U.S. Route 224

U.S. Route 224 (US 224) is a spur of US 24 that runs through the states of Indiana, Ohio and Pennsylvania. It currently runs for 289 miles (465 km) from US 24 in Huntington, Indiana, east to US 422 Business (US 422 Bus.) and Pennsylvania Route 18 (PA 18) in New Castle, Pennsylvania. It goes through the cities of Canfield, Ohio, Akron, Ohio, and Findlay, Ohio. In Northeast Ohio, US 224 is located a short distance north of the Western Reserve's southern boundary.

U.S. Route 224
US 224 highlighted in red
Route information
Auxiliary route of US 24
Maintained by INDOT, ODOT, and PennDOT
Length	288.21 mi^[a] (463.83 km)
Major junctions
West end	US 24 / SR 5 / SR 9 at Huntington, IN
Major intersections	I-69 at Markle, IN US 30 / US 127 at Van Wert, OH I-75 at Findlay, OH I-71 / I-76 near Westfield Center, OH I-76 / I-277 at Akron, OH I-77 / I-277 at Akron, OH US 62 / SR 46 in Canfield SR 11 in Canfield I-680 at Boardman, OH I-376 / US 422 at New Castle, PA
East end	US 422 Bus. / PA 18 at New Castle, PA
Location
Country	United States
States	Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania
Counties	IN: Huntington, Wells, Adams OH: Van Wert, Putnam, Hancock, Seneca, Huron, Ashland, Medina, Summit, Portage, Mahoning PA: Lawrence
Highway system
United States Numbered Highway System List Special Divided
Indiana State Highway System Interstate US State Scenic
Ohio State Highway System Interstate US State Scenic
Pennsylvania State Route System Interstate US State Scenic Byways Legislative
← SR 218 IN → SR 225 ← SR 223 OH → SR 224 ← PA 223 PA → PA 224

Route description

Indiana

 

US 224 at its intersection with SR 5 south

From the western terminus at US 24, US 224 heads southeast concurrent with State Road 5 (SR 5). US 224 and SR 5 heads through downtown Huntington as one-way streets, with eastbound on Cherry Street and State Street and westbound on Warren Street. From downtown US 224 and SR 5 head southeast then outside of downtown SR 5 heads due south and US 224 heads east. US 224 passes through Markle where US 224 has an interchange with Interstate 69 (I-69) and intersections with both SR 116 and SR 3. US 224 heads east towards Decatur passing through intersections with SR 301 and SR 1. In Decatur US 224 has a short concurrency with US 27 and US 33. US 224 heads east from Decatur towards Ohio passing through a short concurrency with SR 101.^[1]

The only section of U.S. Route 224 in Indiana that is included in the National Highway System is the part concurrent with US 27 and US 33.^[2] Traffic reports from the Indiana Department of Transportation in 2010 showed that the lowest traffic levels were the 2,420 vehicles and 670 commercial vehicles using the highway daily near the Ohio state line; the highest traffic levels were the 21,680 vehicles and 1,690 commercial vehicles traveling along the section of US 224 that is concurrent with US 27 and US 33.^[3]

Ohio

West of its concurrency with US 42 near Lodi, US 224 is a rural arterial highway, mostly two lanes, across western Ohio. It runs roughly parallel to the former Baltimore and Ohio Railroad from its westerly US 42 junction to Tiffin, a city around which it sweeps to the south with intersections at various state highways that radiate out from downtown. US 224 passes through a commercial strip on the south side of Willard, and goes through downtown Findlay and Ottawa, but it otherwise specializes in small towns along its course across northwest Ohio. It crosses US 250 east of Greenwich; State Route 4 (SR 4), a major north–south route, at Attica; US 23 south of Fostoria, and I-75 in Findlay, and has brief concurrences with US 127 and US 30 near Van Wert. It crosses the Ashland Railway just east of Willard, the Norfolk Southern Railway at Attica, CSX Transportation near US 23, in Findlay, and in Ottawa, and the Chicago, Fort Wayne and Eastern Railroad west of Van Wert.

