South Capitol Street
South Capitol Street is a major street dividing the southeast and southwest quadrants of Washington, D.C., in the United States. It runs south from the United States Capitol to the D.C.–Maryland line, intersecting with Southern Avenue. After it enters Maryland, the street becomes Indian Head Highway (Maryland Route 210) at the Eastover Shopping Center, a terminal or transfer point of many bus routes.
Maintained by
130 feet (40 m) (total width)
10 feet (3.0 m) (sidewalk)[1]
Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue SE
I-295 (Anacostia Freeway)
Suitland Parkway
M Street
I-695 (Southeast Freeway)
Washington Avenue
1791
1940
Route[edit]
North of the Anacostia River, South Capitol Street runs in a straight north–south line. South Capitol Street begins at Southwest Drive, an access road on the south side of the grounds of the United States Capitol. It travels a half block south, and crosses Independence Avenue. Since roads on the grounds of the Capitol are closed to the public, this intersection has traditionally been the beginning of South Capitol Street. It widens from a two-lane to four-lane thoroughfare just before reaching Washington Avenue SE, and then passes beneath Interstate 695. Northbound traffic on South Capitol Street may access Interstate 695 westbound, and eastbound Interstate 695 traffic may leave the elevated highway and access southbound South Capitol Street. South Capitol Street passed beneath M Street SE/SW via an underpass, although access roads on both sides of South Capitol Street provide service either way on M Street. South Capitol Street bifurcates alongside Nationals Park, home of the Washington Nationals major league baseball team. Its last intersection north of the Anacostia River is with Potomac Avenue SE.
South Capitol Street crosses the Anacostia via the Frederick Douglass Memorial Bridge, which is angled on a northwest–southeast line so that the bridge's southwest terminus does not occur on land owned by Joint Base Anacostia–Bolling. A "mixing bowl" of off- and on-ramps provides access to southbound Suitland Parkway, with an adjacent cloverleaf interchange giving access to Firth Sterling Avenue and the Anacostia Washington Metro station as well as northbound Interstate 295. South Capitol Street then follows a winding path along the eastern border of Joint Base Anacostia–Bolling. Deceleration lanes provide access to Malcolm X Avenue SE and the main gates of Joint Base Anacostia–Bolling and Interstate 295 again. South Capitol Street angles south-southeast at Overlook Avenue SW, passing below Interstate 295 and continues winding south-southeast until it reaches Southern Avenue. It is coterminous with Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue SE for a single block between Halley Place SE and 2nd Street SW before winding toward Southern Avenue and the District boundary line.
The section of South Capitol Street between Washington Avenue SW and Suitland Parkway is part of the National Highway System.
South Capitol Street forms the north-northeastern boundary of Oxon Run Park.
Taxation Without Representation Street[edit]
The D.C. City Council attempted to rename a portion of South Capitol Street adjacent to Nationals Park in 2008 as "Taxation Without Representation Street" in order to bring attention to the city's lack of voting rights in Congress.[21] The goal, according to advocates, was to boost awareness by changing the address of Nationals Park.[22] The name change required congressional approval. Congress failed to act on the bill, and it never became law.