U.S. Route 9 in Delaware

U.S. Route 9
Route information
Maintained by DelDOT and DRBA
Length:	30.89 mi[1] (49.71 km)
Existed:	1974 – present
Tourist routes:	Lewes, Gateway to the Nation Byway
Major junctions
West end:	US 13 in Laurel
	DE 20 in Hardscrabble US 113 in Georgetown DE 18 / DE 404 in Georgetown DE 30 in Gravel Hill DE 5 in Harbeson DE 1D / DE 23 in Five Points DE 1 in Five Points
East end:	Cape May-Lewes Ferry in Lewes
Location
Counties:	Sussex
Highway system
United States Numbered Highways List Bannered Divided Replaced Delaware State Route System List Byways ← DE 8 DE 9 → ← DE 26 DE 28 DE 30 →

U.S. Route 9 (US 9) is a U.S. highway in the northeast United States, running from Laurel, Delaware north to Champlain, New York. In Delaware, the route runs an east–west path through Sussex County. Even though US 9 is signed north–south for the remainder of its route, the segment in Delaware is signed east–west. The highway runs from its western terminus at US 13 in Laurel to the Cape May-Lewes Ferry across the Delaware Bay in Lewes, which carries the route to Cape May, New Jersey. US 9 passes through rural areas and serves the communities of Laurel, Georgetown and Lewes. US 9 intersects Delaware Route 20 (DE 20) in Hardscrabble, US 113 and DE 18/DE 404 in Georgetown, DE 30 in Gravel Hill, DE 5 in Harbeson, and DE 1 in Five Points. Between Georgetown and Five Points, US 9 runs concurrent with DE 404.

What is now US 9 in Delaware was originally built as a state highway during the 1920s and designated by 1936 as DE 28 between Laurel and Georgetown and a part of DE 18 between Georgetown and Lewes. US 9 was extended to Delaware from New Jersey by way of the Cape May-Lewes Ferry in 1974, replacing all of DE 28 and the portion of DE 18 between Georgetown and Five Points, with the route aligned to bypass Lewes. DE 404 was designated along the portion of US 9 between Georgetown and Five Points by 1987.

Route description

US 9 westbound past DE 18/DE 404 at The Circle in Georgetown

US 9 starts out at an intersection with US 13 in the commercial northern part of Laurel, heading to the northeast on two-lane undivided County Seat Highway. The road leaves Laurel and runs through a mix of farmland and woodland with some homes. The route intersects DE 20 in Hardscrabble, at which point it briefly becomes a divided highway. Past this intersection, US 9 becomes undivided again. Farther northeast, the road reaches Georgetown and intersects US 113/DE 404 Truck in a commercial area. At this point, US 9 Truck heads south along US 113/DE 404 Truck to bypass Georgetown to the south. Following US 113, the route continues northeast on West Market Street through residential areas. US 9 enters downtown Georgetown and intersects DE 18/DE 404 at The Circle, where the Sussex County Courthouse is located.^[2][3]

At this point, US 9 continues northeast concurrent with DE 404 on East Market Street through the downtown area. The road crosses Norfolk Southern's Indian River Secondary railroad line and runs through residential areas with a few businesses. US 9/DE 404 heads east-northeast out of Georgetown and becomes Lewes Georgetown Highway, passing through farmland and woodland with some development. The two routes intersect the eastern terminus of US 9 Truck/DE 404 Truck a short distance east of Georgetown. In Gravel Hill, the road intersects DE 30. Following this intersection, US 9/DE 404 passes through more rural land, reaching a junction with DE 5 in Harbeson. Past here, the two routes cross a Delaware Coast Line Railroad line. Farther east, residential development near the road begins to increase. Upon reaching the area of the Five Points intersection in Nassau, US 9/DE 404 runs past homes and businesses, widening into a divided highway and coming to an intersection with DE 1D/DE 23. DE 23 joins US 9/DE 404 for a concurrency on a four-lane divided highway before the road comes to a junction with DE 1. Here, DE 23/DE 404 ends, US 9 Bus. continues northeast, and US 9 heads east for a concurrency with DE 1.^[2][3]

US 9 bridge over Lewes and Rehoboth Canal in Lewes.

