Maryland Route 545 is a state highway

State highway

State highway, state road or state route can refer to one of three related concepts, two of them related to a state or provincial government in a country that is divided into states or provinces :#A...

 in the U.S. state

U.S. state

A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...

 of Maryland

Maryland

Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...

. Known for most of its length as Blue Ball Road, the state highway runs 5.92 miles (9.5 km) from MD 213

Maryland Route 213

Maryland Route 213 is a state highway located on the Eastern Shore of Maryland in the United States. The route runs from Maryland Route 662 in Wye Mills, Queen Anne's County north to the Pennsylvania border in Cecil County, where it continues into that state as Pennsylvania Route 841...

 in Elkton

Elkton, Maryland

The town of Elkton is the county seat of Cecil County, Maryland, United States. The population was 11,893 as of the 2000 census and 14,842 according to current July 2008 census estimates. It is the county seat of Cecil County...

 north to Kirk Road and Warburton Road in Pleasant Hill in central Cecil County

Cecil County, Maryland

Cecil County is a county located in the U.S. state of Maryland. It is part of the Delaware Valley. It was named for Cæcilius Calvert, 2nd Baron Baltimore , who was the first Proprietary Governor of the colony of Maryland from 1632 until his death in 1675. The county seat is Elkton. The newspaper...

. MD 545 was constructed to Little Elk Creek

Elk River (Maryland)

The Elk River is a tributary of the Chesapeake Bay on the Delmarva Peninsula. It is about long, and as the most northeastern extension of the Chesapeake Bay estuary, serves as one entrance to the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal. It is located in Cecil County, Maryland, with its headwaters extending...

 near Childs

Childs, Maryland

Childs is an unincorporated community in Cecil County, Maryland, United States....

 in the early 1930s and extended to Pleasant Hill in the late 1940s.

Route description

MD 545 begins at MD 213 (Bridge Street) on the west side of Elkton. The state highway heads west as Elkton Boulevard, a two-lane road through an industrial area. At Blue Ball Road, MD 545 turns northwest onto Blue Ball Road and intersects MD 279 (Elkton Road). The state highway's surroundings transition to a mix of farmland and forest after leaving the town of Elkton and passing Dogwood Road. MD 545 crosses Little Elk Creek immediately before passing under Interstate 95

Interstate 95 in Maryland

Interstate 95 in Maryland is a major highway that runs diagonally from northeast to southwest, from Maryland's border with Delaware, to the Woodrow Wilson Bridge, briefly entering the District of Columbia before reaching Virginia...

. The state highway passes under CSX

CSX Transportation

CSX Transportation operates a Class I railroad in the United States known as the CSX Railroad. It is the main subsidiary of the CSX Corporation. The company is headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, and owns approximately 21,000 route miles...

's Philadelphia Subdivision as it enters the village of Childs. MD 545 continues through scattered residences in a forested area before reaching its northern terminus at an intersection with Kirk Road and Warburton Road in the hamlet of Pleasant Hill. Blue Ball Road continues northwest as a county highway.

History

MD 545 was paved from Easton Boulevard to Little Elk Creek near Childs in 1933. The bridge over Little Elk Creek was completed in 1932. MD 545 was extended to Pleasant Hill in 1949.

Future

The Maryland State Highway Administration plans to construct a new bridge on MD 545 over Little Elk Creek in 2011. In January 2010, SHA put the 1932 pony truss bridge up for sale to any buyer willing to preserve the bridge on a new location.

Junction list

The entire route is in Cecil County

Cecil County, Maryland

Cecil County is a county located in the U.S. state of Maryland. It is part of the Delaware Valley. It was named for Cæcilius Calvert, 2nd Baron Baltimore , who was the first Proprietary Governor of the colony of Maryland from 1632 until his death in 1675. The county seat is Elkton. The newspaper...

.
{| class=wikitable
!Location
!Mile
!Destinations
!Notes
|-
|rowspan=3|Elkton

Elkton, Maryland

The town of Elkton is the county seat of Cecil County, Maryland, United States. The population was 11,893 as of the 2000 census and 14,842 according to current July 2008 census estimates. It is the county seat of Cecil County...

|0.00
|
|Southern terminus
|-
|0.71
| – Newark, DE

Newark, Delaware

Newark is an American city in New Castle County, Delaware, west-southwest of Wilmington. According to the 2010 Census, the population of the city is 31,454. Newark is the home of the University of Delaware.- History :...

|
|-
|1.30
|Dogwood Road east
|Former MD 711
|-
|Pleasant Hill
|5.92
|Blue Ball Road north / Kirk Road east / Warburton Road west
|Northern terminus

External links

• MD 545 @ MDRoads.com