  the governor harry w. nice memorial bridge, also known as the potomac river bridge, is a , two-lane continuous truss bridge that spans the potomac river between newburg in charles county, maryland and dahlgren in king george county, virginia, usa. the bridge is narrow (one  lane in each direction with no shoulders), steep (up to 3.75 percent grade), and has a reduced speed limit (50&nbsp;mph on the main span, even slower through the toll gates and plaza). this combination causes cars and trucks to slow and merge, which often results in backups. this two lane bridge carries u.s. route 301, which is a spur of u.s. route 1 and a popular north-south alternative for bypassing the baltimore-washington metropolitan area as well as interstate 95, interstate 495 (capital beltway), and the woodrow wilson bridge to the north along the potomac river. the traffic growth/volume in southern maryland has led to congestion and delays, especially on holidays and weekends. in 2005, the bridge handled approximately 6.4 million vehicles. it is one of eight toll facilities operated by the maryland transportation authority, and is one of only two toll bridges over the potomac river. ==history== president franklin d. roosevelt presided over the ground-breaking 
Bridges_completed_in_1940 Bridges_on_the_U.S._Highway_System Buildings_and_structures_in_Charles_County,_Maryland Continuous_truss_bridges Crossings_of_the_Potomac_River Monuments_and_memorials_in_Maryland Road_bridges_in_Maryland Road_bridges_in_Virginia Toll_bridges_in_Maryland Toll_bridges_in_Virginia Transportation_in_King_George_County,_Virginia U.S._Route_301