East of Lodi, US 224 meets the western terminus of I-76, with which it forms a concurrency. It is in this area, US 224 enters the Connecticut Western Reserve. Less than a mile later, both routes intersect with I-71. US 224 continues along with I-76 to Akron. Here, I-76 exits and heads north. Continuing on US 224, the route runs concurrently with I-277, a short auxiliary highway running through southern Akron. I-277 quickly ends, leaving US 224 to continue into a heavily wooded area. The highway then intersects with SR 43, SR 44, SR 169, SR 225, SR 24, SR 45 and SR 46. Shortly after crossing over SR 11, US 224 enters Boardman Township in Mahoning County. This stretch of US 224, through Canfield, Boardman and Poland, is known for its chronic congestion. The original routing of US 224 through the village of Poland turned southeast on Main Street (formerly SR 90, now SR 170) to Riverside Drive, then north on Riverside Drive to the current alignment. In 1954 a bridge was built across Yellow Creek and a new road was constructed from Main Street to Riverside Drive, including an intersection with Water Street (SR 616). As US 224 leaves the village of Poland it continues through rural terrain as it heads towards Pennsylvania.

Pennsylvania

 

US 224 eastbound in Union Township

US 224 crosses into Mahoning Township in Lawrence County and becomes West State Street, a two-lane, undivided road. The road heads through wooded areas with some homes and commercial establishments, heading to the east-southeast. The route curves to the northeast in Peanut and passes over Norfolk Southern's Youngstown Line, coming to an intersection with PA 551. Here, PA 551 turns northeast to form a concurrency with US 224. The road heads through wooded areas and crosses the Mahoning River and CSX's New Castle Subdivision railroad line. PA 551 splits from US 224 by heading north on North Edinburg Road, with US 224 continuing into wooded areas with some farm fields. The road turns to the southeast and enters Union Township. The route continues through wooded areas with some farmland and homes, passing to the south of New Castle Municipal Airport and heading through the community of Parkstown. US 224 heads into commercial areas, gaining a second lane westbound before widening into a six-lane divided highway as it comes to an interchange with I-376/US 422.^[4][5]

Past this interchange, the road becomes a three-lane road with a center left-turn lane and passes through a mix of residences and businesses, running through the community of Oakwood. The route heads into the city of New Castle and passes through wooded areas of development, gaining a second westbound lane and coming to an intersection with US 422 Business. At this point, US 422 Business turns east to join US 224 on four-lane divided West Falls Street, passing more development and crossing over a New Castle Industrial Railroad line and the Shenango River. The road heads to the east and continues through commercial areas. US 224 ends at an intersection with PA 18, at which point US 422 Business turns south to join that route.^[4][5]

History

 

The eastern terminus of US 224 at US 422 Bus. and PA 18 in New Castle, Pennsylvania

US 224 was assigned to a portion of the Benjamin Franklin Highway, an auto trail running from Omaha, Nebraska to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; its number assignment was an alternative to a westward rerouting of US 422 which runs along the Benjamin Franklin Highway farther east.^[6]

When US 224 was commissioned in Indiana in 1934, it replaced State Road 16 (SR 16), from Huntington to the Ohio state line.

Although US 224 is only in Pennsylvania for 10 miles, the eastern terminus has changed several times since 1933, ending at various points in New Castle, Pennsylvania or in adjacent Union Township west of the city.^[7] The eastern terminus has been moved five times (1936, 1947, 1974, 1977, 2008), the most notable of which was in the 1970s when the New Castle Bypass opened in 1974 and the state extended US 224 through the city and into Shenango Township at the eastern terminus of the bypass, taking over US 422's old alignment after that highway was moved to the bypass.

The route was truncated back at the current interchange with US 422 and I-376 in 1977 while the old alignment through New Castle was replaced by Business US 422. This would be the case until March 20, 2008, when US 224 was officially extended two miles (3.2 km) to PA 18 inside the New Castle city limits with the placement of new signs. The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) requested approval from the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) for the extension in August 2007.^[8] and received it the following month.^[9]

The extension of US 224 marked the second extension of a major highway into downtown New Castle in a little more than a year, as Pennsylvania Route 65 was extended a mile from its previous terminus with Business 422 to the PA 108/PA 168 concurrency in February 2007.

