| U.S. Route 222 | |
|---|---|
| Route information | |
| Length: | 94.45 mi[1] (152.00 km) |
| Existed: | 1926 – present |
| Major junctions | |
| South end: | US 1 / MD 222 / MD 222 Truck in Conowingo, MD |
| PA 372 in Quarryville, PA PA 272 in Willow Street, PA US 30 in Lancaster, PA PA 12 near Reading, PA PA 61 near Reading, PA |
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| North end: | I-78 / PA 222 / PA 309 in Dorneyville, PA |
| Highway system | |
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United States Numbered Highways |
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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.
Contents |
| mi[1] | km | |
|---|---|---|
| MD | 3.60 | 5.79 |
| PA | 90.85 | 146.21 |
| Total | 94.45 | 152.00 |
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 Truck) 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.
The speed limits on US 222 in Pennsylvania range from 25 mph (40 km/h) through towns to 65 mph (105 km/h) on expressway portions. 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.
In Lehigh County a bypass around Trexlertown was constructed, 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, which was originally scheduled to open in late 2006, opened Sept. 28, 2007. That stretch carries a speed limit of 45 miles per hour (72 km/h). The closed section of the bypass was under construction for quite a few years, which gave 222 the nickname of "The Road to Nowhere"
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.
By the early 1930s the road then signed as US 22 became problematic for motorists in Lebanon along the current U.S. Route 422; Reading via U.S. Routes 22 and 222; and Allentown on Hamilton Street (US 22).[2] Pennsylvania Route 43 had been aligned as a bypass between Allentown and Harrisburg.[3] On June 8, 1931, the American Association of State Highway Officials came to a resolution to the traffic problem, by replacing the PA 43 corridor with US 22 and the William Penn Highway name to match.[2][4] The state truncated PA 43 to Susquehanna Street from Allentown to Bethlehem.[5] US 222 replaced the former US 22 alignment from Reading to Allentown. Hamilton Street was numbered as US 222, west of downtown Allentown, where it turned north onto 15th Street. This portion of US 222 was seven-blocks long which ended at Tilghman Street (then US 22).[6]
With the construction of the Lehigh Valley Thruway in the early 1950s and the relocation of US 22 to that route, US 222 was extended east along Tilghman Street to 7th Street, then north on 7th Street to the interchange with the new freeway.[7]
In the late 1950s, US 222 was realigned to a newly constructed bypass carrying U.S. Route 309 and PA Route 29, west of Allentown. From the south, US 222 left Hamilton Boulevard and turned north onto the freeway. US 222 terminated at an interchange with US 22, US 309, and PA 29 in South Whitehall Township.[8][9] The freeway, originally signed as US 309/PA 29/US 222, dropped the PA 29 designation in 1966; in 1968, US 309 was downgraded to PA 309 and US 222 was truncated to end at the current northern termini.[10][11][12] By the 1980s, Interstate 78 became part of the freeway that occupied PA 309.[13]
In 1984, the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation was planning to extend PA Route 145 and US 222. Traffic engineer Samuel D. Darrohh said that Allentown is one of few Pennsylvania cities without a traffic route going through it. After the plan was introduced, he said that motorists might be aided if US 222 were extended along Hamilton Boulevard to connect with the proposed PA 145 corridor.[14]
PennDOT originally planned the road as U.S. Route 222 but AASHTO denied the extension.[15] In 1991, it was commissioned as Pennsylvania Route 222. PA 145 was extended south of the Lehigh Valley Thruway to the I-78/PA 309 overlap near Lanark.[16]
In 2010, officials in Berks County pushed for PennDOT to widen a portion of the two-lane road to four lanes due to traffic and safety issues.[17]
| County | Location | Mile[18][19] | Destinations | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cecil | Conowingo | 0.00 | US 1 (Conowingo Road) / MD 222 south / MD 222 Truck south – Conowingo Dam, Hickory, Rising Sun |
MD 222 runs south along US 1; MD 222 Truck runs north along US 1. |
| Oakwood | 1.67 | Old Conowingo Rd. west - Susquehanna River | ||
| Rock Springs | 3.12 | Old Mill Rd.-New Bridge Rd. - to Connelly Rd. | Connelly Rd. south leads to US 1 / MD 591. | |
| 3.61 | Mason-Dixon Rd.-Quarry Rd. | both roads form part of Mason-Dixon line | ||
| Maryland-Pennsylvania border | ||||
| Lancaster | Fulton Township | PA 272 south (Nottingham Road) | South end of PA 272 overlap | |
| PA 272 north (Lancaster Pike) | North end of PA 272 overlap | |||
| Quarryville | PA 372 (West State Street) | |||
| West Lampeter Township | PA 741 east (Village Road) | South end of PA 741 overlap | ||
| PA 272 south (Willow Street Pike) / PA 741 west (Long Lane) | North end of PA 741 overlap, south end of PA 272 overlap | |||
| Lancaster | PA 324 (New Danville Pike) | Access from southbound US 222/PA 272 only, access to northbound and southbound US 222/PA 272; Northern terminus of PA 324 | ||
