Pennsylvania Route 23 (PA 23) is an state highway in southeastern Pennsylvania. The route begins at PA 441 in Marietta and heads east to U.S. Route 1 (US 1) at City Avenue on the border of Lower Merion Township and Philadelphia. PA 23 begins at Marietta in Lancaster County and continues east to Lancaster, where it passes through the city on a one-way pair of streets and intersects US 222 and US 30.
East of Lancaster, the route runs through agricultural areas in Pennsylvania Dutch Country, serving Leola, New Holland, and Blue Ball, the latter location where it crosses US 322. PA 23 passes through the southern tip of Berks County and serves Morgantown, where a ramp provides access to Interstate 176 (I-176). The route runs through northern Chester County and serves Elverson, Bucktown, Phoenixville, and Valley Forge.
PA 23 continues into Montgomery County and intersects US 422 in King of Prussia and US 202 in Bridgeport. The route follows the Schuylkill River to West Conshohocken, where it has access to I-76 and I-476, before it continues southeast through Lower Merion Township to US 1, which there is running on the border between Montgomery County and Philadelphia. The portion of PA 23 between Blue Ball and west of Morgantown is designated the Conestoga Ridge Byway, a Pennsylvania Scenic Byway.
PA 23 was first designated in 1927 between US 230 in Lancaster and City Avenue on the Lower Merion Township/Philadelphia border. The route was extended east to US 30 (Girard Avenue) in West Philadelphia via Conshohocken Avenue and Belmont Avenue in the 1930s.
PA 23 was rerouted to use Gulph Road through Valley Forge Park by 1945, with PA 23 Truck designated to bypass the route to the north and east by 1950. PA 23 Alternate (PA 23 Alt.) was designated as an alternate alignment in Lower Merion Township in 1937. PA 23 was moved to its current alignment between Valley Forge and Bala Cynwyd by 1967, replacing parts of PA 363 between Valley Forge and Port Kennedy and PA 320 between Bridgeport and West Conshohocken. The alternate and truck routes were also decommissioned at this time.
The route was extended west from Lancaster to Marietta by 1970, replacing a part of PA 340; the route was also moved onto a one-way pair in Lancaster. The eastern terminus was moved to its current location in the 1980s. PA 23 was rerouted to its current alignment in the eastern part of Lancaster in 1992, bypassing New Holland Avenue.
A PA 23 freeway was proposed east of Lancaster in the 1960s, and parts of the road were built before construction stopped. The road was turned over to farmers and is known as the "Goat Path". A two-lane bypass of PA 23 east of Lancaster was later proposed before being shelved in 2010. A freeway between US 422 and US 202 in Upper Merion Township called the Schuylkill Parkway was planned in the 1960s. A small stub of the freeway in Bridgeport was built in 1972 before funding issues halted the project. Another freeway was proposed to bypass the borough of Phoenixville in the 1960s, although local opposition prevented the project from ever moving forward.
Route description
Lancaster County
PA 23 begins at an intersection with PA 441 on the eastern edge of the borough of Marietta in Lancaster County, heading east on two-lane undivided Marietta Avenue into East Donegal Township. The road runs through a mix of farmland and trees with some residences, crossing Donegal Creek before heading across Chiques Creek into West Hempfield Township. The route continues through rural land with some housing developments as Marietta Pike, passing through the community of Silver Spring. PA 23 runs through farm fields with some residential and commercial development and crosses into East Hempfield Township at the Stony Battery Road intersection in the community of Oyster Point. The road continues through development with some farmland, coming to bridges over the US 30 freeway without an interchange and Norfolk Southern's Columbia Secondary railroad line. The route passes homes in the community of Rohrerstown and reaches an intersection with PA 741. PA 23 runs through wooded residential areas and enters Lancaster Township upon crossing Little Conestoga Creek. The route becomes Marietta Avenue, running through the community of School Lane Hills and curving to the southeast. The road passes to the north of Wheatland, the former home of 15th President James Buchanan, before it enters the city of Lancaster and becomes city-maintained.
