Origin
Riviera Beach, MD
Late night in Riviera Beach on Friday
Local time
4:50 AM
EDT
Current temp
74°F
Unavailable
Live forecast
Trip from Riviera Beach, MD to Columbia, MD
Compiled and reviewed by the Trip.ovh planning team at COD Solutions Oy · Last reviewed Apr 17, 2026 · Editorial standards
Drive Time
37m
Distance
25.3 mi
41 km
Drive Score
6/10
Good drive
Same Day?
Yes, doable
Fuel Cost
$4
one way
EV Charging
Unknown
Best Time to Leave
4 AM
0h 34m
★
6 AM
0h 37m
8 AM
0h 44m
10 AM
0h 39m
12 PM
0h 39m
3 PM
0h 40m
5 PM
0h 43m
8 PM
0h 35m
Estimated drive times based on typical traffic patterns. Actual times may vary with weather, construction, and real-time conditions.
Riviera Beach, MD
Sarah O'Shea
Columbia, MD
Wikimedia Commons
Trip Overview
This 25.3-mile drive from Riviera Beach to Columbia, Maryland, is a quick trip that can be completed in about 37 minutes. It's a straightforward, single-day excursion with a modest fuel cost estimated at $4. You'll primarily navigate local roads like Paul T. Pitcher Memorial Highway and Edwin Raynor Boulevard. Given its short distance and duration, this route is ideal for a day trip without the need for an overnight stay. The journey keeps you within the Northeast region of Maryland, offering a brief but efficient travel experience.
Who Is This Route For?
Weekend Trip
Doable as a same-day drive at 37m. Total distance: 25.3 miles.
Family Friendly
Moderate complexity with 0 natural rest stops along the way.
Solo Traveler
37m drive, comfortable solo distance.
EV Driver
0 DC fast chargers along the route. Coverage: unknown.
Scenic Drive
Turn-heavy local drive route profile with national parks nearby.
Drive Character
Expect a turn-heavy local drive on this route, which features a relatively low highway share of only 2%. The majority of your travel will be on local roads, with the longest uninterrupted stretch being 19.6 miles along Paul T. Pitcher Memorial Highway. This suggests a driving experience that involves frequent adjustments and navigating through community areas rather than sustained highway cruising. The road character will likely shift as you transition between different local thoroughfares.
This route has more turning and local-road decision points than a simple highway run.
There are about 15 navigation steps in the underlying route data, so the final approach matters more than the middle miles.
Paul T. Pitcher Memorial Highway is the longest continuous segment at about 19.6 miles.
How Hard Is This Drive?
Expect a hands-on drive with frequent turns and local roads rather than long highway stretches. This route has several spots where lane changes, forks, or exits need your full attention. The trickiest moment comes around 0.3 miles in near Main Avenue.
Driving Effort
8/10
Focused - busy navigation packed into a short drive
Balances navigation complexity with total wheel time.
This is a short but busy drive. With 11 decision points packed into just 25.3 miles, you will need to pay attention to lane changes and exits — but the whole thing is over in 37m.
Where does it get tricky?
The main spots that need attention: at 0.3 miles (Main Avenue): Navigation decision point; at 3.4 miles: Lane positioning matters here; at 6.4 miles (MD 100 / Paul T. Pitcher Memorial Highway): Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here.
Critical Maneuvers
5 of 11 key pointsThese are the spots where you need to pay the most attention. Preview them before you drive.
5
0.3 mi into trip
|
~1m in
|
Main Avenue
At end of road, turn right onto Main Avenue
Navigation decision point
5
3.4 mi into trip
|
~6m in
Take the ramp toward MD 100 West: Baltimore
Lane positioning matters here
Use the right lane.
Toward MD 100 West: Baltimore
7
6.4 mi into trip
|
~11m in
|
MD 100 / Paul T. Pitcher Memorial Highway
Keep slight left at fork onto MD 100 / Paul T. Pitcher Memorial Highway toward MD 100 West
Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here
Use the slight left lane.
Toward MD 100 West
7
23.9 mi into trip
|
~35m in
Keep slight left at fork toward US 29 South: Washington
Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here
Use the slight left lane.
Toward US 29 South: Washington
8
24.9 mi into trip
|
~36m in
Take the exit toward MD 108 West: Clarksville, Dorsey's Search, Harper's Choice
Exit ramp - move to the correct lane early. Lane positioning matters here. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one
Use the straight / slight right lanes.
Exit 21B
Toward MD 108 West: Clarksville, Dorsey's Searc...
Main Roads
| Road | Distance | Duration |
|---|---|---|
| Paul T. Pitcher Memorial Highway | 19.6 mi | 26m |
| Edwin Raynor Boulevard | 1.3 mi | 2m |
| Fort Smallwood Road | 1.3 mi | 2m |
| Riviera Drive | 0.5 mi | 1m |
| Columbia Pike | 0.5 mi | <1m |
| Arundel Expressway | 0.4 mi | <1m |
| Glen Road | 0.3 mi | 1m |
| Gina Court | <0.1 mi | <1m |
Longest stretch:
Paul T. Pitcher Memorial Highway
— 19.6 mi, about 26m
Turn-by-Turn Driving Directions
Step-by-step road directions between Riviera Beach, MD and Columbia, MD.
