Pennsylvania Route 39

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PA Route 39
Maintained by PennDOT
Length:	17.68 mi[1] (28.45 km)
Formed:	1930s
West end:	North Front Street in Susquehanna Township
Major junctions:	US 22/US 322 in Harrisburg I-81 in West Hanover Township US 22 in West Hanover Township
East end:	US 322/US 422 near Hershey
Counties:	Dauphin
Pennsylvania State Routes < PA 38 US 40 > Minor - Legislative
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Pennsylvania Route 39 (PA 39) is a 17.68-mile (28.45 km) long west–east designated state route in Dauphin County of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It starts at North Front Street in Susquehanna Township, and ends at US 322 and US 422 near Hershey.

From the western terminus to Interstate 81, PA 39 is known as Linglestown Road. Linglestown Road is mostly a two-lane road, signed east–west. From Interstate 81 to Hersheypark Drive, PA 39 is known as Hershey Road turning south, but keeping the east–west signage. Where the highway is named Hersheypark Drive, PA 39 is routed opposite to its alignment east of the eastern terminus.

[edit] Route description

PA 39 starts at North Front Street and ends at US 322 and US 422 near Hummelstown and Hershey. The road has two major sections: Linglestown Road and Hershey Road, and a shorter section called Hersheypark Drive.

Linglestown Road starts at North Front Street and ends at Jonestown Road in West Hanover Township. Hershey Road starts there, and ends at Hersheypark Drive and Park Boulevard, adjacent to Hersheypark. PA 39 turns south onto Hersheypark Drive, ending at US 322/422, one mile (1.6 km) away. The road is heavily traveled, with an Annual average daily traffic report of over 10,000 vehicles a day,^[2] and it intersects several major local roads, one interstate highway (Interstate 81), as well as two U.S. Routes (US 22 and US 322).^[3]

In January 2007, Lower Paxton Township installed a traffic light at the intersection with Patton Road. The traffic light was installed at the request of a Commerce Bank going in at the corner of PA 39 and Patton Road, as well as a small shopping center, a doctor's office, and a Dunkin' Donuts/Baskin Robbins. The doctor's office opened in January 2007, and the Dunkin' Donuts opened in March 2007.^[4] In June 2007, developers went to the Lower Paxton Township Board of Supervisors to get permission to build a 587-seat restaurant and an office building behind that. It would be located between the Weis Markets at the corner of PA 39 and Colonial Road and the Dunkin' Donuts/Baskin Robbins near the corner of PA 39 and Patton Road.^[5]

The flagpole at the Linglestown square.

PA 39 passes through the village of Linglestown, a municipality of Lower Paxton Township.^[6][7] In the center of the Mountain Road/PA 39 intersection is a flagpole, marking the center of Linglestown. Since 1996, there have been a number of proposed changes to this intersection to alleviate traffic. Proposals have included moving the flagpole and replacing it with a traffic light. In 2007, Lower Paxton Township approved a plan to improve PA 39 in Linglestown, and improve the local community. Work will begin in the third quarter of 2007.^[8] The approved plans keep the flagpole in its current location.

The eastern terminus of PA 39 in Hummelstown.

Between Linglestown and Jonestown Road (a four-mile stretch) is mostly wood and farm land, which is being more and more turned into residential or commercial land. In 2005, Central Dauphin High School (one of two high schools of Central Dauphin School District) moved from its old location in Harrisburg to its current location on Piketown Road.^[10] Though a good distance away from PA 39, the school property starts at the corner of Linglestown and Piketown roads.

PA 39 intersects I-81 at Exit 77. Truck stops were built around the exit, and the area is heavily used by trucks. West Hanover Township plans to upgrade the interchange to incorporate traffic lights at both lanes of travel on and off of I-81, as well as traffic lights at the truck stops. Linglestown Road ends at the intersection with Jonestown Road, several hundred feet from the I-81 interchange.

Since 2002, Hershey Road has become built up with many townhouses, villas, and houses. Two large developments have been built with in 2 miles (3.2 km) of each other, and one smaller development was built. Meadows Marketplace shopping center was developed by Cedar Shopping Centers and built in 2005.^[11][12] It is anchored by a Giant Foods. Giant opened in October 2005, and the smaller shops in the shopping center are still being built. Several other stores opened in July 2006, and the shopping center is reaching capacity as of 2007.^[13][14]

Near the parking lots of Hersheypark and the Giant Center, PA 39 intersects Hersheypark Drive. PA 39 turns south, and ends at US 322 and US 422, in Hummelstown.^[9]

[edit] History

Before the establishment of PA 39, the section of the route between Linglestown at Mountain Road and Piketown Road had several routes. In 1911, this was Legislative Route 140.^[15] In 1926, it was LR 140A, a spur of LR 140, which today is US 22. In the Omnibus Road Bill Act of 1931, LR 22006 was established, spanning most of modern PA 39, from the Susquehanna River north of Harrisburg, to Hanoverdale at the West Hanover Township/South Hanover Township border. ^[16] The remainder of what became PA 39 was a state aid route, number A306 which ran from South Hanover Township to Union Deposit.^[16]

[edit] 1930s

PA 39 was most likely established in the 1930s, combining Route 22006 (west of US 22) and Route 140A. Because the new PA 39 was already legislative routes, the route was designated at the will of the Secretary of Highways (which later became the Secretary of Transportation). Because of this, the only information available on the establishment of PA 39 is evidenced through state maps. The earliest known map with PA 39 dates to 1938; the next previous map available dates to 1930 and does not have PA 39 on it. In 1935, major expansions to the Pennsylvania state highway system were underway and continued through 1936.^[17] There was so much construction that the state of Pennsylvania held off printing a tourism map from 1935 to 1937.^[17]

