Governor Harry W. Nice Memorial Bridge

Harry W. Nice Memorial Bridge
Carries	2 lanes of U.S. Route 301
Crosses	Potomac River
Locale	Dahlgren, Virginia and Newburg, Maryland
Maintained by	Maryland Transportation Authority
Design	Continuous truss bridge
Longest span	800 ft (240 m)
Opening date	December 1940
Toll	$3.00 (southbound) per two-axle vehicle with E-ZPass accepted
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The Governor Harry W. Nice Memorial Bridge is a 1.7 mile, two-lane continuous truss bridge that spans the Potomac River between Newburg in Charles County, Maryland and Dahlgren in King George County, Virginia.^[1] The bridge is narrow (one 11-foot lane in each direction with no shoulders), steep (up to 3.75 percent grade), and has a reduced speed limit (45mph on the main span, even slower through the toll gates and plaza).^[2] This combination causes cars and trucks to slow and merge, which often results in backups.

This two lane bridge carries U.S. Route 301, which is a spur of U.S. Route 1 and a popular north-south alternative for bypassing the Baltimore-Washington Metropolitan Area as well as Interstate 95, Interstate 495 (Capital Beltway), and the Woodrow Wilson Bridge to the north along the Potomac River. The traffic growth/volume in Southern Maryland has led to congestion and delays, especially on holidays and weekends.^[3] In 2005, the bridge handled approximately 6.4-million vehicles.^[4]

It is one of 7 toll facilities operated by the Maryland Transportation Authority.

History

President Franklin D. Roosevelt presided its ground breaking in 1939. Formerly known as the Potomac River Bridge when opened in December 1940, the bridge was renamed in 1967 for Harry W. Nice (1877-1941) who served as governor of Maryland from 1935 to 1939.^[5][6] The bridge was the first south of Washington, DC to provide a highway link between Maryland and Virginia.^[7][8]

Future

In June 2006, the Maryland Transportation Authority initiated the Governor Harry W. Nice Memorial Bridge Improvement Project.^[9] This project is exploring upgrade/replacement of the main span, which is a bottleneck as the bridge is only 2-lanes, whereas U.S. Route 301 is 4-lanes. As of June 2007, it is in the planning stage.

The project is being coordinated with the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT), and is proceeding in conjunction with the Maryland State Highway Administration's U.S. Route 301 South Corridor Transportation Study ^[10] and the U.S. Route 301 Waldorf Area Transportation Improvements Project.^[11]

References

External links

• MdTA: Harry W. Nice Memorial Bridge - Official website
• MdTA: Governor Harry W. Nice Memorial Bridge - Description (in PDF format)
• MdTA: Governor Harry W. Nice Memorial Bridge - Improvement Project Improvement Project
• U.S. 301 Waldorf Area Transportation Improvements Project website

Bridges of the Potomac River
Upstream Woodrow Wilson Bridge	Governor Harry W. Nice Memorial Bridge	Downstream Chesapeake Bay

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