Delaware Route 7

Delaware Route 7 (DE 7) is a two- to four-lane north–south highway in New Castle County, Delaware that connects U.S. Route 13 and Delaware Route 72 (DE 72) near Delaware City to the Pennsylvania border near Hockessin, where it continues into Pennsylvania as State Route 3013 (SR 3013), intersecting Pennsylvania Route 41 (PA 41) at an interchange. Between Delaware City and Christiana, DE 7 runs to the west of the Delaware Route 1 (DE 1) freeway through suburban areas, passing through Bear. By the Christiana Mall, DE 7 joins the DE 1 freeway and comes to an interchange with Interstate 95 (I-95) before the DE 1 freeway ends at the Delaware Route 58 (DE 58) interchange. After the freeway segment, DE 7 continues north as a surface road concurrent with Delaware Route 4 (DE 4) through Stanton. From Stanton to the Pennsylvania border, DE 7 heads northwest through suburban areas, passing through Pike Creek.

What is now DE 7 was built as a state highway during the 1920s and 1930s. By 1936, the route was designated to run along its present alignment between US 13 near Red Lion, Delaware and the Pennsylvania border. From the 1950s to the 1970s, DE 7 became a divided highway between Christiana and Milltown Road. With the construction of the DE 1 freeway in the 1990s, DE 7 was shifted to a portion of the freeway near the Christiana Mall. The route was also extended south to an intersection with US 13 and DE 72 as a result of the relocation of US 13 onto a portion of the freeway. The road also became a divided highway between Milltown Road and DE 72 in the 1990s. In 1999, an interchange was built at DE 58 as a result of a northward extension of DE 1 along DE 7. The interchange with I-95 is being reconstructed to include flyover ramps, with completion expected in 2013.