long Paul T. Pitcher Memorial Highway was completed on November 23, 1998, providing a critical east-west link in the busy corridor between Baltimore and Washington. MD 100 was named after a former county commissioner and circuit court judge who served Anne Arundel County during the 1950's and 1960's.


	This 2005 photo shows the eastbound Paul T. Pitcher Memorial Highway (MD 100) eastbound at EXIT 8 (Coca-Cola Drive) in Hanover and EXIT 18 (MD 10 / Arundel Expressway) in Pasadena. (Photos by Alex Nitzman, www.aaroads.com.)


	PLANNING AN OUTER BELTWAY: With work well underway on the Baltimore Beltway (I-695) and the Capital Beltway (I-495) during the late 1950's, officials at the Maryland State Roads Commission already were planning for the distant future. To accommodate traffic growth years in advance, they planned outer beltways for Baltimore and Washington. The 1968 statewide highway plan mapped out the following 54.3-mile-long route for the unbuilt section of the Outer Beltway from MD 99 (Old Frederick Road) in Ellicott City to I-695 (Baltimore Beltway) in Dundalk: Beginning at the end of the existing US 29 (which was rebuilt as a six-lane freeway during the 1980's), the Outer Beltway was to have extended north toward I-795 (Northwest Expressway) near Reisterstown, then veered east toward I-83 (Baltimore-Harrisburg Expressway) near Hunt Valley and I-95 near Gunpowder Falls State Park. Just beyond US 40 (Pulaski Highway), the Outer Beltway was to have turned to the south and west toward MD 702 (Southeast Expressway) in Essex and I-695 (Baltimore Beltway / Patapsco Freeway) in Dundalk. The freeway was to have had four lanes (two in each direction), but built to accommodate an additional travel lane in each direction. It was designed to carry 30,000 vehicles per day by the late 1980's. No timeline was established for completing the $100 million Outer Beltway, which was to have incorporated present-day sections of MD 100 and US 29. No known designation was given to the Outer Beltway, though it is likely it would have received a state route designation because there is no record that the state applied to the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) for Interstate funds. Much of the Outer Beltway was canceled amid heightened environmental regulation and local opposition during the early 1970's.


	BUILD A NEW EXIT 21: The existing signalized intersection at MD 607 (Magothy Bridge Road) should be replaced with a grade-separated, partial-cloverleaf interchange. Just east of the new EXIT 21, an overpass should be built to carry Magothy Beach Road over MD 100.

SOURCES: "Glen Burnie's Bypass Open," The Baltimore Sun (5/28/1965); "Freeway Eases Traffic Through Glen Burnie" by Lawrence McDaniel, The Baltimore Sun (7/09/1965); "20-Year Highway Needs Study," Maryland State Roads Commission (1968); "State Primary Highway System," Maryland Department of Transportation (1972); Alex Nitzman; Mike Pruett.

MD 100 shield by Mike Pruett.

Lightpost by Millerbernd Manufacturing Company.

PAUL T. PITCHER MEMORIAL HIGHWAY LINKS:

MD 100 (Alex Nitzman)

MD 100 (Mike Pruett)

PAUL T. PITCHER MEMORIAL HIGHWAY CURRENT CONDITIONS:

Eastbound and Westbound (Traffic.com)

Live Traffic Cams

OFF-SITE EXIT LISTINGS:

MD 100 exit list by C.C. Slater.

VIEW OR SUBMIT YOUR RATINGS TO RATETHEROADS.COM:

Paul T. Pitcher Memorial Highway (MD 100)


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