Delaware Route 52 - Route Description

Route Description

DE 52 begins at US 13 Bus., which is routed on the one-way pair of North Walnut Street northbound and North King Street southbound near Rodney Square in downtown Wilmington. DelDOT officially has DE 52 continuing east on East 12th Street past US 13 to a plant entrance to the west of an interchange with I-495. From here, DE 52 follows the one-way pair of East 11th Street eastbound and East 12th Street westbound to the northwest, becoming West 11th Street and West 12th Street at the North Market Street intersection. The one-way pair heads northwest past downtown high-rise buildings, carrying three lanes in each direction. Both directions of DE 52 merge onto Delaware Avenue, an eight-lane divided highway, and the route reaches an interchange with I-95/US 202. Past this interchange, the route narrows to six lanes and leaves downtown Wilmington. DE 52 splits from Delaware Avenue by continuing northwest on Pennsylvania Avenue, a four-lane undivided road that passes through urban areas of homes and businesses. The road intersects the eastern terminus of DE 2 in a commercial area and passes under CSX's Philadelphia Subdivision. The route runs through more residential areas, passing to the northeast of the Wilmington Campus of the University of Delaware.

DE 52 leaves Wilmington and becomes Kennett Pike, heading through wooded areas of suburban homes. The road heads into Greenville and widens into a divided highway as it comes to an interchange with the DE 100/DE 141 freeway. Past this interchange, the route continues into business areas, crossing an East Penn Railroad line. DE 52 leaves Greenville and narrows to a two-lane undivided road as it heads into wooded areas with fields and homes, intersecting the southern terminus of DE 82. The road continues through more forested suburban areas, passing to the west of the Wilmington Country Club and to the east of the Delaware Museum of Natural History. The route passes to the west of the Winterthur Museum and Country Estate and heads into the community of Centerville. DE 52 continues northwest to its northern terminus at the Pennsylvania border, where it continues into that state as PA 52.

The entire length of DE 52 is part of the Brandywine Valley Scenic Byway, a National Scenic Byway and Delaware Byway. DE 52 has an annual average daily traffic count ranging from a high of 37,694 vehicles at the Dupont Road intersection to a low of 5,654 vehicles at the southern terminus at US 13 Bus. None of DE 52 is part of the National Highway System.