 Maryland Route 355 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Route information | ||||
| Maintained byMDSHA | ||||
| Length | 36.75 mi[1] (59.14 km) | |||
| Existed | 1954–present | |||
| Tourist routes |  Antietam Campaign Scenic Byway | |||
| Major junctions | ||||
| South end | Wisconsin Avenue NW atWashington, D.C. border inBethesda | |||
| Major intersections |
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| North end | Market Street in Frederick | |||
| Location | ||||
| Country | United States | |||
| State | Maryland | |||
| Counties | Montgomery,Frederick | |||
| Highway system | ||||
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Maryland Route 355 (MD 355) is a 36.75-mile (59.14 km) north–south road in western centralMaryland in theUnited States. The southern terminus of the route is inBethesda inMontgomery County, whereWisconsin Avenue meets the county's border withWashington, D.C.[2] The northern terminus is just north of a bridge overInterstate 70 (I-70)/U.S. Route 40 (US 40) in the city ofFrederick inFrederick County, where the road continues north as Market Street through Frederick towardMD 26.
MD 355 serves as a major thoroughfare through Frederick and Montgomery counties, passing through Bethesda,Rockville,Gaithersburg,Germantown,Clarksburg,Hyattstown,Urbana, and Frederick, roughly parallel toI-270. The southern portion of the route from the Washington, D.C., border to Germantown is a suburban four- to six-lanedivided highway lined with many businesses. North of Germantown, the route is predominantly a two-lane rural road until it reaches Frederick, where it passes through commercial areas in the southern part of the city. The road changes names along its route: from south to north, it is called Wisconsin Avenue, Rockville Pike, Hungerford Drive, Frederick Road, and Urbana Pike.
MD 355 is the original route ofUS 240, which was planned in 1926 to run from Washington, D.C., north toHarrisburg, Pennsylvania; instead, the route was designated a part ofUS 15 north of Frederick. This route served as the primary connector linking Frederick and points west to Washington, D.C. During the 1950s, US 240 was moved in stages to the Washington National Pike, a freeway between Bethesda and Frederick shared withI-70S (now I-270). MD 355 was designated onto the former alignment of US 240 between Bethesda and Frederick as each stage of freeway was built. MD 355 was also designated through Frederick along Market Street, which was the former alignment of US 15 through the city before it was moved to a bypass in 1959. US 240 was decommissioned in 1972, and MD 355 was extended south along the former US 240 to the Washington, D.C. border. In 2006, the interchange with US 15 at the route's northern terminus was removed, resulting in MD 355 ending just short of US 15 at a dead end. By 2009, a four-lane divided bypass of Urbana for MD 355, funded by private developers, was completed. The former alignment of MD 355 through Urbana was designated asMD 355 Business (MD 355 Bus.) before being removed from the state highway system. The same year, the portion of MD 355 north of I-70 was transferred to the city of Frederick and is no longer considered part of the route.
MD 355 is a part of the mainNational Highway System from the District of Columbia line toI-495, in Bethesda. The highway is also a part of the National Highway System as anintermodal connector from I-495 to Shady Grove Road in Rockville, and as a principal arterial from Shady Grove Road toMD 27 in Germantown.[1][3]
_at_Elmhirst_Drive_in_Bethesda%2c_Montgomery_County%2c_Maryland.jpg)
MD 355 begins in theBethesda CDP, at the intersection withWestern AvenueNW / Western Avenue (Maryland), the northwestern border between Washington, D.C., and the state of Maryland.[2]
The road is the northern extension ofWisconsin AvenueNW, which begins inGeorgetown at an intersection withK Street NW underneathUS 29 (Whitehurst Freeway NW), just north of thePotomac River.
