Pennsylvania Route 39 - Route Description

Route Description

PA 39 begins at an intersection with North Front Street on the east bank of the Susquehanna River in the Dauphin County township of Susquehanna north of Harrisburg. It heads northeast as Linglestown Road through a densely populated neighborhood and widens from two to four lanes as it approaches an interchange with U.S. Route 22 and U.S. Route 322 at the northern tip of Wildwood Lake. East of the exit, the highway reverts to two lanes and passes through the predominantly residential northern suburbs of Harrisburg. It intersects North Progress Avenue prior to passing into Lower Paxton Township.

West of the village of Linglestown, PA 39 intersects Colonial Road (unsigned State Route 3017), a connector highway between PA 39 and US 22, which follows a routing parallel to PA 39 2.5 miles (4.0 km) to the south. PA 39 continues east to Linglestown, where it intersects North Mountain Road at a roundabout. Outside of the village, the amount of development along the highway declines as PA 39 passes through areas of forests and open fields. It enters West Hanover Township upon crossing Beaver Creek and interchanges with Interstate 81 at exit 77. Just east of the interchange, PA 39 intersects Jonestown Road and changes names from Linglestown Road to Hershey Road.

Unlike Linglestown Road, which followed a mostly east–west alignment, Hershey Road has a north–south orientation. It heads south from Jonestown Road to intersect US 22 near Skyline View, here an at-grade roadway named Allentown Boulevard. PA 39 continues onward, snaking southeastward through a rural region of Dauphin County to the vicinity of Hershey. During this stretch, it passes through South Hanover Township and serves the communities of Hanoverale and Union Deposit. The route crosses into Derry Township after crossing over Swatara Creek, then intersects Hersheypark Drive near the creek's southern bank. Hershey Road continues south from here as Park Boulevard, a service road for Hersheypark, Hersheypark Stadium, Hersheypark Arena, The Star Pavilion, Giant Center and Hershey's Chocolate World; however, PA 39 veers westward onto Hersheypark Drive and bypasses Giant Center to the north. This portion of PA 39 is four lanes wide, the first significant portion of PA 39 to be that many lanes wide since the area surrounding I-81.

PA 39 heads southwest in a circuitous fashion, bypassing the village of Hershey to the north and west. It passes under a Norfolk Southern Railway line, then enters a highly developed area east of the borough of Hummelstown. Here, PA 39 intersects Walton Avenue, a local street connecting PA 39 to the village. This is the final junction along PA 39 as the route ends 0.3 miles (0.48 km) later at a modified cloverleaf interchange with US 322 and U.S. Route 422.