1
Start on Gina Court
212 ft
·
14 sec
·
Gina Court
2
Turn left onto Glen Road
120 ft
·
7 sec
·
Glen Road
3
Continue on Glen Road
0.3 mi
·
1 min
·
Glen Road
4
At end of road, turn right onto Main Avenue
97 ft
·
7 sec
·
Main Avenue
5
Turn left onto Riviera Drive
0.5 mi
·
1 min
·
Riviera Drive
6
Continue on MD 173
1.3 mi
·
2 min
·
Fort Smallwood Road
7
Continue on Edwin Raynor Boulevard
1.3 mi
·
2 min
·
Edwin Raynor Boulevard
Use the right lane.
8
Take the ramp
0.4 mi
·
53 sec
Toward MD 100 West: Baltimore
Use the right lane.
9
Merge onto MD 100
2.1 mi
·
2 min
·
Paul T. Pitcher Memorial Highway
10
Merge onto MD 10; MD 100
0.4 mi
·
36 sec
·
Arundel Expressway
11
Keep slight left at fork onto MD 100
18 mi
·
23 min
·
Paul T. Pitcher Memorial Highway
Toward MD 100 West
Use the slight left lane.
12
Keep slight left at fork
0.6 mi
·
47 sec
Toward US 29 South: Washington
Use the slight left lane.
13
Merge onto US 29
0.5 mi
·
30 sec
·
Columbia Pike
14
Take the exit
0.4 mi
·
50 sec
Exit 21B
Toward MD 108 West: Clarksville, Dorsey's Search, Harper's Choice
Use the straight / slight right lanes.
15
Arrive at destination
Exit 21B
Toward MD 108 West: Clarksville, Dorsey's Search, Harper's Choice
Fuel & Cost
Regular Gas
$4.19 one way
$8.39 round trip
$4.21/gal
25.4 MPG avg
9 kg CO2
| Fuel Type | $/gal | One Way | Round Trip |
|---|---|---|---|
| midgrade | $4.61 | $4.59 | $9.19 |
| premium | $4.93 | $4.91 | $9.81 |
| diesel | $5.61 | $5.59 | $11.17 |
No toll roads detected on this route.
Drive Cost (one way)
Fuel
$4
Estimated CO2 emission: 8.9 kg one way. Prices: EIA weekly data, 2026-04-13.
Driving Electric?
About $3 in charging · 0 stops · 67% less CO2
| Vehicle Type | kWh | Stops | DC Fast | Home Charge |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Average EV | 7.6 | 0 | $2.66 | $1.21 |
| Efficient EV | 6.3 | 0 | $2.21 | $1.01 |
| EV Truck/SUV | 10.1 | 0 | $3.54 | $1.62 |
Gas CO2
9 kg
EV CO2
3 kg (67% less)
This trip is well within single-charge range for most EVs. No charging stops needed if you start fully charged.
DC fast charging avg $0.35/kWh. Home charging avg $0.16/kWh. US grid CO2: 0.39 kg/kWh.
Travel Intel
Current conditions at both ends of the drive.
Destination
Columbia, MD
Late night in Columbia on Friday
Local time
4:50 AM
EDT
Current temp
75°F
Unavailable
Live forecast
Time zone
Same local time
Origin and destination are on the same clock, so arrival timing is easier to judge at a glance.
Temperature spread
1 degrees warmer at arrival
A meaningful temperature swing is a good cue to rethink layers, water, and how soon you want to arrive.
Road read
37m on the road
Use the two city cards together: check the sky where you start, then compare it with the local time and temperature at arrival.
Weather data from the National Weather Service. Conditions may change; check closer to your travel date.
Frequently Asked Questions
The drive from Riviera Beach, MD to Columbia, MD covers 25.3 miles and takes about 37m without stops. Add 15-30 minutes for a fuel or rest stop on longer drives.
The main roads are Paul T. Pitcher Memorial Highway, Edwin Raynor Boulevard, Fort Smallwood Road. Expect a mix of highway and local road driving.
This is a comfortable same-day trip.
The midpoint is about 12.7 miles from Riviera Beach, MD. Look for rest areas, gas stations, or food options near the halfway mark.
At current regular gas prices, expect to spend about $4.19 one way. This estimate uses 25.4 MPG — your actual cost will vary with your vehicle's fuel efficiency and current gas prices.
Leave by 9 AM and you'll arrive before lunch. Even a 4 PM departure gets you there before dark in summer.
This is a short but busy drive. With 11 decision points packed into just 25.3 miles, you will need to pay attention to lane changes and exits — but the whole thing is over in 37m.
The main spots that need attention: at 0.3 miles (Main Avenue): Navigation decision point; at 3.4 miles: Lane positioning matters here; at 6.4 miles (MD 100 / Paul T. Pitcher Memorial Highway): Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here.
The route from Riviera Beach, MD to Columbia, MD does not surface many named destination signs beyond the main corridor.
Yes. Nearby national parks include Chesapeake & Ohio Canal National Historical Park.
How this page is built
Compiled and maintained by the Trip.ovh planning team at COD Solutions Oy (Helsinki). Each route is built from authoritative open government and mapping datasets rather than crowdsourced reviews. Distances and geometry come from OSRM over OpenStreetMap. Fuel cost uses EIA weekly regional averages. National park proximity is from the NPS API. Pages are published only after passing our data-quality checks; our methodology page documents refresh cadence, editorial standards, and known limitations.
Was this helpful?
Thanks for your feedback!
Your tip has been submitted. Thanks!
/500
Recent Tips
·
Explore More
Continue From Columbia, MD
More from Riviera Beach, MD
More trips to Columbia, MD
Explore more options from Riviera Beach, MD or browse trips ending in Columbia, MD.
Looking for more statewide routes? Browse MD road trips.