Project will Improve Safety as Motorists Merge onto US 340 in Brunswick Area

(September 23, 2025) – The Maryland State Highway Administration is beginning a project to extend acceleration ramps on US 340 at three locations in the Brunswick area of Frederick County. Construction on the $17.4 million project will start with crews installing a concrete barrier and other work zone safety devices. The project is expected to be complete in fall 2027.

“The Brunswick area has seen tremendous growth since these US 340 ramps were first built about 60 years ago,” said Andrew Radcliffe Jr., District Engineer for District 7 which includes Frederick County. “Traffic counts are higher now and speeds are higher, so motorists need more time and space to safely merge. That’s what this project will accomplish.”

The project on US 340 will see work at the following locations:

      • MD 17 to US 340 eastbound

         o  Existing ramp is approximately 235 linear feet.

         o  The new ramp will total 1230 linear feet, plus a 300- linear foot taper (a taper is where the lane width gradually decreases to merge with an existing travel lane). 

     • MD 17 to US 340 westbound 

          o  Existing ramp is approximately 390 linear feet.

          o  New ramp will total approximately 1,230 linear feet plus a  300- linear foot taper.

     • MD 180 to US 340 eastbound  

          o Existing ramp is approximately 235 linear feet.

          o New ramp will total approximately 580 linear feet plus a 300- linear foot taper. 

     • MD 180 to US 340 westbound  

          o Existing ramp is approximately 160 linear feet.

          o New ramp will total approximately 820 linear feet plus a 300- linear foot taper. ​

     • US 15 northbound to US 340 eastbound

          o  Existing ramp is approximately 175 linear feet.

          o  New ramp will total approximately 580 linear feet plus a 300- linear foot taper.  

During construction, the speed limit through the US 340 work zone will be lowered from 65 mph to 55 mph to enhance safety. The primary contractor, Francis O. Day Company Inc., based in Rockville, will use automated speed enforcement in the work zone.

Frederick County has listed the US 340 ramp extension project as a transportation priority. The county’s annual transportation priority letters are available online here. 

US 340 is one of the original state roads designated by the Maryland State Roads Commission (now the State Highway Administration). The road was first constructed in the 1910s and the ramps were built during an expansion of US 340 in the 1960s. Learn more about this project on the Project Portal page here. 

The State Highway Administration is Serious About Safety and asks drivers to slow down and move over, if possible, in work zones and pay extra attention for pedestrians and bicyclists. Help keep drivers, their passengers and vulnerable highway users safe.

For a list of all major State Highway Administration projects, visit the Project Portal or the homepage at rolads.maryland.gov. For real-time traffic conditions go to md511.maryland.gov.