New Carrollton is built on the former estate of a horse racing figure, Edward L. Mahoney. After Mahoney's death in 1957, the land was acquired by developer Albert W. Turner, who sought to create a planned suburb. He had received a charter for a City of Carrollton from the Maryland General Assembly four years earlier, on April 11, 1953.

Carrollton was named after early Maryland settler Charles Carroll of Carrollton, a delegate to the Continental Congress and signatory of the Declaration of Independence. As two other Maryland communities were also named Carrollton, a voter referendum on May 2, 1966, approved the renaming of the community to New Carrollton.

The most prominent highway serving New Carrollton is Interstate 95/Interstate 495 (the Capital Beltway). I-495 follows the Capital Beltway around Washington, D.C., providing access to its many other suburbs. I-95 only follows the eastern portion of the beltway, diverging away from the beltway near both its north and south sides. To the north, I-95 passes through Baltimore, Philadelphia, New York City and Boston on its way to Canada, while to the south, it traverses Richmond on its way to Florida. Direct access to New Carrollton is via Maryland Route 450. Maryland Route 410 and Maryland Route 433 also serve New Carrollton.

See also: Rail travel in the United States

• 38.94804-76.871391 New Carrollton station, 4300 Garden City Drive. (updated Nov 2023) Train operators:
  • Amtrak, ☏ +1 215-856-7924, toll-free: +1-800-872-7245. Operates trains throughout the United States of America. (updated Mar 2018) Routes stopping at New Carrollton:
    • Northeast Regional is Amtrak's busiest regional service, connecting Boston, New York City, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Washington, D.C., and the many towns and cities in-between. Toward the east end of the route, some trips terminate at Springfield instead of Boston. Some services also continue south into Virginia towards Newport News, Roanoke and Norfolk on three separate branch routes from Alexandria. This is also Amtrak's most frequent service, with multiple daily departures, and the longest trip takes 12.5 hours. Stops at Union Station and State Street. The overnight Northeast Regional service from Boston includes sleeping cars, the train departs Boston in the evening and arrives early morning in Washington, D.C.
    • Palmetto between Savannah and New York City
    • Vermonter operates daily between St. Albans and Washington, D.C. including stops in Essex Junction, Waterbury, Montpelier, White River Junction, Claremont, Bellows Falls, Brattleboro, Greenfield, Northampton, Holyoke, Springfield, Windsor Locks, Hartford, Meriden, New Haven, Bridgeport, Stamford, New York City, Newark, Trenton, Philadelphia, Wilmington, Baltimore, and New Carrollton.
  • MARC commuter rail service. Its Penn Line connects Washington, D.C. and Baltimore.

• Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA), ☏ +1 202-637-1328, toll-free: +1-888-762-7874. (updated Nov 2023) WMATA's Orange Line's eastern terminus is adjacent to New Carrollton station.