| PA 72 (South Queen Street) | Access from northbound US 222/PA 272 only; southern terminus of southbound PA 72. | |||
| PA 462 east (King Street) | ||||
| PA 23 east (Chestnut Street) | ||||
| PA 23 (Walnut Street) / PA 462 west | ||||
| PA 72 (North Prince Street) | Northbound PA 72 overlaps with southbound US 222/PA 272 between North Queen Street and North Prince Street; PA 72's northbound lane begins here | |||
| South end of freeway section | ||||
| US 30 west / PA 283 west / PA 501 (Lititz Pike) – York, Harrisburg | South end of US 30 overlap for southbound US 222, US 222 southbound overlaps PA 501 between PA 272 and US 30; Southern terminus of PA 501 | |||
| PA 272 north (Oregon Pike) | North end of PA 272 overlap, south end of US 30 overlap for northbound US 222 | |||
| US 30 east – Coatesville, Philadelphia | North end of US 30 overlap | |||
| Manheim Township | 34.01 | To PA 272 (Oregon Pike) | ||
| Brownstown | 36.95 | PA 772 – Rothsville, Brownstown | ||
| Ephrata Township | 41.19 | US 322 – Ephrata | ||
| East Cocalico Township | 46.37 | I-76 / Penna. Tpk. / PA 272 – Denver | Reading Exit of PA Turnpike | |
| Berks | Brecknock Township | 51.58 | PA 272 / PA 568 – Adamstown | Opened in 2006, original end of freeway portion of US 222. Northern terminus of PA 272, western terminus of PA 568 |
| Spring Township | 53.41 | Mohns Hill Road | ||
| Cumru Township | 53.87 | West Madison Street - Mohnton | ||
| 54.00 | US 222 Bus. (Lancaster Avenue) – Shillington |
Northbound exit, southbound entrance; Southern terminus of U.S. 222 Business. | ||
| Spring Township | 55.25 | PA 724 – Sinking Spring, Shillington | ||
| West Lawn | 56.84 | US 422 Bus. east (Penn Avenue) / US 422 west – Lebanon |
South end of US 422 overlap | |
| Wyomissing | 57.69 | State Hill Road | To Berkshire Mall | |
| 58.18 | Paper Mill Road | |||
| 58.76 | US 422 east / PA 12 (Warren Street Bypass) – Pottstown, Pricetown | North end of US 422 overlap, no access to PA 12 from US 222 southbound, to First Energy Stadium, western terminus of PA 12 | ||
| Spring Township | 59.74 | Broadcasting Road | To Penn State University - Berks Campus | |
| 60.41 | Spring Ridge Drive | To Berks County Heritage Center | ||
| Bern Township | 61.86 | PA 183 (Bernville Road) – Strausstown | Reading Regional Airport, use PA 183 south | |
| Muhlenberg Township | 64.95 | PA 61 – Pottsville, Tuckerton | ||
| Ontelaunee Township | 66.86 | US 222 Bus. – Laureldale |
Northern terminus of U.S. 222 Business | |
| North end of freeway section | ||||
| Maidencreek Township | PA 73 (Main Street) | |||
| Richmond Township | PA 662 (Moselem Springs Road) | |||
| 74.12 | South end of freeway section | |||
| Virginville, Kutztown | Northbound exit, southbound entrance, to Kutztown University | |||
| 75.08 | Virginville | Southbound exit, northbound entrance | ||
| Kutztown | 77.03 | PA 737 – Krumsville | To Kutztown University; southern terminus of PA 737 | |
| 78.23 | East Main Street – Kutztown | Southbound exit, northbound entrance | ||
| North end of freeway section | ||||
| Lehigh | Upper Macungie Township | PA 863 (Independent Road) | Southern terminus of PA 863 | |
| 85.44 | South end of freeway section | |||
| PA 100 south – Macungie, Pottstown | South end of PA 100 overlap, Southbound exit | |||
| Grim Road/Mosser Road | At-grade intersection | |||
| 87.00 | PA 100 north – Fogelsville, Trexlertown | North end of PA 100 overlap | ||
| Grange Road/Mill Creek Road | At-grade intersection | |||
| Lower Macungie Township (Wescosville) | Krocks Road | At-grade intersection | ||
| Brookside Road | Southbound exit | |||
| Cedarbrook Road/Kressler Road/Hamilton Blvd. | At-grade intersection. Old routing of US 222. | |||
| South Whitehall Township (Dorneyville) | I-78 east / PA 309 south – Bethlehem, Quakertown | Ramps to/from I-78/PA 309 are at-grade. | ||
| 90.85 | I-78 west / PA 309 north – Harrisburg, Tamaqua | |||
| North end of freeway section | ||||
| US 222 becomes PA 222. | ||||
U.S. Route 222 Truck |
|
|---|---|
| Location: | Perryville–Conowingo, Maryland |
| Length: | 12.49 mi[18] (20.10 km) |
U.S. Route 222 Truck was a 12.49-mile (20.10 km) truck bypass of US 222 from US 222 in Perryville to US 1 and US 222 in Conowingo.[18] The signed route followed MD 275 from US 222 in Perryville north to MD 276 in Woodlawn. US 222 Truck continued north on MD 276 from Woodlawn north to US 1 west of Rising Sun. The truck route then headed west on US 1 to US 222 in Conowingo.[18][20] US 222 Truck was downgraded to Maryland Route 222 Truck when US 222 became MD 222 between Perryville and Conowingo.
U.S. Route 222 Business |
|
|---|---|
| Location: | Reading, Pennsylvania |
| Length: | 12 mi[21] (19 km) |
| Existed: | 1977–present |
U.S. Route 222 Business is an auxiliary route of U.S. Route 222 located in Reading, Pennsylvania. Its northern terminus is at US 222 north of Laureldale. The southern terminus is at US 222 near Mohnton. US 222 Business is the only auxiliary route of U.S. Route 222 in Pennsylvania.
| Browse numbered routes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ← MD 221 | MD | MD 222 → | ||
| ← PA 221 | PA | PA 222 → | ||
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