Interstate 97
Interstate 97 (I-97) is a part of the Interstate Highway System that runs entirely within Anne Arundel County, Maryland. The intrastate Interstate runs from U.S. Route 50 (US 50) and US 301 in Parole near Annapolis north to I-695 and I-895 in Brooklyn Park near Baltimore. The Interstate is the primary highway between Baltimore and Annapolis. I‑97 connects Annapolis with Baltimore–Washington International Airport and links the northern Anne Arundel County communities of Crownsville, Millersville, Severna Park, Glen Burnie, and Ferndale. It is the shortest primary Interstate Highway.
Interstate 97
The first modern highway along the path of what is now I-97 followed the corridor from New Cut Road to south of the intersection of MD 178 and Veterans Highway at Dorrs Corner. This highway was intended as a second route from Glen Burnie to Annapolis to complement the highway along the east side of the Severn River; this western route later became known as General's Highway, a name still applied to its MD 178 portion. Construction of this highway was underway by 1919. The new highway was completed as a gravel road from New Cut Road to north of Benfield and as a concrete road through Benfield and across Severn Run to near Dorrs Corner by 1921. In 1922, this highway was designated part of Robert Crain Highway, a new highway to connect the Baltimore area with Southern Maryland. The Glen Burnie–Dorrs Corner portion of the new highway was reconstructed and completed as a concrete road from Glen Burnie south through Millersville by 1923. Robert Crain Highway became part of MD 3 in 1927 and then US 301 in 1939 when the U.S. Highway was extended from Virginia to Baltimore. MD 3 was reconstructed in 1933 and 1934. The reconstruction eliminated several dangerous curves, particularly near Severn Run, and expanded the highway from a width of . Veterans Highway follows much of that early 1930s course.