Pennsylvania Route 3

Route map:
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
This article is about the current route. For the PA Route 3 in the 1920s, see William Penn Highway.

Pennsylvania Route 3 marker

Pennsylvania Route 3

Map
Route information
Maintained by PennDOT, Borough of West Chester, and City of Philadelphia
Length24.326 mi[1] (39.149 km)
Existed1937[2]–present
Major junctions
West end
Major intersections
East end PA 611 in Philadelphia
Location
CountryUnited States
StatePennsylvania
CountiesChester, Delaware, Philadelphia
Highway system
←
PA 4

Pennsylvania Route 3 (PA 3) is a 24.3-mile (39.1 km) state highway located in the southeastern portion of Pennsylvania. The route runs from U.S. Route 322 Business (US 322 Bus.) in West Chester east to PA 611 in Philadelphia.

The route begins in downtown West Chester and heads east out of the borough as a

Center City Philadelphia along Market Street eastbound and John F. Kennedy Boulevard westbound and ending at Philadelphia City Hall
.

Philadelphia and West Chester were linked by a dirt road dating back to 1793. The Philadelphia and West Chester Turnpike Company was created to build a

PA 5
.

PA 3 replaced the PA 5 designation between West Chester and Philadelphia in 1937. Trolley service was replaced by buses in the 1950s to allow for the widening of PA 3 between West Chester and Philadelphia to four lanes. By 1960, PA 3 was shifted to end at

University City
by 1970 before the route was extended east to Philadelphia City Hall during the 1970s.

Route description

Chester and Delaware counties

PA 3 westbound approaching US 202/US 322 in West Goshen Township

PA 3 begins at an intersection with

divided West Chester Pike, passing through residential areas in the community of Chatwood. PA 3 comes to a partial cloverleaf interchange with the US 202/US 322 freeway and runs past businesses and some homes. The road curves east-southeast at the Strasburg Road intersection and crosses into East Goshen Township, where it continues past suburban neighborhoods and commercial establishments, crossing the East Branch Chester Creek and passing through the community of Goshen. PA 3 enters Westtown Township and reaches an intersection with PA 352, forming a short concurrency with that route before PA 352 splits to the southeast. The road heads east through wooded areas with residential subdivisions as it continues into Willistown Township. The route intersects the eastern terminus of PA 926 and curves east-northeast through a mix of fields and woodland with some homes, crossing the Ridley Creek before coming to a junction with Delchester Road.[3][4]

PA 3 westbound past PA 320 in Broomall

PA 3 enters

Newtown Square. Following the PA 252 intersection, the route continues east through a mix of suburban residential and commercial areas. At the Media Line Road junction, PA 3 crosses into Marple Township and soon intersects Springfield Road. The road passes more homes and businesses and comes to a junction with PA 320 in the community of Broomall. The route continues near suburban neighborhoods with some businesses before it reaches a partial cloverleaf interchange with I-476.[3][5]

PA 3 eastbound in Upper Darby, with the Philadelphia skyline in the distance

Past the I-476 interchange, PA 3 intersects Lawrence Road and crosses the

Eagle Road. PA 3 has an intersection with Manoa Road as it passes to the north of the Llanerch Country Club, continuing through suburban development. Farther east, the route crosses Naylors Run and heads into the community of Llanerch, where it intersects Darby Road a short distance before coming to a junction with US 1. After crossing US 1, PA 3 enters Upper Darby Township and continues past suburban businesses and homes. The road crosses State Road and heads into more urban areas of residential and commercial development. A set of SEPTA trolley tracks begins running in the median before the route comes to Terminal Square, where it crosses SEPTA's Route 101 and 102 trolley lines at-grade and intersects Victory Avenue/Garrett Road. Past this, PA 3 heads east on four-lane undivided Market Street as it passes between SEPTA's 69th Street Transportation Center to the north and urban businesses to the south, gaining a median before the 69th Street intersection. The route becomes undivided again and runs past more commercial development, forming the border between the borough of Millbourne to the north and Upper Darby Township to the south. PA 3 heads past some homes before turning into a divided highway at the eastern edge of Millbourne as SEPTA's Market–Frankford Line rises to pass over the road.[3][5]

West Philadelphia

PA 3 one-way pair in West Philadelphia
Eastbound on Chestnut Street
Westbound on Walnut Street

PA 3 crosses the

Subway–Surface Trolley Lines joining at 36th Street. Eastbound PA 3 continues east on one-way Chestnut Street. The route passes several multistory commercial buildings as it runs through the northern part of the Drexel University campus. At 33rd Street, eastbound PA 3 turns north and joins the westbound direction on Market Street, continuing east.[3][5]

Upon reaching 32nd Street, PA 3 splits into another one-way pair, with eastbound PA 3 continuing east along Market Street and westbound PA 3 following four-lane John F. Kennedy Boulevard, both being two-way streets. The route passes under

