User:Viridiscalculus/U.S. Route 1 Alternate (Washington, D.C.)

U.S. Route 1 Alternate (US 1 Alternate) is an alternate route of U.S. Route 1 in the District of Columbia and the U.S. state of Maryland. The highway runs 3.3 mi from US 50 in Washington, D.C. north to US 1 in Hyattsville, Maryland. US 1 Alternate comprises the old alignment of US 1 in Washington and the inner part of Prince George's County, Maryland; the highway also follows the old alignment of US 50 south of MD 450 in Bladensburg.

Route description
US 1 Alternate begins at an intersection with US 50 (New York Avenue) and unnumbered Bladensburg Road near the United States National Arboretum in the Northeast quadrant of Washington, D.C.. US 50 heads west toward Downtown Washington. The U.S. highway serves as the southernmost part of the alternate loop of US 1, connecting with the mainline U.S. highway at Sixth Street, N.W. US 50 heads east as a freeway that splits into the Baltimore–Washington Parkway toward Baltimore and John Hanson Highway toward Annapolis just east of the District of Columbia – Maryland boundary. US 1 Alternate heads northeast as Bladensburg Road, a six-lane divided highway that passes under the Amtrak Northeast Corridor, which also carries MARC's Penn Line. The highway passes between the Langdon and Gateway (neighborhood), Washington, D.C. neighborhoods to the west and east, respectively, on its way to an intersection with South Dakota Avenue, which parallels the District's northeast boundary. US 1 Alternate passes between the neighborhoods of Woodridge to the west and Fort Lincoln to the east before reaching the District of Columbia – Maryland boundary at Eastern Avenue.

US 1 Alternate continues northeast as a four-lane divided highway between an industrial area to the west and Fort Lincoln Cemetery to the east. After crossing Dueling Creek, the site of the Bladensburg dueling grounds, the highway forms the boundary between the towns of Cottage City to the west and Colmar Manor to the east. US 1 Alternate passes through a commercial area where it meets the southern end of MD 208 (38th Avenue). The highway crosses the Anacostia River into the town of Bladensburg, then meets MD 450 (Annapolis Road) at a directional intersection that is the site of the Peace Cross. US 1 Alternate heads north through an industrial area as Baltimore Avenue, a four-lane highway with a wide median occupied by businesses and the George Washington House. The median closes as the highway crosses Northeast Branch Anacostia River into and reduces to two lanes. US 1 Alternate meets at grade a connecting railroad track of the wye of CSX's Capital Subdivision, which also carries MARC's Camden Line, and the subdivision's Alexandria Extension. The highway passes through wye before crossing over the Capital Subdivision to its northern terminus at US 1 (Baltimore Avenue) in downtown Hyattsville.

Junction list
{| class=wikitable !County !Location !Mile !Destinations !Notes
 * rowspan=3 colspan=2|Washington, D.C.
 * 0.0
 * Southern terminus
 * 0.7
 * South Dakota Avenue
 * 1.2
 * rowspan=2|Eastern Avenue
 * rowspan=2|District of Columbia – Maryland boundary
 * rowspan=4|Prince George's
 * rowspan=2|Cottage City
 * 0.00
 * 0.47
 * Bladensburg
 * 1.03
 * Directional intersection
 * Hyattsville
 * 2.09
 * Northern terminus
 * 0.47
 * Bladensburg
 * 1.03
 * Directional intersection
 * Hyattsville
 * 2.09
 * Northern terminus
 * Directional intersection
 * Hyattsville
 * 2.09
 * Northern terminus
 * Northern terminus
 * Northern terminus