U.S. Route 222

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U.S. Route 222

Length:

110 mi^{[citation needed]} (177 km)

Formed:

1926

South end:

US 1 in Conowingo, MD

Major
junctions:

US 30 in Lancaster, PA

I-76/PA Tpk/PA 272 in East Cocalico Twp., PA

US 422 near Reading, PA

North end:

I-78/PA 309/PA 222 in Dorneyville, PA

United States Numbered Highways
U.S. Routes - Bannered - Divided - Replaced

U.S. Route 222 is a spur of U.S. Route 22. It runs for 100 miles (161 km) from Conowingo, Maryland at U.S. Route 1 to Interstate 78 and Pennsylvania Route 309 in Dorneyville, Pennsylvania, where the US 222 right-of-way continues into Allentown as Pennsylvania Route 222.

1 States traversed
- 1.1 Maryland
- 1.2 Pennsylvania
2 Exit list
3 Junction list
- 3.1 Maryland
4 History
5 See also
6 External links

[edit] States traversed

Major cities
Lancaster, Pennsylvania Reading, Pennsylvania Allentown, Pennsylvania

[edit] Maryland

US 222 in Maryland used to extend down to Maryland Route 7 in Perryville, but was later truncated to US 1 at Conowingo, with the rest becoming Maryland Route 222. Because of hills, and also because of the narrowness of MD 222 in Port Deposit, a truck route (Maryland Route 222) also exists, with part of that truck route being a wrong-way concurrency with US 1.

Between Conowingo and the state line, US 222 follows an elongated "C-curve", curving to the west then doubling back east to cross the state line near the hamlet of Rock Springs.

[edit] Pennsylvania

The speed limits on US 222 in Pennsylvania range from 25 mph through towns to 65 mph on expressway portions. However, the road has a notorious reputation for speeding and tailgating. Insufficient shoulders throughout much of the length and the presence of horse and buggies in Lancaster and Berks County can make the road dangerous to travel on.

US 222 serves as the principal artery between the Lancaster and Reading areas and the Lehigh Valley. With increased development in the late 20th century the two-lane road became increasingly congested. To alleviate these problems a number of construction projects took place, most notably a four-lane Reading bypass, a four-lane expressway to connect Lancaster to Reading, and a four-lane expressway bypass around the town of Kutztown, which is situated between Reading and Allentown.

In Reading, US 222 has an auxiliary route, U.S. Route 222 Business, the only such route for US 222.

Recently, there has been work in Lehigh County to build a bypass around Trexlertown, since the area surrounding the intersection of Pennsylvania Route 100 and US 222 was one of the most problematic areas of the road. In 2005 the west half of the bypass was opened and the east half of the bypass is expected to be completed in late 2006.

Advance Signage for U.S. Route 422 heading southbound on U.S. Route 222

U.S. Route 222 heading southbound approaching U.S. Route 30

[edit] Exit list

Between Lancaster and Reading, as well as in some locations (mainly the bypass at Kutztown) between Reading and Allentown, US 222 is a limited-access highway.

This section contains a table that is missing mileposts for one or more junctions. You can help by adding the missing mileposts.

County	Location	Mile	Destinations	Notes
Lancaster	Lancaster		US 30 west - York	Southbound only.
		US 30/ US 222 form a duplex for 0.8 miles.
			US 30 east - Coatesville, Philadelphia
	Manheim Township		PA 272 (Oregon Pike)
	Brownstown		PA 772 - Rothsville, Brownstown
	Ephrata Township		US 322 - Ephrata
	East Cocalico Township		I-76/PA Turnpike/PA 272 - Denver	E-ZPass: use lanes 2 and 3. Reading Exit of PA Turnpike
Berks	Brecknock Township		PA 272 south/PA 568 east - Adamstown	Opened in 2006. Original end of freeway portion of US 222. Northern terminus of PA 272. Western terminus of PA 568.
	Spring Township		Mohns Hill Road
	Cumru Township		Mohnton via West Madison Street
	Cumru Township		US 222 Business (Lancaster Avenue) - Shillington	Northbound only. Southern terminus of US 222 Business.
	Spring Township		PA 724 - Sinking Spring, Shillington
	West Lawn		US 422 Business (Penn Avenue) east/US 422 west - Lebanon	Western terminus of US 422 Business.
	West Lawn	Southern terminus of US 222/ US 422 duplex.
	Wyomissing		State Hill Road	To Berkshire Mall.
			Paper Mill Road
		Northern terminus of US 222/ US 422 duplex.
			US 422 east/ PA 12 (Warren Street Bypass) east - Pottstown, Pricetown	No access to PA 12 from US 222 southbound. To First Energy Stadium.
	Spring Township		Broadcasting Road	To Penn State University - Berks Campus.
	Spring Township		Spring Ridge Drive	To Berks County Heritage Center.
	Bern Township		PA 183 (Bernville Road) - Strausstown	Reading Regional Airport: use PA 183 south.
	Muhlenberg Township		PA 61 - Pottsville, Tuckerton
	Ontelaunee Township		US 222 Business - Laureldale	Northern terminus of US 222 Business.
At-grade intersections - 6 miles.
Berks	Richmond Township		Virginville, Kutztown	Northbound only. To Kutztown University.
	Richmond Township		Virginville	Southbound only.
	Kutztown		PA 737 - Krumsville	To Kutztown University.
	Kutztown		East Main Street	Southbound only.
At-grade intersections - 13 miles.
Lehigh	Upper Macungie Township		PA 100 south/Hamilton Boulevard
		Southern terminus of US 222/ PA 100 duplex.
			Grim Road/Mosser Road
		Northern terminus of US 222/ PA 100 duplex.
			PA 100 north - Fogelsville, Trexlertown	Current eastern terminus of expressway.
			Grange Road	Under construction.
	Lower Macungie Township		Krocks Road	Under construction.
	Lower Macungie Township		Brookside Road	Under construction.
At-grade intersections - 0.5 mile.
Lehigh	Dorneyville		I-78 east/PA 309 south - Bethlehem, Quakertown	Ramps to/from I-78/PA 309 are at-grade.
Lehigh	Dorneyville		I-78 west/PA 309 north - Harrisburg, Tamaqua
US 222 becomes PA 222.

[edit] Junction list

[edit] Maryland

In Maryland, US 222 is a rural road that travels through Cecil County to US 1.

County	Location	Mile	Destinations	Notes
Cecil	Conowingo	0.0	US 1 / MD 222 / Conowingo Rd. - Conowingo Dam, Hickory, Rising Sun	runs south along ; runs north along
	Oakwood		Old Conowingo Rd. west - Susquehanna River
	Rock Springs		Old Mill Rd.-New Bridge Rd. - to Connelly Rd.	Connelly Rd. south leads to /
		3.6	Mason-Dixon Rd.-Quarry Rd.	both roads form part of Mason-Dixon line
continues into Pennsylvania

[edit] History

When US 222 was first designated in the 1920s, it only reached as far north as Reading, but at the time US 22 dipped down from Allentown to Reading, then west to Harrisburg. US 22 was rerouted to become a straight shot from Allentown to Harrisburg, so the roadway between Reading and Allentown became part of US 222, explaining why the highway, designated as north/south, actually runs mostly east/west between the two cities.