I-76 (Schuylkill Expressway) before it crosses over the Schuylkill River and then the Schuylkill River Trail and CSX's Philadelphia Subdivision railroad line on the river's east bank on the Market Street Bridge eastbound and the John F. Kennedy Boulevard Bridge westbound.[3][5]

Center City Philadelphia

PA 3 one-way pair in Center City
Eastbound on Market Street
Westbound on John F. Kennedy Boulevard

At this point, PA 3 heads into

LOVE Park between 16th and 15th streets. PA 3 reaches its eastern terminus at PA 611 (which runs north-south along Broad Street through Philadelphia) at 15th Street, which forms the western part of Penn Square around Philadelphia City Hall.[3][5]

History

PA 3 westbound in Havertown

From 1793 to 1850, Philadelphia and West Chester were linked by a dirt road used by horse-drawn carriages and wagons. The Philadelphia and West Chester Turnpike Road Company was formed in March 1848 to build a turnpike between 38th and Market streets in Philadelphia and Newtown Square. The turnpike was to have five toll houses along its length. The West Chester Pike was constructed to improve farming and manufacturing in Delaware County. The turnpike became a plank road between 1850 and 1868. Rail service was first used on the turnpike in 1859, when the Delaware County Passenger Rail Road Company built a 4-mile (6.4 km) horse-drawn rail line from 38th and Market streets in Philadelphia to Howard House in Upper Darby. The entire turnpike between Philadelphia and Newtown Square became a stone road by 1885. The Philadelphia and West Chester Traction Company established a trolley service along the West Chester Pike between 63rd Street in Philadelphia and Newtown Square in 1895. Steam dummies were first used but electric trolley cars were introduced a year later. The trolley line was extended west to West Chester in 1898. The trolley line followed the south side of the turnpike. Following the construction of 69th Street Terminal in Upper Darby in 1907, the route of the West Chester Pike saw increasing suburban development. In 1918, the West Chester Pike was taken over by the state, with the tolls removed.[6]

PA 3 westbound past PA 926 in Willistown Township

The West Chester Pike was designated as Legislative Route 133 when the

US 122/PA 52 (later US 202) along Gay Street.[10] In 1937, PA 3 was commissioned between US 202/US 322/PA 100 (now US 322 Bus.) in West Chester and US 30 in Philadelphia, replacing the previous PA 5 designation.[2][11] In Philadelphia, PA 3 was shifted by 1940 to follow Chestnut and Walnut streets east before turning north on 5th and 6th streets to meet US 30 at the approach to the Benjamin Franklin Bridge over the Delaware River.[12]

The John F. Kennedy Boulevard section of PA 3 was originally part of Filbert Street.

Chinese Wall." In 1930, the Pennsylvania Railroad opened Suburban Station, with a new bridge over the Schuylkill River and railroad line parallel to the "Chinese Wall" leading to the new station. With the opening of the Suburban Station, the Pennsylvania Railroad planned to close Broad Street Station and demolish the "Chinese Wall", replacing it with a wide street called Pennsylvania Boulevard that would contain several office buildings. However, the Great Depression put these plans on hold and Broad Street Station and the "Chinese Wall" would continue to be used until 1952.[14] The station and viaduct were demolished and Pennsylvania Boulevard was constructed in the 1950s, with the Penn Center business district built along the boulevard. As part of constructing the boulevard, a new bridge was built over the Schuylkill River leading to 30th Street Station.[14][15] Pennsylvania Boulevard was later renamed to John F. Kennedy Boulevard.[14]

A Route 103 trolley on West Chester Pike in 1964. Route 103 ran on West Chester Pike for a length, then diverged north to Ardmore.

In 1954, regular trolley service between Philadelphia and West Chester ended as plans were made to widen PA 3. Trolley service during peak periods continued until 1958.

Baltimore Avenue to end at US 13 at the intersection of Baltimore and Whitby avenues in Southwest Philadelphia.[18] The route was realigned to follow Chestnut and Walnut streets to US 13 at 44th and 43rd streets by 1970.[19] Also by this time, the US 202 concurrency in West Chester was removed as that highway was rerouted to bypass the borough to the east along US 322.[20] PA 3 was extended east to PA 291 and PA 611 at Philadelphia City Hall during the 1970s. The route followed Chestnut and Walnut streets to US 13 at 38th Street before running along Chestnut Street eastbound and Market Street westbound to 30th Street Station, where it shifted to Market Street eastbound and John F. Kennedy Boulevard westbound.[21]

In 2012, the section of PA 3 between Adams Street in West Chester and US 202/US 322 in West Goshen Township was named the Robert J. Thompson Highway in honor of former State Senator Robert J. Thompson. A ceremony was held on October 9, 2012, with State Senator Andy Dinniman and state and local officials in attendance.[22]

On August 16, 2021, the right lane on eastbound PA 3 (Market Street) between 20th Street and PA 611 (15th Street) and on westbound PA 3 (John F. Kennedy Boulevard) between PA 611 (15th Street) and 19th Street was converted into a bus lane as part of a pilot project to add bus lanes to streets in Philadelphia to improve public transportation.[23]

