Maryland Roads - MD 648

MD 648



Looking west at the MD 450 Severn River bridge. MD 2 originally crossed here, but the MD 648 designation doesn't finish following old 2 into Annapolis. Instead, 450 was extended up a new, parallel alignment to US 50/301.


MD 672 is barely 1,000 feet long, leading to random off-base Navy facilities. It's not worth signing, but I'll take it.


Being an old alignment (of MD 2), MD 648 is a high number among the series that MD likes to assign to former routings. As a result, there are weird random spurs off of MD 648 that are also numbered as 648. This is one of them. The original MD 2 alignment followed Baltimore-Annapolis Blvd. (Balto-Annap among friends) straight through the eastern reaches of the current MD 2/450 interchange with US 50/301. Since the interchange necessitated demolishing part of MD 648, it was rerouted well east of the interchange. Until this became freeway, once upon a time the rerouted MD 648 actually crossed 50/301 to the other side, which still connects as a right-in/very-sharp-and-not-recommended-right-out along US 50/301 WB. Possibly because this end is residential while the north side is commercial, this end got cut off and the north side didn't. So now MD 648 follows a long dead-end that was never part of the original MD 2 route.


Easily visible from MD 648, these reverse-color button copy crossbucks are on Riggs Rd., WB and EB in Severna Park just west of 648. Click on the second photo for a closeup.


Remember how I said MD assigns high numbers to old alignments? When MD 2 moved to Ritchie Highway through Pasadena, MD 648 moved to Long Hill Road. But then came MD 100, cutting off Long Hill. MD 648 was moved east onto Waterford Rd., where access was maintained under 100, and then shares a multiplex with MD 177 to get back to itself (see next photo). MdSHA was stuck with the remnants of Long Hill Rd., and could have called them random lettered segments of MD 648, but instead assigned a new number: MD 915, an old alignment of an old alignment. Both halves of Long Hill are 915, and this is the end of the northern half.


Because MD 648 now follows MD 177, the "TO" can disappear. Unless there's a technical discontinuity in MD 648 because it was only legislated up Waterford Rd. and never along 177 back to the west. Very possible.


NB past a faded historical sign (Marley Chapel) and into southern Baltimore, where perfectly serviceable trailblazers are ruined by inexplicable reverse-color banners. I use plurals because the SB assembly is similarly dysfunctional.


MD 648 NB ends at Waterview Ave. Although both lanes can turn left, Annapolis Rd. jogs to the right here across MD 295, continuing nearly another mile without MD 648 before running back into MD 295.

Onto modern MD 2

Onto MD 450
Onto MD 177
Onto MD 295
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