Existed: 1927 – present Counties: Montgomery Constructed 1927 | East end: MD 187 in Bethesda Length 5.23 km County Montgomery County | |
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West end: MacArthur Boulevard in Glen Echo | ||
Maryland Route 188 (MD 188) is a state highway in the U.S. state of Maryland. Known as Wilson Lane, the highway runs 3.25 miles (5.23 km) from MacArthur Boulevard in Glen Echo east to MD 187 in Bethesda. MD 188 runs mainly through residential areas in its course through the affluent suburb of Bethesda. The highway was originally paved in the early 1910s and widened in the mid-1920s.
Contents
Map of MD-188, Bethesda, MD, USA
Route description
MD 188 begins at MacArthur Boulevard just west of the town of Glen Echo and just east of the Union Arch Bridge, which the county-maintained highway uses to cross the deep valley of Cabin John Creek. The highway heads northeast as a two-lane road between affluent residential neighborhoods in the western part of Bethesda. MD 188 temporarily expands to a four-lane divided highway around its intersection with MD 190 (River Road). The highway is flanked on its eastbound side by a service road as it passes the Landon School. MD 188 veers southeast at its intersection with Aberdeen Road and Merrick Road, then has a sharp turn east at Maiden Lane just west of its intersection with MD 191 (Bradley Boulevard). The highway heads straight east toward the edge of downtown Bethesda, where the route has its eastern terminus at a five-way intersection with MD 187 (Old Georgetown Road), Arlington Road, and St. Elmo Avenue. There is no direct access from MD 188 to northbound MD 187; that movement requires using Cordell Avenue one block west of the terminus.
History
Wilson Lane was proposed to be paved by Montgomery County with funding from the state by 1910. The highway was built as a 14-foot-wide (4.3 m) macadam road from the Woodmont area of Bethesda west to Glen Echo by 1915. The 1 mile (1.6 km) of MD 188 west from MD 187 was widened with a pair of 3-foot-wide (0.91 m) concrete shoulders in 1926. The state highway was resurfaced with concrete by 1946. MD 188 has changed little since then.
Junction list
The entire route is in Montgomery County.