When PA 39 was founded, it started at (what at the time was) US 11/US 15/US 22/US 322. Eventually, US 11/US 15 was moved to the west shore of the Susquehanna River, and US 22/US 322 was moved a mile east, on the River Relief Route that leads to Dauphin. PA 39 had a concurrency with Pennsylvania Route 894 until the 1940s.^[18][19] That concurrency ran from North Mountain Road to Piketown Road.^[16][18]

[edit] 1960s

Between 1960 and 1964, PA 39 was extended to overlap A306.^[20][21][22] PA 39 was also designated to its current terminus at US 322/US 422. The extension of PA 39 started at former US 22, (US 22 was moved to the several hundred feet south on Allentown Boulevard) called Jonestown Road. PA 39 turned east onto Jonestown Road, entering Manada Hill. PA 39 then turned south onto Hershey Road, which turned into Hanover Road as it approached Union Deposit. After passing through Union Deposit, PA 39 turned south onto Hersheypark Drive, crossing Swatara Creek by using Hanover Road, which in 1941 was also Pennsylvania Route 340,^[18] which was later retired before PA 39 was routed on the same bridge. PA 39 then was routed to its terminus at US 322/US 422.

Between 1964 and 1970, two changes happened.^[21][22] Hershey Road was shifted out of Manada Hill, going to an intersection with PA 39 at Jonestown Road; PA 39 now bypassed Manada Hill. The other change was that Hershey Road was extended from North Hanover Road to Hersheypark Drive. PA 39 was rerouted to bypass Union Deposit and give a more direct way to get to Hersheypark. Park Boulevard, in Hershey, was also rerouted to meet at the intersection of Hersheypark Drive and Hershey Road.^[21][22]

[edit] 1970s to present

In 1974, PA 39 was widened from two to four lanes and included a median from North Front Street to Terrace Drive in Lucknow.^[23] Twenty years later, a center lane was added from Terrace Drive in Lucknow, to the Lower Paxton/Susquehanna Township border. In 1999 and 2000, that center lane was extended to one mile (1.6 km) west of the Linglestown Square.^[24] In 1989, a median was installed between West Chocolate Avenue and the PA 39 terminus at US 322/US 422.^[25] The intersection of Hershey Road and Hersheypark Drive was upgraded in 2002 when the Giant Center opened. The entrance of Hersheypark was moved off Hersheypark Drive and the parking lot was restructured.^[11]

[edit] Recent development and future projects

[edit] Village of Linglestown

Since 1996, the village has been considering making improvements to the village square. At the center of the square, which happens to be in the middle of the road, is a flag pole. The initial plan was to move the flag pole, and insert a traffic light. After long debate, that idea was shot down. It was replaced by the "Linglestown Plan", proposed on March 31, 2000. Nearly seven years later, on February 20, 2007, Lower Paxton Township approved a modified version of the Linglestown Action Plan, which involves the addition of roundabouts, other approaches to slowing down traffic through the square, and general community improvement.^[26][27]

[edit] Other development along PA 39

Plans are in development to build a new shopping center near the intersection of PA 39 and Progress Avenue, which would be operated by Cedar Shopping Centers, who also own Meadows Marketplace on PA 39 near Hershey. As a result, Susquehanna Township, is considering widening PA 39 from 22/322 to Progress Avenue. Cedar Shopping Centers, Inc. already operates Oakhurst Plaza, which is about one mile (1.6 km) east of Progress Avenue.^[28]

West Hanover Township also plans on making improvements to the I-81 interchange with the truck stops on PA 39. Currently, there is only one traffic light, which is at Jonestown Road. West Hanover Township plans to install traffic lights and add additional lanes to accompany the increased truck traffic because of warehouses built in 2003 and 2004.^[29]

[edit] Major intersections

County	Location	Mile[30]	Roads intersected	Notes
Dauphin	Susquehanna Township	0.00 mi (0.00 km)	PA 14/US 11/15/22/322 (North Front Street)	Former alignments of of PA 14 and US 11/15/22/322.
		0.45 mi (0.72 km)	Industrial Road	An intermodal connector of the National Highway System.[31]
		0.49 mi (0.79 km)	US 22/US 322	Interchange.
		2.25 mi (3.62 km)	SR 3015 (North Progress Avenue)	Former alignment of PA 543
	Lower Paxton Township	3.96 mi (6.37 km)	SR 3017 (Colonial Road)	Connects to US 22.
		5.86 mi (9.43 km)	PA 894 (North Mountain Road)	Connects to I-81 and US 22; the square of Linglestown. Former western terminus of concurrency.
	West Hanover Township	7.47 mi (12.02 km)	PA 894 (Piketown Road)	Central Dauphin High School is located at this intersection. Former eastern terminus of concurrency.
		9.80 mi (15.77 km)	I-81	Interchange of Exit 77.
		11.09 mi (17.85 km)	US 22	Former terminus of PA 39.
	South Hanover Township	14.74 mi (23.72 km)	PA 39 (North Hanover Street)	Former routing of PA 39.
	Derry Township	15.64 mi (25.17 km)	SR 2016 (Hersheypark Drive)	PA 39 follows east on Hersheypark Drive.
		17.68 mi (28.45 km)	US 322/US 422	Western terminus of US 422.

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Pennsylvania Highways - Pennsylvania Route 39. Pennsylvania Highways. Retrieved on 2007-07-08.
• State Ends - Pennsylvania Route 39. State Ends. Retrieved on 2007-07-08.
• M-plex roads - Pennsylvania Route 39 Junction list. M-plex roads. Retrieved on 2007-07-08.