Maryland Route 402
Encyclopedia
Maryland Route 402 is a state highway
in the U.S. state
of Maryland
. Known for most of its length as Dares Beach Road, the state highway runs 4.33 miles (7 km) from MD 2
and MD 4
in Prince Frederick
east to Chesapeake Avenue in Dares Beach
. MD 402 was mostly constructed in 1932. Both termini have changed multiple times; the state highway settled into its present routing in the late 1950s.
as Solomons Island Road, in the northern end of Prince Frederick. The roadway continues west as West Dares Beach Road to Prince Frederick Boulevard. MD 402 heads east as two-lane Dares Beach Road, which intersects Armory Road and passes the Calvert County Fairgrounds and Calvert High School
. The state highway passes through a forested area with scattered residential subdivisions. Between Prince Frederick and Dares Beach, MD 402 intersects Wilson Road, which heads north toward Plum Point. On the western edge of Dares Beach, the old alignment of MD 402, which is unsigned
MD 768 (Dares Wharf Road), splits to the northeast. MD 402 continues east as Branch Street to its eastern terminus at Chesapeake Avenue, one block west of the Chesapeake Bay
shoreline.
). The portion of Armory Road north of MD 402 was designated MD 750. In 1957, the state highway was extended east from Wilson Road to Dares Beach using what is now MD 768. MD 402 was removed from Armory Road the same year when the road was transferred to county control. The state highway was reconstructed with a wider bituminous concrete surface starting in 1957 from the Prince Frederick end. The reconstruction was completed in 1959, the same year the highway was extended to its present western terminus at MD 2. MD 402 was rerouted to its present eastern terminus in 1960.
.
{| class=wikitable
!Location
!Mile
!Destinations
!Notes
|-
|Prince Frederick
|0.00
|
|Western terminus
|-
|rowspan=2|Dares Beach
|3.85
|Dares Wharf Road north
|Unsigned MD 768; old alignment of MD 402
|-
|4.33
|Chesapeake Avenue
|Eastern terminus
State highway
State highway, state road or state route can refer to one of three related concepts, two of them related to a state or provincial government in a country that is divided into states or provinces :#A...
in the U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
. Known for most of its length as Dares Beach Road, the state highway runs 4.33 miles (7 km) from MD 2
Maryland Route 2
Maryland Route 2 is the longest state highway in the U.S. state of Maryland. The route runs from Solomons Island in Calvert County north to an intersection with U.S. Route 1 and U.S. Route 40 Truck in Baltimore...
and MD 4
Maryland Route 4
Maryland Route 4 is a state highway in the U.S. state of Maryland. The state highway runs from MD 5 in Leonardtown north to Southern Avenue at the Washington, D.C. border, past which the highway continues as Pennsylvania Avenue...
in Prince Frederick
Prince Frederick, Maryland
Prince Frederick is a census-designated place in Calvert County, Maryland, United States, not to be confused with the incorporated, and much larger, city of Frederick some to the northwest in Frederick County...
east to Chesapeake Avenue in Dares Beach
Dares Beach, Maryland
Dares Beach is a small residential community located in Calvert County, Maryland. Dares Beach is situated along the Chesapeake Bay. It utilizes the Prince Frederick, Maryland zip code and is approximately 4 miles east of the town center of Prince Frederick, Maryland...
. MD 402 was mostly constructed in 1932. Both termini have changed multiple times; the state highway settled into its present routing in the late 1950s.
Route description
MD 402 begins at an intersection with MD 2 and MD 4, which run concurrentlyConcurrency (road)
A concurrency, overlap, or coincidence in a road network is an instance of one physical road bearing two or more different highway, motorway, or other route numbers...
as Solomons Island Road, in the northern end of Prince Frederick. The roadway continues west as West Dares Beach Road to Prince Frederick Boulevard. MD 402 heads east as two-lane Dares Beach Road, which intersects Armory Road and passes the Calvert County Fairgrounds and Calvert High School
Calvert High School (Prince Frederick, Maryland)
Calvert High School is a public high school in Prince Frederick, Maryland and is part of the Calvert County Public Schools.The campus is on Dares Beach Road and includes the main school building, a field house for basketball and other sporting events, a football stadium, a baseball field, tennis...
. The state highway passes through a forested area with scattered residential subdivisions. Between Prince Frederick and Dares Beach, MD 402 intersects Wilson Road, which heads north toward Plum Point. On the western edge of Dares Beach, the old alignment of MD 402, which is unsigned
Unsigned highway
An unsigned highway is a highway that has been assigned a route number, but does not bear conventional road markings that would normally be used to identify the route with that number...
MD 768 (Dares Wharf Road), splits to the northeast. MD 402 continues east as Branch Street to its eastern terminus at Chesapeake Avenue, one block west of the Chesapeake Bay
Chesapeake Bay
The Chesapeake Bay is the largest estuary in the United States. It lies off the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by Maryland and Virginia. The Chesapeake Bay's drainage basin covers in the District of Columbia and parts of six states: New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and West...
shoreline.
History
MD 402 was constructed as a gravel road from MD 2 in Prince Frederick, which originally followed Armory Road, to Wilson Road near Dares Beach in 1932. When MD 2 was relocated on the north side of Prince Frederick around 1942, MD 402 was extended south along Armory Road to Main Street (then MD 2, now MD 765Maryland Route 765
Maryland Route 765 is a collection of state highways in the U.S. state of Maryland. These 26 highways are service roads constructed or old alignments maintained to provide access to private property or county highways whose access was compromised by the realignment of MD 2 and MD 4 in Calvert...
). The portion of Armory Road north of MD 402 was designated MD 750. In 1957, the state highway was extended east from Wilson Road to Dares Beach using what is now MD 768. MD 402 was removed from Armory Road the same year when the road was transferred to county control. The state highway was reconstructed with a wider bituminous concrete surface starting in 1957 from the Prince Frederick end. The reconstruction was completed in 1959, the same year the highway was extended to its present western terminus at MD 2. MD 402 was rerouted to its present eastern terminus in 1960.
Junction list
The entire route is in Calvert CountyCalvert County, Maryland
Calvert County is a county located in the U.S. state of Maryland. It occupies the Calvert Peninsula which is bordered on the east by the Chesapeake Bay and on the west by the Patuxent River. Calvert County is part of the Southern Maryland region. Calvert County's residents are among the highest...
.
{| class=wikitable
!Location
!Mile
!Destinations
!Notes
|-
|Prince Frederick
Prince Frederick, Maryland
Prince Frederick is a census-designated place in Calvert County, Maryland, United States, not to be confused with the incorporated, and much larger, city of Frederick some to the northwest in Frederick County...
|0.00
|
|Western terminus
|-
|rowspan=2|Dares Beach
Dares Beach, Maryland
Dares Beach is a small residential community located in Calvert County, Maryland. Dares Beach is situated along the Chesapeake Bay. It utilizes the Prince Frederick, Maryland zip code and is approximately 4 miles east of the town center of Prince Frederick, Maryland...
|3.85
|Dares Wharf Road north
|Unsigned MD 768; old alignment of MD 402
|-
|4.33
|Chesapeake Avenue
|Eastern terminus