Traveling southbound on Interstate 270 in Maryland from US Route 40 westbound in Frederick to the Inner Loop of the Capital Beltway in Bethesda.
The existing expressway now signed as I-270 was originally constructed in the mid to late 1950s. When it opened in 1960, it received the "US-240" designation, which was prior assigned to what is today Maryland Route 355. A few years later, with the creation of the Interstate Highway System, US-240 would receive the concurrent designation of "I-70S". Through the 1960s and 1970s, plans were being developed that would extend "I-70S" to run concurrent with I-495, which would then turn south inside the Beltway running alongside Sligo Creek. "I-70S" would ultimately terminate on I-95 near what is now the Fort Totten Metro Station. Both I-70S and I-95 inside the Beltway were ultimately canceled due to resident opposition. In 1972, the "US-240" concurrency was removed and "I-70S" was renamed to "I-270" in 1975.
Alongside I-95 from the Beltway to Fredericksburg and I-66 from the Beltway to Haymarket, the I-270 corridor as a whole is considered one of the worst congested highways in the DC area outside the Beltway. A particular problem I-270 is known to suffer from is severe bottlenecks, or sudden lane drops. In the course of just fifteen miles from Rockville to Clarksburg, I-270 drops from thirteen lanes to a mere four. This, combined with I-270's four-lane segment from Clarksburg to Frederick exceeding capacity, is the main reason I-270 sees severe congestion frequently. (This video actually captures an infrequent moment where there is no significant congestion.)
Exits and Landmarks:
0:16 US-15 (Catoctin Mountain Highway) / US-340
0:44 I-70 / US-40 {Northern Terminus}
2:34 MD-85
4:22 Monocacy River
7:56 MD-80
9:12 Bennett Creek
11:32 MD-109
15:04 MD-121
17:22 MD-27
18:28 MD-118
19:30 Middlebrook Road
20:48 Watkins Mill Road
21:00 MD-124
22:22 MD-117
23:26 I-370 / MD-200 (Intercounty Connector) / Sam Eig Highway
23:58 Begin Thru/Local Lanes
24:44 Shady Grove Road
26:36 MD-28
27:40 MD-189 (Falls Road)
28:56 Montrose Road
29:32 End Thru/Local Lanes
30:32 I-270 Spur
31:02 Rockledge Drive / MD-187
32:50 I-495 (Capital Beltway) / MD-355 (Rockville Pike){Southern Terminus}
Windshield Camera: Vantrue X4
Sideview Camera: Samsung Galaxy J7
Microphone: Samsung Galaxy J7
Northbound: • I-270 Northbound in Ma...