The bridge, named for the first governor of Maryland, Thomas Johnson, saw construction start in 1972 and opened to traffic on December 17, 1977.

From the top of the bridge, one can see the entire town of Solomons, the runways at the Patuxent River Naval Air Station, and the Chesapeake Bay.

[1][2] People traveling north into Calvert County were forced to make a half-hour detour to the Benedict Bridge.

People traveling south into St. Mary's County were likewise forced to either utilize the Benedict Bridge or take a free charter boat across the Patuxent River to a park and ride lot on the southern side.

First, the recent increase in the amount of traffic of commuters traveling to and from the Patuxent River Naval Air Station has made the two-lane, single-span bridge functionally obsolete.

[3][4] These fears have grown substantially in the wake of the I-35W Mississippi River bridge collapse in Minneapolis, Minnesota on August 1, 2007.

As of September 2007[update], a study to determine whether the bridge should be expanded or replaced is being debated by Maryland governmental officials.

[9] May 1, 2015, at approximately 1:18 a.m; single vehicle accident resulting in driver flown to Shock Trauma and another passenger taken by ambulance to the hospital.

[15] On December 14, 2022, at approximately 10:15 p.m., police, fire and rescue personnel responded to a multiple vehicle collision with 4 occupants reportedly injured.