Northeast Freeway (Washington, D.C.)
Encyclopedia
The Northeast Freeway was a planned freeway in Prince George's County, Maryland
that would have run from the North Central Freeway in the District of Columbia northeast to the College Park Interchange
on the Capital Beltway (I-495)
. The route would have carried Interstate 95
from the Capital Beltway into the District of Columbia.
The entire route was canceled in 1977 after the government of the District of Columbia canceled the North Central Freeway, cutting off the southern end of the Northeast Freeway from the D.C. freeway network. The cancellation of the route led to the truncation of Interstate 95
at the College Park Interchange
and its subsequent rerouting onto the eastern half of the Capital Beltway
.
powerline corridor and run straight northeast, crossing Northwest Branch Park in the outer suburban area. The route would have merged with the College Park Interchange
on the Capital Beltway, joining the segment of I-95 completed in 1971.
railroad corridor; instead, no less than 17 separate alignments were proposed, many of which did not make much use of the railroad alignment.
One important aspect of the study was the consideration of a consolidated route, where the North Central Freeway and Northeast Freeway would join together into a single freeway that would then run south to the Inner Loop
. Many different alignments, including ones paralleling Georgia Avenue and Sherman Avenue through northern D.C., were considered as part of a consolidated routing of the North Central Freeway south of the Northeast Freeway.
This study stated that the Northeast Freeway should enter D.C. between Gallatin St. and Galloway St., in the vicinity of Michigan Park, where it would run west for 3/4 mile through Fort Drive Circle Park before intercepting the B&O corridor near Fort Totten, Washington, D.C.
. This plan,a major departure from the 1960 route, was adopted to ensure that the route followed the right-of-way of the circumferential Fort Drive Parkway, thus addressing the complaints of local residents, while conforming with the state of Maryland's plans to run the Northeast Freeway through Northwest Branch Park. The study elucidated three separate options that could be followed once the route reached Fort Totten:
The last option was the option recommended by the study.
As noted above, the Northeast Freeway (I-95) was to enter the District via the Fort Drive route. The 1966 plans included several changes to the junction with the North Central Freeway; one lane per carriageway from I-95 would connect with ramps to and from North Capitol Street, while the remaining three lanes per carriageway would join with the six-lane North Central Freeway. 'Round-the-corner' connections between I-95 south and I-70S north, and between I-70S south and I-95 north, were also removed from the junction in the 1966 study. Otherwise, few modifications were made to the routing of the Northeast Freeway.
power line corridor, and would have entered D.C. in the vicinity of New Hampshire Avenue, following it for 3200 feet (975.4 m) in a depressed roadway configuration, before burrowing beneath it to join and parallel the B&O railroad corridor. The median of this route was planned as a transit right-of-way; the transit line was later built as the WMATA
Green Line
.
The study described this routing as superior to previous routings, especially in terms of cost and complexity of construction. The study concluded that the route as proposed, between the Union Station interchange and the College Park Interchange
(thus including the connecting segment of the North Central Freeway), would have been 8.6 miles (13.8 km) in length, cost only $176 million to construct, and would have displaced a maximum of 59 homes in the District and 110 in Maryland, with most of the displacements a result of expansive interchange design.
for official study. However, this routing was modified somewhat from the 1971 plan; the Northeast Freeway segment was narrowed to six lanes, in a 2-2-2 configuration with a center reversible roadway. It would have crossed Northwest Branch Park in a cut-and-cover tunnel, and the burrowed crossing of New Hampshire Avenue in Maryland next to the southern end of the Pepco route linking the Northeast Freeway with the North Central Freeway was replaced with an elevated, sharply curved crossing with a 55 mi/h design speed (the remainder of the route would be 70 mph), necessitated by the challenging topography of the area and the need to avoid rebuilding the Pepco substation. The segment along New Hampshire Avenue would have been depressed, with no apparent consideration for a cut and cover segment either in Maryland for new retail development, nor in Washington, D.C., such as for preserving the dignity of the Eastern Star Masonic Home property. This version of the Northeast Freeway would have had only two interchanges at University Avenue and the east–west Highway (MD 410
).
The routing as proposed by MDOT SHA would have been 4.89 miles (7.9 km) in length, avoided the wholesale destruction of portions of Northwest Branch Park, and displaced a significantly fewer number of homes — only 25 in D.C., and zero in Maryland, mainly due to less expansive interchange designs. However, the 2-2-2 configuration would have resulted in a minimum 25% capacity reduction compared to a 4-4 configuration.
Prince George's County, Maryland
Prince George's County is a county located in the U.S. state of Maryland, immediately north, east, and south of Washington, DC. As of 2010, it has a population of 863,420 and is the wealthiest African-American majority county in the nation....
that would have run from the North Central Freeway in the District of Columbia northeast to the College Park Interchange
College Park Interchange
The College Park Interchange is the southern end of the segment of Interstate 95 in Maryland between the Baltimore Beltway and the Capital Beltway ; it is the point where Interstate 95 and Interstate 495 join with one another within Maryland....
on the Capital Beltway (I-495)
Interstate 495 (Capital Beltway)
Interstate 495 is a Interstate Highway that surrounds the United States' capital of Washington, D.C., and its inner suburbs in adjacent Maryland and Virginia. I-495 is widely known as the Capital Beltway or simply the Beltway, especially when the context of Washington, D.C., is clear...