Future

Due to a higher-than-average number of crash-related injuries and fatalities along a stretch of US 224 in Medina County, Ohio, the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) recommended converting three intersections, Vandemark, Westfield and Leroy roads, to restricted crossing U-turns. The highest-priority intersection, with Westfield Road in Westfield Township, was awarded $578,000 in ODOT funding and began construction in May 2019 and finished by the end of summer 2019.^[10]

There is a $2.4 million project north of the city of Van Wert to replace the current intersection of US 224, US 127 and Marsh Road (County Road 13) with a roundabout. The project began in January 2022 and is expected to be complete in October.^{[11][12][13][14][15][16]}

Major intersections

State	County	Location	mi^[a]	km	Exit	Destinations	Notes
Indiana	Huntington	Huntington	0.000	0.000		US 24 / SR 5 north / SR 9 – Fort Wayne, Wabash	Western terminus of US 224 and its concurrency with SR 5
			3.178	5.114		SR 5 south – Warren, J. Edward Roush Lake	Eastern end of SR 5 concurrency
		Markle	9.895– 10.044	15.924– 16.164		I-69 – Indianapolis, Fort Wayne	I-69 exit 286
			10.199	16.414		SR 116 east	Western terminus of SR 116
			10.972	17.658		SR 3 south – Hartford City	Northern terminus of SR 3
	Wells	Kingsland	20.005	32.195		SR 1 – Fort Wayne, Bluffton
		Lancaster–Jefferson township line	23.947	38.539		SR 301 south – Craigville	Northern terminus of SR 301
	Adams	Decatur	31.984	51.473		US 27 north / US 33 north	Northern end of US 27/US 33 concurrency
			32.201	51.822		US 27 south / US 33 south	Southern end of US 27/US 33 concurrency
		Union Township	36.240	58.323		SR 101 north – Monroeville	Western end of SR 101 concurrency
			37.238	59.929		SR 101 south	Eastern end of SR 101 concurrency
			39.377 0.00	63.371 0.00	Indiana–Ohio state line
Ohio	Van Wert	Harrison Township	1.47	2.37		SR 49 south – Willshire	Western end of SR 49 concurrency
			5.10	8.21		SR 49 north – Convoy	Eastern end of SR  concurrency
		Pleasant Township	10.70– 10.98	17.22– 17.67		US 30 west – Fort Wayne	Western end of US 30 concurrency
		Van Wert	14.50	23.34		US 30 east – Upper Sandusky     US 127 south – Celina	Eastern end of US 30 concurrency; southern end of US 127 concurrency
		Pleasant–Ridge township line	15.85	25.51		US 127 north – Paulding Marsh Road (CR 13)	Northern end of US 127 concurrency; intersection; scheduled for conversion to roundabout October 2022
		Hoaglin–Jackson township line	21.68	34.89		SR 637 north	Southern terminus of SR 637
	Putnam	Monterey Township	27.73	44.63		SR 66 north – Defiance	Western end of SR 66 concurrency
		Ottoville	28.72	46.22		SR 66 south – Delphos   SR 189	Eastern end of SR 66 concurrency; western terminus of SR 189
			28.83	46.40		SR 189 east	Western terminus of SR 189
		Jackson Township	31.67	50.97		SR 634
			32.92	52.98		SR 190 south	Northern terminus of SR 190
		Kalida	37.16	59.80		SR 114 west	Eastern terminus of SR 114
			37.29	60.01		SR 115 north – Continental	Western end of SR 115 concurrency
			37.49	60.33		SR 115 south – Lima	Eastern end of SR 115 concurrency
		Glandorf	45.08	72.55		SR 694 west	Eastern terminus of SR 694
		Ottawa	46.29	74.50		SR 15 north / SR 65 / SR 109 north	Western end of SR 15 concurrency; southern terminus of SR 109
	Hancock	Blanchard Township	60.58	97.49		SR 235
			62.60	100.74		SR 186 north	Southern terminus of SR 186
		Findlay	67.09	107.97		I-75 / SR 15 south – Toledo, Lima, Upper Sandusky	Eastern end of SR 15 concurrency
			69.01	111.06		SR 12 west / SR 37 south	Western end of SR 12 concurrency; northern terminus of SR 37
			70.19	112.96		SR 12 east – Fostoria	Eastern end of SR 12 concurrency
	Seneca	Loudon Township	82.41	132.63		US 23 / SR 199 – Upper Sandusky, Toledo
