U.S. Route 301 in Delaware

Toll plate yellow.svg
U.S. Route 301 Toll marker
U.S. Route 301 Toll
First Responders Memorial Highway
Map
US 301 highlighted in red
Route information
Maintained by DelDOT
Length11.9 mi[1] (19.2 km)
Existed1959[2][3]–present
Major junctions
South end US 301 at Maryland border near Warwick, MD
Major intersections
North end DE 1 in Biddles Corner
Location
CountryUnited States
StateDelaware
CountiesNew Castle
Highway system
DE 300 DE 404

U.S. Route 301 (US 301) is a US Highway running from Sarasota, Florida, north to Biddles Corner, Delaware. In the state of Delaware, the route runs 11.9 mi (19.2 km) across New Castle County from the Maryland state line southwest of Middletown northeast to its northern terminus at the Delaware Route 1 (DE 1) freeway in Biddles Corner, just south of the Senator William V. Roth Jr. Bridge that carries DE 1 over the Chesapeake & Delaware Canal in St. Georges. US 301 in Delaware is a controlled-access toll road that is designated as the First Responders Memorial Highway. The freeway has interchanges with DE 299 west of Middletown, DE 71 north of Middletown, and Jamison Corner Road, and uses all-electronic tolling, with tolls paid by E-ZPass or toll-by-plate. A mainline toll gantry is located north of the Maryland state line while there are ramp tolls on the southbound exits and northbound entrances at the three interchanges.

US 301 has moved numerous times throughout its history in Delaware, often following radically different alignments. Prior to 1959, US 301 ended in Maryland, but it was extended into Delaware from Maryland that year. At that time, it ran from the Maryland state line northeast to a terminus at an intersection with US 13, US 40, and the southern terminus of US 202 in State Road. In 1964, US 301 was extended north along US 13/US 40 to an interchange with I-295 west of the Delaware Memorial Bridge in Farnhurst. There was, for a time, a split routing, known as US 301N and US 301S, which diverged in Middletown and rejoined at US 13 in Tybouts Corner. From there, US 301 followed US 13 and US 13/US 40 to Farnhurst. In 1971, US 301 was rerouted to head north from Middletown to the community of Summit Bridge, where US 301N was then routed over the Summit Bridge and along the north side of the Chesapeake & Delaware Canal while US 301S stayed south of the canal before rejoining US 301N near the Farnhurst terminus. US 301 was rerouted again in 1985 at Mount Pleasant to follow DE 896 east to Boyds Corner and US 13 north to Farnhurst, eliminating the split routing. US 301 was rerouted again in 1992 and terminated at US 40 in Glasgow. Plans have existed since the 1950s to build a freeway along the US 301 corridor in Delaware, with formal plans for a modern toll road beginning in 2005, running from the Maryland state line northeast to DE 1 in Biddles Corner. Construction on the US 301 freeway began in 2016 with the road opening in 2019, eliminating the alignment that from 1992 to 2019 ended in Glasgow, and returning the road to a similar alignment it followed from 1959 to 1971.

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference google was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference DE 1957 map was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference DE 1959 map was invoked but never defined (see the help page).