Major intersections

CountyLocationmi[1]kmDestinationsNotes
ChesterWest Chester0.0000.000
 US 322 Bus. (High Street / West Chestnut Street)		Western terminus
West Goshen Township0.8051.296Paoli PikeEastbound exit and westbound entrance
1.3382.153 US 202 / US 322 (West Chester Bypass) – King of Prussia, Downingtown, Chester, WilmingtonInterchange
Westtown Township4.5187.271
 PA 352 north (North Chester Road) – Frazer		Western terminus of concurrency with PA 352
4.6487.480
 PA 352 south (South Chester Road) – Lima		Eastern terminus of concurrency with PA 352
Westtown
Eastern terminus of PA 926
DelawareNewtown Township11.30818.198 PA 252 (Newtown Street Road) – Paoli, Media
Marple Township13.45621.655 PA 320 (Sproul Road) – Villanova, Swarthmore
14.56023.432
I-476 (Mid-County Expressway) – Plymouth Meeting, Chester
Exit 9 on I-476
Haverford–Upper Darby
township line		17.11727.547 US 1 (Township Line Road)
Philadelphia
22.45136.131 US 13 (38th Street)Brief concurrency between westbound PA 3 and US 13
23.32137.532
Central Philadelphia, International Airport
Exit 345 on I-76; access via Schuylkill Avenue
24.32639.149 PA 611 (John F. Kennedy Boulevard/15th Street)Penn Square; eastern terminus
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Bureau of Maintenance and Operations (January 2015). Roadway Management System Straight Line Diagrams (Report) (2015 ed.). Pennsylvania Department of Transportation. Retrieved June 30, 2015.
  2. ^
    Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  3. ^ a b c d e f Google (December 15, 2014). "overview of Pennsylvania Route 3" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved December 15, 2014.
  4. ISBN 0-87530-778-7
    .
  5. ^
    ISBN 978-0-87530-777-0
    .
  6. ^
    ISBN 9780738592442
    . Retrieved December 15, 2014.
  7. Pennsylvania Department of Highways. 1911. Archived from the original
    (PDF) on July 5, 2011. Retrieved December 14, 2014.
  8. ^ Pennsylvania Highway Map (eastern side) (Map). Gulf Oil. 1926. Retrieved December 26, 2007.
  9. ^ Pennsylvania Highway Map (Map). Pennsylvania Department of Highways. 1927. Retrieved December 26, 2007.
  10. ^ Pennsylvania Highway Map (Philadelphia Metro) (Map). Gulf Oil. 1928. Retrieved November 8, 2007.
  11. ^ Official Road Map of Pennsylvania (PDF) (Map). Pennsylvania Department of Highways. 1940. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 5, 2011. Retrieved June 24, 2010.
  12. ^ Official Road Map of Pennsylvania (back) (PDF) (Map). Pennsylvania Department of Highways. 1940. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 18, 2011. Retrieved January 1, 2014.
  13. ^ Philadelphia (Map). Rand McNally and Company. 1921. Retrieved December 14, 2016.
  14. ^ a b c Ujifusa, Steve (February 12, 2008). "From our Reprise Collection: Making the Center City commuter connection". PlanPhilly. Retrieved December 14, 2016.
  15. ^ Philadelphia Street Map, 1959 (Map). Bureau of Surveys and Design, Dept. of Streets. 1959. Retrieved December 14, 2016.
  16. ^ "Route 104 bus schedule" (PDF). SEPTA. Retrieved December 15, 2014.
  17. ^ General Highway Map Chester County, Pennsylvania (PDF) (Map) (Sheet 1 ed.). Pennsylvania Department of Highways. 1959. Retrieved December 16, 2014.[permanent dead link]
  18. ^ Official Map of Pennsylvania (back) (PDF) (Map). Pennsylvania Department of Highways. 1960. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 30, 2011. Retrieved January 16, 2014.
  19. ^ Official Map of Pennsylvania (back) (PDF) (Map). Pennsylvania Department of Highways. 1970. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 24, 2011. Retrieved December 16, 2014.
  20. ^ Official Map of Pennsylvania (PDF) (Map). Pennsylvania Department of Highways. 1970. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 5, 2011. Retrieved December 16, 2014.
  21. ^ Pennsylvania Official Transportation Map (back) (PDF) (Map). Pennsylvania Department of Transportation. 1980. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 24, 2011. Retrieved January 17, 2014.
  22. ^ "Dinniman Dedicates Robert J. Thompson Highway". www.senatordinniman.com. Senator Andy Dinniman. October 9, 2012. Archived from the original on November 16, 2019. Retrieved March 6, 2020.
  23. ^ "Bus-Only Lanes Coming to 2 More Center City Streets". Philadelphia, PA: WCAU-TV. August 13, 2021. Retrieved August 14, 2021.

External links

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