			85.00	136.79		SR 587
		Tiffin	91.99	148.04		SR 18 – Fostoria, Bellevue
		Hopewell Township	93.33	150.20		SR 53 – Upper Sandusky, Fremont
		Clinton Township	94.87	152.68		SR 231
		Clinton–Eden township line	96.10	154.66		SR 100 – Bucyrus
		Scipio Township	101.19	162.85		SR 67 – Upper Sandusky
			103.30	166.25		SR 19 – Bucyrus, Fremont
		Attica	110.23	177.40		SR 4 – Bucyrus, Marion, Sandusky
	Huron	Willard	118.63	190.92		SR 103
			119.51	192.33		SR 99 north	Southern terminus of SR 99
			121.84	196.08		SR 61 / SR 598
		Greenwich Township	132.09	212.58		SR 13
	Ashland	Ruggles Township	135.63	218.28		US 250
			136.94	220.38		SR 60
		Nova	141.53	227.77		SR 511
		Sullivan	145.86	234.74		SR 58
	Medina	Homerville	150.87	242.80		SR 301
		Lodi	154.77	249.08		US 42 west / SR 421 east	Southern end of US 42 concurrency; western terminus of SR 421
			157.41	253.33		SR 83
			158.89	255.71		US 42 east / SR 421 west	Northern end of US 42 concurrency; eastern end of SR 421
		Westfield Center	164.26	264.35	1	I-76 west to I-71 – Columbus, Cleveland	Western end of I–76 concurrency; western terminus of I–76; I-71 exit 209
			166.12	267.34	2	SR 3
		Wadsworth	174.52	280.86	7	SR 57
			173.56	279.32	9	SR 94
			175.56	282.54	11	SR 261
	Summit	Norton	177.12	285.05	13	SR 21
			178.45	287.19	14	Cleveland Massillon Road
			179.99	289.67	16	Barber Road
		Barberton	181.33	291.82	17A	State Street	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance only
		Akron	181.63	292.31	17	SR 619 south / East Avenue/Kenmore Boulevard
			182.14	293.13	18 1	I-76 east   I-277	Eastern end of I–76 concurrency; western end of I–277 concurrency; western terminus of I–277
			183.29– 183.48	294.98– 295.28	2	SR 93
			184.61	297.10	3	South Main Street
			185.88	299.14	4	I-77 / I-277	Eastern end of I–277 concurrency; signed as exits 4A (south) & 4B (north); eastern terminus of I–277; I-77 exit 122
			186.88	300.75		Kelly Avenue
			187.35	301.51		Akron Fulton International Airport	Eastbound exit and entrance only
			188.03	302.60		SR 241
		Springfield Township	190.08	305.90		SR 91	Southern terminus of SR 91
	Summit–Portage county line	Springfield–Suffield township line	191.90	308.83		SR 532 north	Southern terminus of SR 532
	Portage	Suffield Township	194.32	312.73		SR 43
		Randolph Township	199.61	321.24		SR 44
		Atwater	204.89	329.74		SR 183 north	Northern end of SR 183 concurrency
205.42			330.59		SR 183	Eastern end of SR 193 concurrency
​		208.00	334.74		SR 225 south	Western end of SR 225 concurrency
Deerfield Township		210.49	338.75		SR 14 / SR 225 north	Eastern end of SR 225 concurrency
Mahoning	Berlin Township	215.98	347.59		SR 534
	Ellsworth	220.70	355.18		SR 45
	Canfield	224.72	361.65		SR 446 south	Northern terminus of SR 446
		225.76	363.33		US 62 / SR 46
		226.88	365.13		SR 11
	Boardman Township	228.38	367.54		SR 625 north	Southern terminus of SR 625
		230.91	371.61		SR 7
		232.77	374.61		I-680	I-680 exit 11
	Poland	233.43	375.67		SR 170
		233.54	375.85		SR 616
			238.43 0.00	383.72 0.00	Ohio–Pennsylvania state line
Pennsylvania	Lawrence	Mahoning Township	4.33	6.97		PA 551 south (Jackson Street)	Western end of PA 551 concurrency
			4.95	7.97		PA 551 north (North Edinburg Road)	Eastern end of PA 551 concurrency
		Union Township	7.86	12.65		I-376 / US 422 (Benjamin Franklin Highway) – Sharon, Butler	I-376/US 422 exit 13; former eastern terminus of US 224 (1977-2008)
		New Castle	8.91	14.34		US 422 Bus. west (Sampson Street)	Western end of US 422 Bus. concurrency
			10.15	16.33		US 422 Bus. east / PA 18 (North Jefferson Street)	Eastern terminus of US 224 and its concurrency with US 422 Bus.
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi       Concurrency terminus       Incomplete access