From the D.C. border, MD 355 heads north as Wisconsin Avenue, a six-lane divided highway.Washington Metro'sRed Line runs in a tunnel underneath the road.[1][4]
It runs past retail and high-rise buildings inFriendship Heights and theVillage of Friendship Heights, includingThe Shops at Wisconsin Place and theFriendship Heights station along the Red Line. North of Friendship Heights, the route continues into the wooded residential area ofSomerset, before passing the Chevy Chase Country Club on the east side of the road, and the residential areas of the town ofChevy Chase, and its associatedvillages, to the west.[4] It then forms an intersection withMD 191 (Bradley Boulevard) and Bradley Lane.[1]
Past this intersection, MD 355 entersdowntown Bethesda, where it heads back into commercial areas with high-rise buildings.[1][4] The road intersectsMD 410 (Montgomery Avenue) one-way eastbound, the westbound direction of MD 410 (East West Highway), andMD 187 (Old Georgetown Road), a short distance north, near the Red Line'sBethesda station.[1][4] The road continues through the community, passingBethesda Theatre, a 1938Art Deco cinema. It leaves the downtown area of Bethesda and becomes Rockville Pike at the intersection with Glenbrook Parkway / Woodmont Avenue.[4] From here, the road passes west ofNaval Support Activity Bethesda, which is home to theWalter Reed National Military Medical Center, one of the United States' most prominent military hospitals, and east of theNational Institutes of Health, which is home to theUnited States National Library of Medicine, the world's largest medical library. TheMedical Center station along the Red Line is located in this area.[1][4][5]
_at_the_exit_for_Interstate_495_EAST_(Baltimore%2c_Silver_Spring)_on_the_edge_of_North_Bethesda_and_Bethesda_in_Montgomery_County%2c_Maryland.jpg)
The road then passes west ofStone Ridge School of the Sacred Heart, intersects Cedar Lane,[1][4] and heads north into wooded areas, passing near residences as well as theBethesda Meeting House, an 1850 wood-frame church.[4][6] MD 355 continues north through more suburban residential areas before coming to an interchange that provides access to I-495 (Capital Beltway) and the southern terminus ofI-270, where the Metro Red Line comes above the surface in the median of the route and passes over I-495.[1][4] Past this interchange, the road skirts the edge ofRock Creek Park, coming to an intersection with Grosvenor Lane that features a northboundjughandle. The route passes to the west of theLinden Oak at the Grosvenor Lane intersection. MD 355 continues into residential areas ofNorth Bethesda, where the Red Line parallels the route to the east to theGrosvenor–Strathmore station before returning to running under the road. Farther north, the route comes to the intersection withMD 547 (Strathmore Avenue) east ofGeorgetown Preparatory School.[1][4]
The route heads through some residential neighborhoods before entering a commercial area with strip malls and some high-rise buildings whereWhite Flint Mall, once one of the D.C. metropolitan area's largest shopping malls, was located on the east side of the road. MD 355 passes to the west of theNuclear Regulatory Commission headquarters and heads past theNorth Bethesda station along the Red Line.[1][4] The road comes to an intersection with Old Georgetown Road as well as a grade-separated interchange atMontrose Parkway.[1] The Metro Red Line tunnel draws farther east from MD 355 before it crosses intoRockville, the county seat of Montgomery County. In Rockville, the road passes more commercial development with the Metro Red Line andCSX'sMetropolitan Subdivision railroad line paralleling the road a short distance to the east.[4] The route intersectsMD 911 (First Street) and Wootton Parkway. MD 355 intersectsMD 660 (Dodge Street), which is a short connector toMD 28 (Veirs Mill Road) that the route intersects a short distance later.[1][4]
Past this intersection, MD 355 continues into downtown Rockville, where it becomes Hungerford Drive. The road passes by theRockville station, which is used by the Metro's Red Line,MARC'sBrunswick Line, andAmtrak'sCapitol Limited (MARC and Amtrak trains run along the CSX line).[4] MD 355 heads into more commercial areas and passes the Rockville Campus ofMontgomery College before intersecting Gude Drive. Past this intersection, MD 355 becomes Frederick Road and heads northwest into a mix of commercial and residential areas inDerwood, drawing further away from the railroad tracks. The route leaves Rockville and intersects Shady Grove Road. Past Shady Grove Road, MD 355 has an interchange withI-370 and crosses intoGaithersburg.