Past the Five Points intersection, US 9 follows DE 1 on the six-lane divided Coastal Highway, running through commercial areas. The road curves southeast into wooded areas. In Carpenters Corner, US 9 splits from DE 1 by turning northeast onto Dartmouth Drive, a three-lane undivided road with two westbound lanes and one eastbound lane. A short distance later, the route turns north-northeast onto two-lane undivided Kings Highway, passing through farmland with some residential subdivisions. US 9 splits from Kings Highway and continues northeast on Theodore C. Freeman Memorial Highway, bypassing Lewes to the southeast. The route runs through rural areas, crossing the Lewes and Rehoboth Canal on a high-level bridge. The road bends north and crosses the Delaware Coast Line Railroad. After the railroad tracks, US 9 intersects US 9 Bus. again and turns east onto Cape Henlopen Drive, passing between residential development along the Delaware Bay to the north and the railroad tracks to the south. US 9 comes to the terminal of the Cape May-Lewes Ferry, which carries the route across the Delaware Bay to Cape May, New Jersey. Cape Henlopen Drive continues east toward Cape Henlopen State Park.^[2][3]

The portion of the route between Gills Neck Road and the Cape May-Lewes Ferry terminal in Lewes is designated as part of the Lewes, Gateway to the Nation Byway, a Delaware Byway.^[4] US 9 in Delaware has an annual average daily traffic count ranging from a high of 53,789 vehicles along the DE 1 concurrency to a low of 895 vehicles at the Cape May-Lewes Ferry terminal.^[1] The portion of US 9 in Delaware east of DE 18/DE 404 in Georgetown is part of the National Highway System.^[5]

History

Delaware Route 28
Location:	Laurel-Georgetown
Length:	12.71 mi[1] (20.45 km)
Existed:	1936–1974

What is currently US 9 in Delaware existed as a state highway between Whaleys Corners and Georgetown by 1920, with the remainder as an unimproved county road. At the time, the road was a state aid highway between Laurel and Whaleys Corners and under contract as a state aid highway between Georgetown and Harbeson.^[6] By 1924, the state highway along the present alignment of US 9 was completed, running from Laurel through Georgetown to Lewes.^[7] A year later, what is now US 9 along the DE 1 concurrency was built as a state highway.^[8] The Kings Highway portion of the current route was paved by 1931.^[9] When Delaware assigned numbers to its state highways by 1936, DE 28 was designated to run from US 13 in Laurel to DE 18 in Georgetown while the road between Georgetown and Lewes became a part of DE 18.^[10] By 1954, US 13 was moved to a new alignment to the east of Laurel, and the western terminus of DE 28 was truncated to the new location of US 13.^[11] The Cape May-Lewes Ferry was started in 1964; at this time, the ferry did not carry a route number. By this time, the Theodore C. Freeman Highway portion of US 9 had been built.^[12]

In 1974, US 9 was extended across the ferry from New Jersey to Delaware, replacing DE 28 between Laurel and Georgetown and DE 18 between Georgetown and Five Points. Between Five Points and the terminal of the Cape May-Lewes Ferry, US 9 followed DE 14 (now DE 1), Kings Highway, and Theodore C. Freeman Highway before coming to Cape Henlopen Drive. At the same time, US 9 Business was designated onto the former alignment of DE 18 between Five Points and Lewes as well as a portion of Cape Henlopen Drive connecting to US 9.^[13][14] US 9 Truck was created as a truck bypass of the portion of US 9 through Georgetown in 1983.^[15][16] DE 404 was extended to follow US 9 between Georgetown and Five Points by 1987.^[17]