. The route would have carried Interstate 95
Interstate 95 in Maryland
Interstate 95 in Maryland is a major highway that runs diagonally from northeast to southwest, from Maryland's border with Delaware, to the Woodrow Wilson Bridge, briefly entering the District of Columbia before reaching Virginia...
from the Capital Beltway into the District of Columbia.
The entire route was canceled in 1977 after the government of the District of Columbia canceled the North Central Freeway, cutting off the southern end of the Northeast Freeway from the D.C. freeway network. The cancellation of the route led to the truncation of Interstate 95
Interstate 95
Interstate 95 is the main highway on the East Coast of the United States, running parallel to the Atlantic Ocean from Maine to Florida and serving some of the most populated urban areas in the country, including Boston, Providence, New Haven, New York City, Newark, Philadelphia, Baltimore,...
at the College Park Interchange
College Park Interchange
The College Park Interchange is the southern end of the segment of Interstate 95 in Maryland between the Baltimore Beltway and the Capital Beltway ; it is the point where Interstate 95 and Interstate 495 join with one another within Maryland....
and its subsequent rerouting onto the eastern half of the Capital Beltway
Interstate 495 (Capital Beltway)
Interstate 495 is a Interstate Highway that surrounds the United States' capital of Washington, D.C., and its inner suburbs in adjacent Maryland and Virginia. I-495 is widely known as the Capital Beltway or simply the Beltway, especially when the context of Washington, D.C., is clear...
.
Route description
As proposed in the 1971 D.C. Interstate System program, the Northeast Freeway, eight lanes wide, would have separated from the North Central Freeway south of Takoma Park, Washington, D.C., running northeast out of the District in the vicinity of New Hampshire Avenue. Exiting the District, it would have merged with the PepcoPotomac Electric Power Company
The Potomac Electric Power Company, known as Pepco, is a public utility supplying electric power to the city of Washington, D.C., and to surrounding communities in Maryland...
powerline corridor and run straight northeast, crossing Northwest Branch Park in the outer suburban area. The route would have merged with the College Park Interchange
College Park Interchange
The College Park Interchange is the southern end of the segment of Interstate 95 in Maryland between the Baltimore Beltway and the Capital Beltway ; it is the point where Interstate 95 and Interstate 495 join with one another within Maryland....
on the Capital Beltway, joining the segment of I-95 completed in 1971.
1963-64 North Central Freeway Study
In a series of proposals published in 1963 and 1964, the subsequent study of the North Central Freeway and Northeast Freeway indirectly ignored the earlier suggestions regarding the use of the B&OBaltimore and Ohio Railroad
The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad was one of the oldest railroads in the United States and the first common carrier railroad. It came into being mostly because the city of Baltimore wanted to compete with the newly constructed Erie Canal and another canal being proposed by Pennsylvania, which...
railroad corridor; instead, no less than 17 separate alignments were proposed, many of which did not make much use of the railroad alignment.
One important aspect of the study was the consideration of a consolidated route, where the North Central Freeway and Northeast Freeway would join together into a single freeway that would then run south to the Inner Loop
Inner Loop (Washington, D.C.)
The Inner Loop was two planned freeways around downtown Washington, D.C. The innermost loop would have formed an oval centered on the White House, with a central freeway connecting the southern segment to the northern segment and then continuing on to Interstate 95. Interstate 95 would have met...
. Many different alignments, including ones paralleling Georgia Avenue and Sherman Avenue through northern D.C., were considered as part of a consolidated routing of the North Central Freeway south of the Northeast Freeway.
This study stated that the Northeast Freeway should enter D.C. between Gallatin St. and Galloway St., in the vicinity of Michigan Park, where it would run west for 3/4 mile through Fort Drive Circle Park before intercepting the B&O corridor near Fort Totten, Washington, D.C.
Fort Totten, Washington, D.C.
Fort Totten is a park and neighborhood in northeast Washington, D.C.. The neighborhood is bordered by N Capitol St to the west, Riggs Rd NE to the north, the Red Line tracks to the east, and Hawaii Ave NE to the south. It is named after a Civil War-era fort. The Fort Totten Metro station is named...
. This plan,a major departure from the 1960 route, was adopted to ensure that the route followed the right-of-way of the circumferential Fort Drive Parkway, thus addressing the complaints of local residents, while conforming with the state of Maryland's plans to run the Northeast Freeway through Northwest Branch Park. The study elucidated three separate options that could be followed once the route reached Fort Totten:
- a route extending west of the B&O railroad to meet a North Central Freeway routed via Georgia Avenue and Sherman Avenue
- a route that would turn south along the railroad and parallel a separately-routed North Central Freeway
- a route that would combine with a North Central Freeway routed via the railroad corridor
The last option was the option recommended by the study.
