U.S. Route 50

U.S. Highway 50 U.S. Highway 50 U.S Highway 50 U.S Highway 50
The Loneliest Road in America
Route information
Existed	1926–present
Location
Major cities	Sacramento, Ocean City
U.S. Highway system

United States Highway 50 is an east-west United States highway. As the "0" in its route number suggests, US 50 is a coast-to-coast route, or at least nearly so. Signs at both termini give the Maryland to California distance as 3,073 miles (4,946 km), though that mileage is based off of an older measurment and has likely changed due to bypasses, Interstate highway co-signings, and other realignments.

US 50 serves both Jefferson City, Missouri, and Carson City, Nevada, two of only five state capitals not served by an Interstate highway.

In Nevada, US 50 is known as "The Loneliest Road in America", due to the bleak terrain and very low traffic. This stretch is also home to "The Loneliest Payphone in America".

Termini

As of 2005, the highway's eastern terminus is in Ocean City, Maryland at the southern end of a barrier island, where it intersects Maryland State Highway 528. Its western terminus is in West Sacramento, California at an interchange with Interstate 80.

The Sacramento terminus used to have a sign saying "US 50 East / Ocean City, MD / 3073 Miles". It was stolen by a fraternity sometime during 2002, and was replaced with a more ordinary mileage sign. When installed, the replacement erroneously listed the distance as 3,037 miles (4,888 km), but it was subsequently patched over with the correct mileage. [1]

US 50 once extended all the way to San Francisco, by going south through Stockton and then west to the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge. This part was decommissioned in favor of Interstate 580.

States traversed

The highway passes through the following states:

• Maryland
• District of Columbia (via New York Avenue)
• Virginia
• West Virginia
• Back into Maryland (for less than 10 miles)
• Back into West Virginia
  • US 50 is part of the Appalachian Development Highway System's Corridor D from Clarksburg, West Virginia to Parkersburg, West Virginia at the Ohio River
• Ohio
  • US 50 is part of the Appalachian Development Highway System's Corridor D from Parkersburg, West Virginia at the Ohio River to Cincinnati, Ohio
• Indiana
• Illinois
• Missouri
• Kansas
• Colorado
• Utah
• Nevada
• California

Alternate names and multiplexes

Maryland

• Known as Ocean Gateway from its eastern terminus to its multiplex with US 301
• Maryland State Highway 16 in Cambridge, Maryland
• U.S. Highway 301 from Queenstown, Maryland to Bowie, Maryland
• Blue Star Highway from the east end of the US 301 multiplex to Annapolis, Maryland
• Maryland State Highway 2 in Annapolis, Maryland
• Known as the John Hanson Highway from Annapolis, Maryland to Washington, DC
• Interstate 595 (unsigned) from Annapolis to the Capital Beltway in New Carrollton, Maryland

District of Columbia

• U.S. Highway 1 along Constitution Avenue (see Constitution Avenue article for a detailed explanation)
• Interstate 66 across the Theodore Roosevelt Bridge between Washington, D.C., and Arlington County, Virginia

Virginia, West Virginia

• Known as the Northwestern Turnpike from Winchester, Virginia to Parkersburg, West Virginia where it crosses the Ohio River.

Kansas

• Interstate 35 from Lenexa, Kansas to Emporia, Kansas

Nevada

• Known as the Loneliest Road in America in Nevada.
• In Nevada it follows closely the route of the Pony Express

California

• Known as the Lincoln Highway in California
• Known as the Capital City Freeway sharing the route with Business Loop Interstate 80 between I-80 in West Sacramento and California State Route 99 in Sacramento.

Historic sites along US 50

Maryland

• Kent Island, Maryland, first English settlement within Maryland

Virginia

• Arlington National Cemetery
• Ox Hill Battlefield Park (site of the Battle of Chantilly during the United States Civil War)

West Virginia

• Hook's Tavern, 1790
• Frye's Inn, c. 1800
• Straw's Country Store Museum
• West Virginia School for the Deaf and Blind, 1846
• Historic Downtown Romney
• Indian Mound Cemetery
• Fort Mill Ridge Civil War Trenches
• The Burg, built c. 1769
• Sloan-Parker House (Stone House), built 1790
• Weaver’s Antique Service Station
• Claysville Church

Major water crossings

Body of Water	Bridge	Location
Sinepuxent Bay	Harry Kelley Memorial Drawbridge	Ocean City, Maryland
Nanticoke River	Nanticoke River Memorial Bridge	Vienna, Maryland
Choptank River	Frederick C. Malkus Bridge	Cambridge, Maryland
Kent Narrows	Kent Narrows Bridge	Kent Island, Maryland
Chesapeake Bay	Chesapeake Bay Bridge (William Preston Lane, Jr. Memorial Bridge)	near Annapolis, Maryland
Severn River	Severn River Bridge	Annapolis, Maryland
Anacostia River	Baltimore-Washington Parkway Bridge	Washington, DC
Potomac River	Theodore Roosevelt Bridge	Washington, DC
Shenandoah River	US 50 Bridge	Clarke County, Virginia
Cacapon River	Capon Bridge	Capon Bridge, West Virginia
South Branch Potomac River	Romney Bridge	Romney, West Virginia
North Branch Potomac River	Gorman Bridge	West Virginia-Maryland State Line
Ohio River	Blennerhassett Bridge	Parkersburg, West Virginia
Little Miami River	Wooster Pike Bridge	Milford, Ohio
Mississippi River	Jefferson Barracks Bridge	St. Louis, Missouri

Associations Regarding US 50

• US 50 Association covering US 50 from Winchester, Virginia to Clarksburg, West Virginia

Alternate routes

As of 2004, Alternate US 50 in Nevada has an eastern terminus west of Fallon. It heads to the northwest to an intersection with Interstate 80 in Fernley, then turns due south with Alternate US 95. It rejoins US 50 in Silver Springs, with Alt US 95 continuing south. The two legs of Alt US 50 and the main line route form a 30 mile (48 km) triangle in the Nevada desert.

Related US routes

• U.S. Highway 150
• U.S. Highway 250
• U.S. Highway 350
• U.S. Highway 450
• U.S. Highway 550
• U.S. Highway 650

See Also

• List of United States Highways

Sources and external links

• Endpoints of US highways