Major intersections

County	Location	mi[1]	km	Destinations	Notes
Sussex	Laurel	0.00	0.00	US 13 (Sussex Highway) – Delmar, Seaford
	Hardscrabble	5.54	8.92	DE 20 (Concord Road/Hardscrabble Road) – Seaford, Millsboro
	Georgetown	11.96	19.25	US 113 / US 9 Truck east / DE 404 Truck (DuPont Boulevard) – Milford, Ocean City
		12.71	20.45	DE 18 west / DE 404 west (North Bedford Street) – Delaware Tech, Bay Bridge	Traffic circle, west end of DE 404 overlap
				US 9 Truck west / DE 404 Truck west (Park Avenue)
	Gravel Hill			DE 30 (Gravel Hill Road) – Milton, Millsboro
	Harbeson	18.67	30.05	DE 5 (Harbeson Road) – Milton, Harbeson, Oak Orchard
	Five Points			DE 1D south (Plantation Road) / DE 23 south (Beaver Dam Road)	West end of DE 23 overlap
		25.18	40.52	US 9 Bus. east (Savannah Road) – Lewes DE 1 north (Coastal Highway) – Milford, Dover DE 23 ends / DE 404 ends	East end of DE 23/DE 404 overlap, West end of DE 1 overlap
	Carpenters Corner	26.30	42.33	DE 1 south (Coastal Highway) – Rehoboth Beach, Beaches	East end of DE 1 overlap
	Lewes	29.18	46.96	US 9 Bus. west (Cape Henlopen Drive) – Lewes Beach, Downtown Lewes, Historic Area
Delaware Bay		30.89	49.71	Cape May-Lewes Ferry
Cape May	Lower Township			US 9 north to G.S. Parkway – Cape May, Wildwood, West Cape May	Continuation into New Jersey
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

See also

• U.S. Roads portal
• Delaware portal

References

1. Staff (2011). "Traffic Count and Mileage Report: Interstate, Delaware, and US Routes" (PDF). Delaware Department of Transportation. Retrieved May 17, 2012.
2. Delaware Department of Transportation (2008). Delaware Official Transportation Map (PDF) (Map). Dover: Delaware Department of Transportation. Retrieved November 24, 2015.
3. Google (November 22, 2011). "overview of U.S. Route 9 in Delaware" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved November 22, 2011.
4. "Lewes, Gateway to the Nation Byway". Delaware Department of Transportation. Retrieved January 7, 2012.
5. National Highway System: Delaware (PDF) (Map). Federal Highway Administration. 2010. Retrieved February 10, 2012.
6. Delaware State Highway Department (1920). Official Road Map (PDF) (Map). Dover: Delaware State Highway Department. Retrieved November 24, 2015.
7. Delaware State Highway Department (1924). Official Road Map (PDF) (Map). Dover: Delaware State Highway Department. Retrieved November 24, 2015.
8. Delaware State Highway Department (1925). Official Road Map (PDF) (Map). Dover: Delaware State Highway Department. Retrieved November 24, 2015.
9. Delaware State Highway Department (1931). Official Road Map of the State of Delaware (PDF) (Map). Dover: Delaware State Highway Department. Retrieved November 24, 2015.
10. Delaware State Highway Department; The National Survey Co. (1936). Official Road Map of the State of Delaware (PDF) (Map) (1936–37 ed.). Dover: Delaware State Highway Department. Retrieved November 24, 2015.
11. Delaware State Highway Department (1954). Official Highway Map of Delaware (PDF) (Map) (1954–55 ed.). Dover: Delaware State Highway Department. Retrieved November 24, 2015.
12. Delaware State Highway Department (1964). Official Highway Map of Delaware (PDF) (Map). Dover: Delaware State Highway Department. Retrieved November 24, 2015.
13. U.S. Route Numbering Subcommittee (June 25, 1974). "U.S. Route Numbering Subcommittee Agenda" (PDF) (Report). Seattle, WA: American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials. p. 448. Retrieved October 16, 2014 – via Wikimedia Commons.
14. Delaware Department of Highways and Transportation (1976). Delaware Highways Official Map (PDF) (Map). Dover: Delaware Department of Highways and Transportation. Retrieved November 24, 2015.
15. Special Committee on U.S. Route Numbering (October 1, 1983). "Route Numbering Committee Agenda" (PDF) (Report). Denver, CO: American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials. p. 538. Retrieved October 15, 2014 – via Wikimedia Commons.
16. Delaware Department of Transportation (1984). Official State Highway Map (PDF) (Map). Dover: Delaware Department of Transportation. Retrieved November 24, 2015.
17. Delaware Department of Transportation (1987). Official State Highway Map (PDF) (Map). Dover: Delaware Department of Transportation. Retrieved November 24, 2015.

External links

Route map: Bing / Google

• Media related to U.S. Route 9 in Delaware at Wikimedia Commons