1966 North Central Freeway Supplementary Study
The enormous opposition to the 1964 and 1965 alignments for the North Central Freeway led to a supplementary study being conducted in 1966 that affected the routing of the Northeast Freeway.As noted above, the Northeast Freeway (I-95) was to enter the District via the Fort Drive route. The 1966 plans included several changes to the junction with the North Central Freeway; one lane per carriageway from I-95 would connect with ramps to and from North Capitol Street, while the remaining three lanes per carriageway would join with the six-lane North Central Freeway. 'Round-the-corner' connections between I-95 south and I-70S north, and between I-70S south and I-95 north, were also removed from the junction in the 1966 study. Otherwise, few modifications were made to the routing of the Northeast Freeway.
1971 De Leuw-Weese Study
In 1971, a study released by De Leuw-Weese defined a new route for the Northeast Freeway that had a significantly lower impact on surrounding neighborhoods. I-95 was planned as an eight-lane freeway within a 250 feet (76.2 m) right-of-way; it would have run entirely within the PepcoPEPCO
PEPCO may refer to:* Portland Electric Power Company* Potomac Electric Power Company* Pakistan Electric Power Company...
power line corridor, and would have entered D.C. in the vicinity of New Hampshire Avenue, following it for 3200 feet (975.4 m) in a depressed roadway configuration, before burrowing beneath it to join and parallel the B&O railroad corridor. The median of this route was planned as a transit right-of-way; the transit line was later built as the WMATA
Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority
The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority is a tri-jurisdictional government agency that operates transit service in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area, including the Metrorail, Metrobus and MetroAccess...
Green Line
Green Line (Washington Metro)
The Green Line is one of five heavy rail subway lines that constitute the Washington Metro rapid transit system in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area. The Green Line consists of 21 stations, with termini at Branch Avenue and at Greenbelt. The Green Line runs through Prince George's County,...
.
The study described this routing as superior to previous routings, especially in terms of cost and complexity of construction. The study concluded that the route as proposed, between the Union Station interchange and the College Park Interchange
College Park Interchange
The College Park Interchange is the southern end of the segment of Interstate 95 in Maryland between the Baltimore Beltway and the Capital Beltway ; it is the point where Interstate 95 and Interstate 495 join with one another within Maryland....
(thus including the connecting segment of the North Central Freeway), would have been 8.6 miles (13.8 km) in length, cost only $176 million to construct, and would have displaced a maximum of 59 homes in the District and 110 in Maryland, with most of the displacements a result of expansive interchange design.
1973 Pepco Route
In 1973, this routing was adopted by the Maryland State Highway AdministrationMaryland State Highway Administration
The Maryland State Highway Administration is the state agency responsible for maintaining Maryland numbered highways outside of Baltimore City...
for official study. However, this routing was modified somewhat from the 1971 plan; the Northeast Freeway segment was narrowed to six lanes, in a 2-2-2 configuration with a center reversible roadway. It would have crossed Northwest Branch Park in a cut-and-cover tunnel, and the burrowed crossing of New Hampshire Avenue in Maryland next to the southern end of the Pepco route linking the Northeast Freeway with the North Central Freeway was replaced with an elevated, sharply curved crossing with a 55 mi/h design speed (the remainder of the route would be 70 mph), necessitated by the challenging topography of the area and the need to avoid rebuilding the Pepco substation. The segment along New Hampshire Avenue would have been depressed, with no apparent consideration for a cut and cover segment either in Maryland for new retail development, nor in Washington, D.C., such as for preserving the dignity of the Eastern Star Masonic Home property. This version of the Northeast Freeway would have had only two interchanges at University Avenue and the east–west Highway (MD 410
Maryland Route 410
Maryland Route 410 is a state highway in the U.S. state of Maryland. Known for most of its length as East–West Highway, the highway runs from MD 355 in Bethesda east to Pennsy Drive in Landover Hills...
).
The routing as proposed by MDOT SHA would have been 4.89 miles (7.9 km) in length, avoided the wholesale destruction of portions of Northwest Branch Park, and displaced a significantly fewer number of homes — only 25 in D.C., and zero in Maryland, mainly due to less expansive interchange designs. However, the 2-2-2 configuration would have resulted in a minimum 25% capacity reduction compared to a 4-4 configuration.
See also
- Interstate 495 (Capital Beltway)Interstate 495 (Capital Beltway)Interstate 495 is a Interstate Highway that surrounds the United States' capital of Washington, D.C., and its inner suburbs in adjacent Maryland and Virginia. I-495 is widely known as the Capital Beltway or simply the Beltway, especially when the context of Washington, D.C., is clear...
- North Central Freeway
- Inner Loop (Washington, D.C.)Inner Loop (Washington, D.C.)The Inner Loop was two planned freeways around downtown Washington, D.C. The innermost loop would have formed an oval centered on the White House, with a central freeway connecting the southern segment to the northern segment and then continuing on to Interstate 95. Interstate 95 would have met...