[1][4] Here, the road heads through more commercial areas before heading into residential neighborhoods.[4] It heads into business areas again and passes northeast ofGaithersburg High School as it approaches downtown Gaithersburg, where the route has an interchange withMD 117 (Diamond Avenue) and passes over CSX's Metropolitan Subdivision before continuing northwest past more businesses. MD 355 passes southwest of the formerLakeforest Mall before intersectingMD 124 (Montgomery Village Avenue). MD 355 passes more strip malls past this intersection before crossing overGreat Seneca Creek and leaving Gaithersburg.[1][4] The route continues northwest intoGermantown through residential areas before passing businesses again and intersecting Middlebrook Road.[4] It passes through residential developments, with the road narrowing to four lanes before it reaches an intersection withMD 118 (Germantown Road). From here, the road passes more homes and a shopping center prior to crossingMD 27 (Ridge Road).[1][4]
Past MD 27, the road passes more suburban developments before narrowing to a two-lane undivided road and heading through some woodland. It continues northwest through a mix of rural woodland and suburban development inClarksburg, where MD 355 passes northeast ofClarksburg High School and intersectsMD 121 (Clarksburg Road). Past this intersection, the route passes Little Bennett Regional Park on the east and businesses on the west, running closely parallel to I-270 located to the west.[1][4] The route eventually draws farther east of I-270 and heads through residential neighborhoods and woodland before reachingHyattstown. In Hyattstown, MD 355 intersectsMD 109 (Old Hundred Road).[1][4]
_at_Maryland_State_Route_85_(Buckeystown_Pike)_in_Ballenger_Creek%2c_Frederick_County%2c_Maryland.jpg)
After passing through Hyattstown, MD 355 crosses intoFrederick County, where it becomes Urbana Pike. Here, it passes some businesses before intersectingMD 75 (Green Valley Road).[1][4] Past this intersection, the road continues into a more rural setting consisting of farmland, woods, and some residential areas and businesses.[4] The route reachesUrbana, where it heads onto a four-lane divided bypass called Worthington Boulevard to the east of the community, while the former alignment of MD 355 continues through Urbana as Urbana Pike. MD 355 intersectsMD 80 (Fingerboard Road) and passes through residential areas in the Villages of Urbana subdivision, encountering tworoundabouts.[4][7] Upon leaving Urbana, the route intersects Lew Wallace Street and returns to its alignment along two-lane undivided Urbana Pike as it continues north through areas of woods and farms with some rural residences. The road passesMonocacy National Battlefield, the site of theBattle of Monocacy Junction in theAmerican Civil War fought on July 9, 1864. Past the battlefield, the road crosses theMonocacy River and CSX'sOld Main Line Subdivision railroad line.[1][4]
In a short distance, MD 355 heads from rural areas into a commercial district on the outskirts ofFrederick. The road widens to four lanes as it passes by theFrancis Scott Key Mall and several other businesses. It intersectsMD 85 (Buckeystown Pike), which provides access to and fromI-70/US 40. MD 355 passes over I-70/US 40 and ends just north of the overpass, with the road continuing north into Frederick as locally maintained Market Street.[1][4]
_approaching_Madison_St_-_Clarke_Pl_1.JPG)
The Rockville Pike portion of MD 355 dates back to what was aNative American trail that led from the mouth ofRock Creek to the great Conestoga Trail. In later times it was used as an escape route from Washington during theWar of 1812 as well as a route for settlers to travel from Montgomery County to developing areas north and west.[8]
The stretch in the District of Columbia was renamedWisconsin Avenue in 1891, as was the part in Bethesda by 1913.[9]
In 1911, a small portion of state highway leading northwest out of Rockville was completed, with the remainder between Rockville and Gaithersburg under contract. A state highway was proposed between Gaithersburg and Germantown.[10] The state road between Gaithersburg and Germantown was finished by 1915.[11]