Upon entering Lancaster, PA 23 intersects the westbound direction of PA 462 at Race Avenue. Here, the route splits into a one-way pair, with the eastbound direction of PA 23 continuing along two-way Marietta Avenue and the westbound direction of PA 23 becoming concurrent with westbound PA 462 on one-way West Walnut Street, carrying two lanes. Two blocks later, near the former UPMC Pinnacle Lancaster hospital, eastbound PA 23 splits from Marietta Avenue onto one-way eastbound West Chestnut Street, with two lanes. The route follows West Chestnut Street eastbound and West Walnut Street westbound, continuing concurrent with PA 462 westbound, passing through residential areas of the city. Eastbound PA 462 is located two blocks south of eastbound PA 23 along King Street. The route heads into the commercial downtown of Lancaster, where it intersects one-way southbound US 222/PA 272 at North Prince Street. A short distance later, PA 23 crosses one-way northbound PA 72 at North Queen Street. Past this intersection, the route becomes East Chestnut Street eastbound and East Walnut Street westbound, intersecting one-way northbound US 222/PA 272 at North Lime Street at the east end of downtown. Following this, PA 23 passes more homes and industrial establishments in the eastern part of the city. At North Broad Street, westbound PA 462 splits from westbound PA 23, and eastbound PA 23 heads northeast on Grofftown Road before the two directions of PA 23 merge a short distance later onto a four-lane expressway known as East Walnut Street, which is state-maintained. The route curves northeast through wooded areas with some nearby development, passing through a corner of Manheim Township before crossing under the Conestoga Creek Viaduct that carries Amtrak's Keystone Corridor railroad line over the route and the Conestoga River immediately to the east. The road continues north into Lancaster again before it turns northeast into Manheim Township and crosses the Conestoga River back into Lancaster. PA 23 comes to an interchange with the US 30 freeway, onto which it turns northwest for a brief wrong-way concurrency, with East Walnut Street heading northeast.
PA 23 follows US 30 along a four-lane freeway, in said wrong-way concurrency, and crosses the Conestoga River into Manheim Township. After the river, PA 23 splits from US 30 at a diamond interchange and heads northeast onto New Holland Pike, a three-lane road with a center left-turn lane. The route passes through wooded residential areas to the west of the Lancaster Country Club in the community of Eden. The road narrows to two lanes and curves east to cross the Conestoga River into East Lampeter Township, passing through the community of Holland Heights. At this point, the route enters the Pennsylvania Dutch Country of eastern Lancaster County, which is home to many Amish farms. PA 23 continues into Upper Leacock Township and passes through a mix of farmland and residential and commercial development, passing north of the Lancaster County Christian School and running through the community of Geist and Leacock, where it becomes West Main Street. The route reaches the community of Leola, where PA 772 joins for a short concurrency before it splits to the southeast. The road becomes East Main Street and is lined with more homes and businesses with nearby farmland as it continues east through the community of Bareville. PA 23 forms the border between West Earl Township to the north and Upper Leacock Township to the south before it enters Earl Township in the community of Groffdale.
The road becomes West Main Street and curves northeast past residential and commercial development, crossing into the borough of New Holland. The route becomes lined with homes and passes through the commercial downtown, where it becomes East Main Street. PA 23 runs past more residences before entering commercial areas, passing to the south of Garden Spot High School and crossing back into Earl Township. The route enters East Earl Township and runs past a mix of farmland, homes, and businesses as Main Street, crossing US 322 in the community of Blue Ball. PA 23 continues east past more development and intersects PA 897, with that route joining PA 23 for a short concurrency before it heads south. Past this, PA 23 enters agricultural areas and intersects the southern terminus of PA 625. The road runs through more farmland, passing through the residential community of Goodville before it enters Caernarvon Township. The route crosses the Conestoga River and runs through Churchtown. The road curves north-northeast through more rural areas, passing north of Conestoga Christian School before coming to an intersection with PA 10. Here, PA 10 becomes concurrent with PA 23 on a three-lane road with a center left-turn lane, heading into commercial areas. The section of PA 23 in Lancaster County between US 322 and PA 10 is designated as the Conestoga Ridge Byway, a Pennsylvania Scenic Byway.
Berks and Chester counties The road crosses into Caernarvon Township in Berks County and intersects a ramp that heads north to provide access to northbound I-176 and from southbound I-176. The two routes continue into the community of Morgantown as a two-lane road and pass homes. PA 10 splits from PA 23 by turning north onto Morgantown Road, and PA 23 continues east past more residences and some businesses. The route comes to a bridge over the Pennsylvania Turnpike (I-76) and heads south of Morgantown Airport before passing through farmland with some commercial development, coming to a junction with the western terminus of PA 401.
A short distance past the PA 401 intersection, PA 23 enters the borough of Elverson in Chester County as West Main Street, briefly gaining a median before passing homes and intersecting the northern terminus of PA 82. Past this intersection, the name of the roadway becomes East Main Street. The route briefly gains a median again before it leaves Elverson for West Nantmeal Township, where it becomes Ridge Road and heads into a mix of farmland and woodland with some homes. The road soon enters Warwick Township, where it reaches a junction with PA 345 in the community of Warwick. PA 23 continues through wooded areas with some fields and residences, passing to the south of the community of Saint Peters, where it crosses French Creek, and running to the north of Warwick County Park. The route crosses into South Coventry Township and passes through the community of Coventryville before it intersects PA 100 in Bucktown. The road passes south of Owen J. Roberts High School before it crosses into East Vincent Township and continues through a mix of fields, woods, and homes, soon entering East Coventry Township. PA 23 curves southeast and crosses back into East Vincent Township and runs through more rural land with some residences, passing to the north of a golf course. The route enters East Pikeland Township and passes near residential neighborhoods before it intersects the eastern terminus of PA 724.