Formerly known as Charles River Road, the road was officially renamed "Memorial Drive" in 1923, when Charles River Park was taken over by the Metropolitan District Commission. It is named in honor of those who died in World War I. In 2003 a two-mile section of Memorial Drive was reconstructed as part of the DCR's Historic Parkways Initiative.
Route description
Memorial Drive begins in West Cambridge, signed as US 3 south and Route 2 east, at a three-way junction with Greenough Boulevard and Fresh Pond Parkway, which runs roughly north and carries the US 3 / Route 2 concurrency westward. It proceeds generally southward, following the sinuous curves of the river, from which it is separated by a strip of parkland that varies considerably in its width. In the western stretch it has four undivided lanes, two in each direction. After crossing River Street it turns more eastward at the Magazine Street beach, with Route 2 diverging southward at a rotary-like interchange with overpass to cross the BU Bridge into Boston. Soon afterward the road is lined on the north by the buildings of the main Massachusetts Institute of Technology campus. A grassy median is introduced along this stretch, and the road crosses under Massachusetts Avenue, with ramps providing limited interchange options. Heading eastbound, the designation changes from US 3 to Route 3 at this interchange. The grassy median continues to divide the road until its end near Kendall Square at the Longfellow Bridge. Edwin H. Land Boulevard splits off and continues north towards O'Brien Highway and Interstate 93. Route 3 turns east onto the Longfellow Bridge and also crosses into Boston. The median, where present, has occasional opportunities for reversing direction. Memorial Drive, like the parkways along the opposite side of the river, is maintained by the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation. In keeping with the recreational mission, the section of Memorial Drive from Western Avenue to the split by Mount Auburn Hospital, at Gerry's Landing Road, is closed to motor vehicles on Sundays in the summer to allow for pedestrian and non-motorized users. The closure is in effect from 11 am to 7 pm starting the last Sunday of April until the second Sunday of November. A median near Massachusetts Avenue requires executing a so-called Michigan left for certain turns.