By 1921, the portions of state highway between the Washington, D.C., border and Rockville, to the northwest of Germantown, and between northwest of Urbana and Frederick were completed. At this time, a state highway was proposed between northwest of Germantown and northwest of Urbana.[12] The state road was completed between Germantown and Clarksburg and through Urbana to a point southeast of the community by 1923.[13] The entire length of the state road connecting Washington, D.C. and Frederick was completed by 1927.[14] In the approved plan for theU.S. Highway System in 1926,US 240 was planned to run from Washington, D.C. toHarrisburg, Pennsylvania via Frederick.[15] In 1927, US 240 was designated along the proposed 1926 route south ofUS 15/US 40 in Frederick with the US 15 designation given to the road north of Frederick.[14] In 1950, US 240 was widened into a divided highway between the Washington, D.C. border and Bethesda.[16]
_from_the_overpass_for_Interstate_370_between_Gaithersburg_and_Rockville_in_Montgomery_County%2c_Maryland.jpg)
In 1947, plans were made to construct afreeway, the Washington National Pike (now I-270), parallel to US 240.[17] In 1953, the US 240 freeway was completed between MD 121 in Clarksburg and US 15 (now MD 85) in Frederick.[18][19] The former alignment of US 240 between Clarksburg and Frederick was designated as US 240 Alt.[19] A year later, the freeway was extended down to MD 118 in Germantown. At this time, the original alignment between Germantown and Frederick was designated MD 355, replacing what was US 240 between Germantown and Clarksburg and the entire length of US 240 Alt. between Clarksburg and Frederick.[20] The US 240 freeway was extended south to MD 28 in Rockville in 1956, and MD 355 was subsequently extended south along the former alignment to the MD 28 intersection in Rockville. Also, the US 240 freeway was completed from US 15 north to US 40.[21] In 1957, US 240 was upgraded to a divided highway between Bethesda and Rockville.[22] The US 240 freeway was extended south to Montrose Road in 1958, resulting in MD 355 being extended south along the former alignment to Montrose Road.[23]I-70S was designated onto the US 240 freeway in 1959. In addition, MD 355 was extended north to US 15 north of Frederick, passing through the city on Market Street, theone-way pair of Market Street northbound and Bentz Street southbound in the downtown area, and Market Street to the north of downtown. The route replaced US 15/US 240 south of downtown Frederick and US 15 north of downtown Frederick, with US 15 shifted to a bypass west of the city.[24] In 1960, I-70S/US 240 was extended south to the Capital Beltway, and MD 355 was extended south along former US 240 between Montrose Road and the Capital Beltway.[25]
In 1972, theAmerican Association of State Highway Officials approved for the US 240 designation to be removed.[26] As a result, MD 355 was extended south along the former US 240 alignment to the Washington, D.C. border.[27] MD 355 was widened into a divided highway between Rockville and Gaithersburg in 1977.[28] The divided highway was extended north from Gaithersburg to Germantown by 1997.[29] In 2006, the northern terminus of MD 355 at the interchange with US 15 in Frederick was truncated to a dead end a short distance south of that route.[30] In 2009, the portion of MD 355 north of the I-70 overpass was transferred to the city of Frederick, with the MD 355 designation officially being removed from this stretch.[31] In 2010, an interchange was completed at Montrose Parkway.[32]
_just_south_of_Sugarloaf_Parkway_in_Urbana%2c_Frederick_County%2c_Maryland.jpg)
In Frederick County, the two bridges that carry portions of MD 355 receive annual inspections, as part of theFederal Highway Administration'sNational Bridge Inventory (NBI).[33][34][35][36] The Monocacy River crossing was built in 1930, and reconstructed in 1980.[33][34] Its June 2016 NBI report noted that this bridge is possibly eligible to be listed on theNational Register of Historic Places.[33][34] The CSX crossing was built in 1931, but never reconstructed.[35] This bridge's NBI report, from September 2016, determined that its deck was in poor condition, with advanced section loss or deterioration.[35] The 2016 inspection reports for both bridges concluded that both of these MD 355 carriers' deckgeometries were "[b]asically intolerable requiring high priority of replacement."[33][34][35]
A four-lane divided bypass of Urbana was constructed for MD 355 in the 2000s. The primary reason for constructing the bypass was to relieve traffic heading through the community brought on by the construction of numerous shopping centers in the area, and the costs for constructing the bypass were entirely paid for by the developers of an area shopping center.[37][38] The proposal for the bypass called for two roundabouts to control traffic.[7] The first portion of the road opened in late 2005 from MD 355 south to a roundabout at Sugarloaf Parkway.[38] On October 30, 2008, construction began to build the connection of the bypass to MD 355 south of MD 80.[39] The bypass was completed by January 2009, at which point MD 355 was realigned onto it and the former alignment became MD 355 Bus.[4][40] In 2013, maintenance of the bypass of MD 355 around Urbana was transferred from the developers to the state.[1]
