U.S. Route 9 in Delaware

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U.S. Route 9
Length: 30.92 mi[1] (49.76 km)
West end: US 13 in Laurel
Major
junctions:
Truck US 9/US 113 in Georgetown
DE 18/DE 404 in Georgetown

Truck US 9 near Georgetown

Bus US 9/DE 1 in Five Points

Bus US 9 in Lewes
East end: Cape May-Lewes Ferry in Lewes
Routes in Delaware
< DE 8 DE 9 >
< DE 26 DE 30 >

In Delaware, U.S. Route 9 runs an east-west path through the heart of Sussex County. Even though U.S. Route 9 is signed north-south for the rest of its route, the segment in Delaware is considered east-west. The highway runs from its southern terminus at U.S. Route 13 in Laurel to the Cape May-Lewes Ferry in Lewes, which connects the Delaware segment of U.S. Route 9 to its counterpart in New Jersey.

Contents

[edit] Route description

U.S. Route 9 starts out at an intersection with U.S. Route 13 in the northern part of Laurel, heading to the northeast on the County Seat Highway. It passes through rural areas and intersects Delaware Route 20 in Hardscrabble. It the continues to Georgetown, where just west of the central business district of Georgetown, U.S. Route 9 intersects U.S. Route 113 and becomes Market Street. At this point, a truck bypass of U.S. Route 9 in Georgetown, U.S. Route 9 Truck, loops to the south of Georgetown, returning to U.S. Route 9 east of Georgetown. At the downtown circle in Georgetown, U.S. Route 9 meets Delaware Route 18 and Delaware Route 404, which is part of a major route between the Baltimore-Washington Metropolitan Area and the Delaware beaches by way of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge. Delaware Route 404 overlaps U.S. Route 9 for the purpose of providing a one-number route for beach traffic from the Baltimore-Washington Area.

The concurrent U.S. Route 9 and Delaware Route 404 then continue east on the Lewes Georgetown Highway through rural eastern Sussex County, intersecting Delaware Route 30 in Gravel Hill and Delaware Route 5 in Harbeson. The continue east to the Five Points intersection in Nassau. It intersects Delaware Route 23 and Delaware Route 1D and then intersects Delaware Route 1, where Delaware Route 404 ends and the old alignment of U.S. Route 9 in Lewes, now known as U.S. Route 9 Business heads east. U.S. Route 9 itself turns south for a concurrency with Delaware Route 1. In Carpenters Corner, it turns east onto Dartmouth Drive briefly before making a left and bypassing the heart of Lewes to the south on Kings Highway and the Theodore C. Freeman Highway. The route crosses the Lewes and Rehoboth Canal on a high-level bridge. At the east end of the Theodore C. Freeman Highway on the Delaware Bay, U.S. Route 9 re-meets U.S. Route 9 Business. U.S. Route 9 then continues a brief distance on Henlopen Drive before reaching the Cape May-Lewes Ferry terminal, where The Delaware segment of U.S. Route 9 ends and the route is connected by way of the ferry to U.S. Route 9 in New Jersey.

[edit] History

U.S. Route 9 was first signed in Delaware during the 1970s. Originally, U.S. Route 9 had ended in Cape May, New Jersey. However, the highway was rerouted over to the Cape-May Lewes Ferry in North Cape May, New Jersey and crossed the ferry to Lewes, Delaware. The southermost stub of U.S. Route 9 in Cape May became known as New Jersey Route 109.

In Delaware, the extended U.S. Route 9 replaced Delaware Route 18 between Lewes and The Circle in Georgetown, and Delaware Route 28 between Georgetown and U.S. Route 13 in Laurel.

[edit] Junction list

The entire route is in Sussex County.

Location Milepost Intersecting road Notes
Laurel 0 US 13 (Sussex Highway)
Hardscrabble 5.54 DE 20
Georgetown 12.05
US 9 Truck / US 113 (DuPont Boulevard)
12.79 DE 18 west / DE 404 west West end of DE 404 overlap
14.00
US 9 Truck
Gravel Hill 15.70 DE 30 (Gravel Hill Road)
Harbeson 18.85 DE 5 (Harbeson Road)
Nassau 22.50 DE 1D / DE 23
25.21
US 9 Bus. / DE 1 north (Coastal Highway)		 East end of DE 404 overlap
West end of DE 1 overlap
Carpenters Corner 26.33 DE 1 south (Coastal Highway) East end of DE 1 overlap
Lewes 29.21
US 9 Bus. (Savannah Road, Cape Henlopen Drive)
30.92 Cape May-Lewes Ferry - Cape May, NJ, Garden State Parkway

[edit] References

  1. ^ http://www.deldot.gov/static/pubs_forms/traffic_counts/2006/rpt_pgs1_38_rev.pdf DelDOT 2006 Traffic Count and Mileage Report
U.S. Route 9
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Terminus		 Delaware Next state:
New Jersey