Excellent photos, Dan!

by Dave Murphy on Mar 2, 2011 4:19 pm • link • report

I can't tell if it's 3 lanes with a narrowing down to 2 at the ends, or if it's only 2 lanes with 3 lanes only showing up where there's an exit? (If it's only 2 lanes, it's much smaller than other tolls roads in the area ... You have to wonder why they'd build it so small ... unless the intent is to keep it 'exclusive' and thus be able to demand 'premium' tolls from an exclusive clientel.)

by Lance on Mar 2, 2011 4:30 pm • link • report

Was just on it today...it's 3 lanes narrowing down to 2 at the ends, but that 3-to-2 is only temporary due to construction.

by Froggie on Mar 2, 2011 4:40 pm • link • report

At least they seem to have paid some attention to aesthetics. It's not at all bad-looking. The arches in the tunnel are particularly neat.

That said, "megahighway" may be a bit of an overstatement here.

Progress?

by andrew on Mar 2, 2011 5:26 pm • link • report

The ICC is not a "megahighway". MD I-270 in Montgomery county is a megahighway, MD I-95 between the Baltimore and Capitol Beltways is a megahighway, The Shirley Memorial Highway (VA I-95, I-395) is a megahighway. The ICC is a 6 lane highway,
In the world I live in 6 lane highways are not megahighways.

@andrew

You may consider the arches in the tunnel particularly neat, I call that economic design or in other words eye candy at no extra cost. The other reason they are there is to allow fire and rescue access from the opposite lanes in the event of a wreck.

by Sand Box John on Mar 2, 2011 6:24 pm • link • report

Thanks Froggie.

by Lance on Mar 2, 2011 7:35 pm • link • report

Thanks for these photos. Since it's unlikely I'll ever need to drive on it, I appreciate your doing this.

by Steve O on Mar 2, 2011 11:27 pm • link • report

The road does look very good and for those of us who live nearby MD did a good job of making the road below grade to keep sound pollution down.

Though themini-tunnel in the middle seems a bit excessive. From Google maps I can see its because the ICC goes through a middle of a housing development there, but at the same time it had to cost the state quite a bit of money. I would think it would almost have been cheaper to just buy the whole neighborhood instead.

by Matt R on Mar 3, 2011 7:05 am • link • report

Thanks for the photos. Looking forward to driving on it myself this weekend.

PS - am I the only one who hates the new road sign "Clearview" font? I want my old Highway Gothic back! :-(

by Matt Glazewski on Mar 3, 2011 7:36 am • link • report

Not a fan of Clearview either...especially when DOTs mis-use it (i.e. route shields and dark lettering on bright background).

by Froggie on Mar 3, 2011 8:41 am • link • report

interesting how the ICC was stalled for all of those years until the route was modified to avoid the heaadquarters of the Knights of Columbus in Derwood MD, and that went so un-reported.

http://wwwtripwithinthebeltway.blogspot.com/2011/02/inter-county-connector-to-be-open.html

by Douglas Willinger on Mar 3, 2011 12:25 pm • link • report