| County | Location | mi[1] | km | Destinations | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Montgomery | Bethesda | 0.00 | 0.00 | Western Avenue NW /Wisconsin Avenue NW south | District of Columbia border (the District controls the entirety of Western Avenue);[41] southern terminus |
| 1.14 | 1.83 |   MD 191 west (Bradley Boulevard) / Bradley Lane east | Eastern terminus of MD 191 | ||
| 1.62 | 2.61 |    MD 187 east (Montgomery Lane) /MD 410 east (Montgomery Avenue) | Eastbound direction of MD 187; eastern terminus of MD 187; eastbound direction of MD 410 | ||
| 1.70 | 2.74 |  MD 187 north (Old Georgetown Road) /MD 410 west (East–West Highway) | Westbound direction of MD 410; western terminus of MD 410; southern terminus of MD 187 | ||
| 3.96 | 6.37 |    I-495 (Capital Beltway) /I-270 north –Baltimore,Silver Spring,Frederick,Northern Virginia | Interchange; I-495 exit 34; no access from MD 355 south to I-495 north or I-270 north | ||
| Grosvenor Lane to Beach Drive | Northbound access only | ||||
| North Bethesda | 5.27 | 8.48 |  MD 547 east (Strathmore Avenue) | Western terminus of MD 547 | |
| Rockville | 6.59 | 10.61 | Montrose Parkway (MD 927A) toRandolph Road | Interchange | |
| 8.71 | 14.02 |     MD 911 north (First Street) toMD 28 east /MD 586 | Southern terminus of MD 911 | ||
| 9.05 | 14.56 |  MD 660 north (Dodge Street) toMD 28 east | Southern terminus of unsigned MD 660 | ||
| 9.17 | 14.76 |  MD 28 (Jefferson Street/Veirs Mill Road) toI-270 /MD 586 | No access from MD 355 north to MD 28 east | ||
| Gaithersburg | 12.68 | 20.41 |   I-370 west (Intercounty Connector) toI-270 | Interchange; no exit to eastbound I-370; I-370 exit 2 | |
| 14.38 | 23.14 |  MD 117 west (West Diamond Avenue) / Fulks Corner Avenue | Interchange; access to and from northbound MD 355 provided by Fulks Corner Avenue | ||
| 15.43 | 24.83 |  MD 124 (Montgomery Village Avenue) toI-270 | |||
| Germantown | 18.81 | 30.27 |   MD 118 south (Germantown Road) toI-270 –Germantown,Montgomery College | Northern terminus of MD 118 | |
| 19.70 | 31.70 |  MD 27 north (Ridge Road) –Germantown,Damascus | Southern terminus of MD 27 | ||
| Clarksburg | 22.90 | 36.85 |  MD 121 south (Clarksburg Road) –Boyds,Frederick | Northern terminus of MD 121; officially MD 121A | |
| Hyattstown | 26.45 | 42.57 |  MD 109 south (Old Hundred Road) toI-270 –Comus,Frederick,Washington | Northern terminus of MD 109 | |
| Frederick | | 27.07 | 43.56 |  MD 75 north (Green Valley Road) | Southern terminus of MD 75 |
| Urbana | 30.25 | 48.68 |  MD 80 (Fingerboard Road) toI-270 –Buckeystown,Kemptown | ||
| Frederick | 36.59 | 58.89 |    MD 85 (Buckeystown Pike) toI-70 /I-270 /US 40 –Baltimore | ||
| 36.75 | 59.14 | Market Street north –Downtown Frederick | Northern terminus | ||
| 1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi | |||||
 Maryland Route 355 Business | |
|---|---|
| Location | Urbana |
| Length | 1.06 mi[42] (1.71 km) |
_at_Maryland_State_Route_355_(Worthington_Boulevard)_in_Urbana%2c_Frederick_County%2c_Maryland.jpg)
Maryland Route 355 Business (MD 355 Bus.) was the designation of a 1.06-mile (1.71 km)business route of MD 355 in Urbana that ran along Urbana Pike. The route began at MD 355 south of Urbana, heading west as a two-lane undivided road and coming to an intersection with MD 80. Past this intersection, the road continued northwest through residential areas. The business route reached its terminus at another intersection with MD 355.[42][43] The entire length of MD 355 Bus. originally followed MD 355C.[42] In 2014, all of MD 355C except for a 0.376-mile (0.605 km) portion between a point south of Urbana Church Road and Sprigg Street was turned over to county maintenance.[44] The remainder of MD 355C was turned over to county maintenance in an agreement dated December 8, 2017.[45]
Junction list
The entire route was inUrbana,Frederick County.
| mi[42] | km | Destinations | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0.00 | 0.00 |  MD 355 (Worthington Boulevard/Urbana Pike) | Southern terminus | ||
| 0.22 | 0.35 | MD 80 (Fingerboard Road) toI-270 –Buckeystown,Kemptown | |||
| 1.06 | 1.71 | MD 355 (Urbana Pike/Worthington Boulevard) | Northern terminus | ||
| 1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi | |||||
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