See also

•   Indiana portal
•   Ohio portal
•   Pennsylvania portal
•   U.S. Roads portal

Notes

1. Total mileage is the sum of each state's mileage^[17][18][19]

References

1. Google (April 25, 2011). "Overview Map of US 224 in Indiana" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved April 25, 2011.
2. Federal Highway Administration (December 2003). National Highway System: Indiana (PDF) (Map). Scale not given. Washington, DC: Federal Highway Administration. Retrieved October 16, 2012.
3. Indiana Department of Transportation (2010). "Indiana Traffic Counts". Indianapolis: Indiana Department of Transportation. Retrieved August 14, 2012.
4. Google (December 30, 2011). "Overview of US 224 in Pennsylvania" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved December 30, 2011.
5. Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (2011). Lawrence County, Pennsylvania Highway Map (PDF) (Map). Harrisburg: Pennsylvania Department of Transportation. Retrieved May 21, 2011.^{[permanent dead link]}
6. Weingroff, Richard F. "U.S. 22 – The William Penn Highway". Highway History. Federal Highway Administration. Sections "More Pennsylvania Problems" and "Ben Franklin Highway". Retrieved December 18, 2020.
7. "US 224". Pennsylvania Highways.^{[self-published source]}
8. Bichler, Allen D. (August 17, 2007). (PDF). Letter to American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials. Harrisburg: Pennsylvania Department of Transportation. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 4, 2016. Retrieved September 17, 2016 – via American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials.
9. Special Committee on U.S. Route Numbering (September 29, 2007). (PDF) (Report). Washington, DC: American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 16, 2017.
10. Ohio Department of Transportation District 3 (March 14, 2017). "US-224 Highway Safety Project (meeting handout)" (PDF). Retrieved October 13, 2018.
11. Barnhart, Kirsten (December 1, 2019). "ODOT looking at roundabout at U.S. 127/U.S. 224/Marsh Road". Delphos Herald. Delphos, Ohio: DHI Media. from the original on April 10, 2022. Retrieved April 9, 2022.
12. "Roundabout to be built at intersection of U.S. 127/U.S. 224 at Marsh Road". The Times Bulletin. Van Wert, Ohio: DHI Media. January 15, 2020. from the original on January 16, 2020. Retrieved April 9, 2022.
13. Cummins, Todd; Sharpe, Joseph (January 15, 2020). "Roundabout to be built north of city of Van Wert". WLIO. Block Communications. from the original on January 16, 2020. Retrieved April 9, 2022.
14. "Roundabout to improve U.S. 127/224 intersection". The Lima News. AIM Media Midwest. January 15, 2020. from the original on April 6, 2020. Retrieved April 9, 2022.
15. Demczyk, Matt (April 6, 2022). "ODOT Kicks Off Construction Season In Northwest Ohio". WKXA-FM. Blanchard River Broadcasting Company. from the original on April 10, 2022. Retrieved April 9, 2022.
16. "U.S. 127/U.S. 224 roundabout construction; and U.S. 127 bridge rehabilitation". Ohio Department of Transportation. Project 110430. from the original on April 6, 2022. Retrieved April 9, 2022.
17. Indiana Department of Transportation (July 2016). Reference Post Book (PDF). Indianapolis: Indiana Department of Transportation. US 224. Retrieved September 19, 2016.
18. "Straight Line Diagrams". Ohio Department of Transportation. Retrieved November 19, 2012.
19. . Pennsylvania Department of Transportation. Archived from the original on June 3, 2012. Retrieved November 20, 2012.

External links

 

Wikimedia Commons has media related to U.S. Route 224.

Route map:

Template:Attached KML/U.S. Route 224

KML is from Wikidata

• Pennsylvania Highways: US 224
• US 224 in Ohio at AARoads.com
• US 224 in Pennsylvania at AARoads.com
• Ohio Roads - US 224
• Pennsylvania Roads - US 224
• Endpoints of US 224 at USEnds.com