Maryland Route 159

Maryland Route 159
Route information
Maintained by MDSHA
Length:	4.73 mi[1] (7.61 km)
Major junctions
South end:	Dead end at Bush River near Perryman
North end:	US 40 / MD 7 in Aberdeen
Location
Counties:	Harford
Highway system
Maryland highway system Interstate • US • State • Minor • Former • Turnpikes ← MD 158 MD 160 →

Maryland Route 159 (MD 159) is a state highway in the U.S. state of Maryland. Known for most of its length as Perryman Road, the state highway runs 4.73 miles (7.61 km) from a dead end at the Bush River near Perryman north to U.S. Route 40 (US 40) and MD 7 in Aberdeen. The northernmost part of MD 159 was constructed in the early 1920s and became the original alignment of US 40. The Perryman Road portion of MD 159 was constructed in the late 1920s and early 1930s. MD 159 was extended west along what was MD 7 to US 40 in 1950.

Route description

MD 159 begins at a dead end at the Bush River. The state highway heads northeast as Perryman Road, a two-lane road that closely parallels the Amtrak Northeast Corridor, which also serves MARC's Penn Line. MD 159 serves the Perryman Peninsula, an area of land between the Bush River estuary and Aberdeen Proving Ground. A small portion of this area is on the south side of the railroad and is accessed via Chelsea Road, at which northbound MD 159 has a stop sign in the village of Perryman, where the highway veers away from the Amtrak line and passes St. George's Parish Vestry House. North of Perryman, the state highway passes several distribution centers before reaching Old Philadelphia Road, onto which MD 159 turns west. The state highway crosses over Cranberry Run and passes the Griffith House and a trailer park before reaching its northern terminus at an oblique intersection with US 40 (Philadelphia Boulevard) just south of the city limits of Aberdeen. Old Philadelphia Road continues west as MD 7 toward Riverside.^[1][2]

History

The Old Philadelphia Road portion of MD 159 is part of the original alignment of US 40.^[3] The section that MD 159 now follows was constructed of concrete around 1923.^[4] After US 40 was moved to the newly-completed Philadelphia Boulevard (part of Pulaski Highway) in 1937, Old Philadelphia Road became part of MD 7.^[5][6] Perryman Road was reconstructed as a concrete state highway from US 40 to Chelsea Road in Perryman in 1928.^[7] MD 159 was completed to Bush River by 1933 in two sections: a macadam segment from Chelsea Road to Canning House Road and a gravel segment to the road's end.^[8] The gravel section was upgraded to a more modern surface in 1950. Also in 1950, MD 7 was truncated at US 40; MD 159 was extended west to US 40 from the old MD 7–MD 159 intersection.^[9]

Future

There are plans, currently on hold due to lack of funding, to construct a roundabout at the intersection of Perryman Road and Old Philadelphia Road.^[10] Once the roundabout and other minor improvements to the state highway are completed, MD 159 will be removed from the state highway system and transferred to county maintenance.^[11]

Junction list

The entire route is in Harford County.

Location	Mile[1]	Destinations	Notes
Perryman	0.00	Dead end at Bush River	Southern terminus
Aberdeen	4.39	Old Philadelphia Road north	MD 159 turns west onto Old Philadelphia Road
	4.73	US 40 (Pulaski Highway) / MD 7 west (Old Philadelphia Road) – Havre de Grace, Edgewood, Riverside	Northern terminus
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

Auxiliary route

MD 159A is the designation for an unnamed 0.05-mile (0.080 km) spur north from MD 159 just south of its intersection with Chelsea Road in Perryman.^[1]

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d} "Highway Location Reference: Harford County" (PDF). Maryland State Highway Administration. 2009. http://www.marylandroads.com/Location/2009_HARFORD.pdf. Retrieved 2011-03-03. 
2. ^ Google, Inc. Google Maps – Maryland Route 159 (Map). Cartography by Google, Inc. http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&source=s_d&saddr=Perryman+Rd&daddr=Old+Philadelphia+Rd&hl=en&geocode=FV7NWQIdCrN0-w%3BFfSLWgId3lF1-w&mra=ls&sll=39.488592,-76.19658&sspn=0.007485,0.01929&ie=UTF8&t=h&z=13. Retrieved 2011-03-03. 
3. ^ Maryland Geological Survey. Map of Maryland: Showing State Road System and State Aid Roads (Map) (1927 ed.). 
4. ^ Maryland Geological Survey. Map of Maryland: Showing State Road System and State Aid Roads (Map) (1923 ed.). 
5. ^ Report of the State Roads Commission of Maryland. 1935-1936. Baltimore: Maryland State Roads Commission. 1936-12-04. p. 81. http://www.archive.org/details/reportofstateroa1935mary. Retrieved 2011-03-03. 
6. ^ Maryland State Roads Commission. General Highway Map: State of Maryland (Map) (1939 ed.). 
7. ^ Maryland Geological Survey. Map of Maryland: Showing State Road System and State Aid Roads (Map) (1928 ed.). 
8. ^ Maryland Geological Survey. Map of Maryland Showing State Road System: State Aid Roads and Improved County Road Connections (Map) (1933 ed.). 
9. ^ Maryland State Roads Commission. Maryland: Official Highway Map (Map) (1950 ed.). 
10. ^ "Project Information: MD 0159 PERRYMAN ROAD SOUTH OF MD 7 AND US 40". Maryland State Highway Administration. http://apps.roads.maryland.gov/WebProjectLifeCycle/ProjectInformation.asp?projectno=HA2052112. Retrieved 2011-03-03. 
11. ^ Consolidated Transportation Program. FY 2010–2015. Hanover, MD: Maryland Department of Transportation. 2009-12-01. p. SHA-H-4. http://www.mdot.maryland.gov/Planning/CTP_10-15/SHA/Harford.pdf. Retrieved 2011-03-03. 

External links

• MD 159 @ MDRoads.com