Windlass Freeway near Baltimore

[Scott M. Kozel]

I am wondering what plans if any exist for extending the Windlass
Freeway.

It's interesting that the MDOT map still calls it the Windlass Freeway.
The original plan in the 1960s was to have the Windlass Freeway run from
I-95 at the Moravia Road interchange, to White Marsh (maybe beyond),
paralleling US-40 to the south. As one can see, only the one small part
was built. The road crosses the Amtrak mainline twice in less than a
mile, with a sharp right-angle bend in between. I'm sure that the sharp
bend was intended to be temporary, the future site of a three-way
interchange between the Windlass Freeway and the Patapsco Freeway.
("Windlass" is a nice nautical term, fitting for a harbor town like
Baltimore).

The original plan for the Baltimore Beltway was for it to run on the
Essex Peninsula and cross the Back River near the Essex Skypark, and
connect into today's I-695 alignment. The MD-702 Southeast Blvd. is a
scaled-down portion of this that was finished in the 1980s.

So the Patapsco Freeway and the small built piece of the Windlass
Freeway was used for the Baltimore Beltway (they were opened about
1973). I seriously doubt that the Essex Peninsula beltway alignment
will ever be built. The Windlass Freeway might, I don't know of any
plans, does anyone know?

_____________________________________________________________________
/ Scott M. Kozel \
/ The Virginia Highwayman \
/ koz...@richmond.infi.net \