Pennsylvania Route 63

PA 63 westbound past PA 113 in Harleysville

PA 63 begins at a "T" intersection with PA 29 in the borough of Green Lane in Montgomery County.[3] From this intersection, the route heads southeast as two-lane undivided Main Street, passing by several homes. After crossing Upper Ridge Road, the road enters Marlborough Township and becomes Sumneytown Pike. PA 63 continues through rural areas with some development, passing through the community of Sumneytown. Upon crossing Unami Creek, the route enters Upper Salford Township and heads into forested areas, where PA 63 meets the southern terminus of PA 563 (Ridge Road).[4][3] Following that intersection, the road passes through a mix of farmland, woodland, and residential developments.[4] The route crosses over the East Branch Perkiomen Creek before entering Lower Salford Township.[3] At this point, PA 63 becomes Main Street and heads into the community of Harleysville, where it passes through suburban residential neighborhoods before heading into a commercial area, crossing PA 113 (Harleysville Pike).[4][3]

In the area of this intersection, PA 63 is briefly a divided highway. After PA 113, the road passes through the center of Harleysville. The road turns south, becoming a three-lane road with a center left-turn lane before it heads to the southeast again as a two-lane road, continuing past a mix of farm fields and residential and commercial development.[4] PA 63 bypasses the community of Mainland to the northeast with two westbound lanes and one eastbound lane before entering Towamencin Township near a crossing of Skippack Creek and heading into the North Penn Valley region.[3]

In Towamencin Township, PA 63 widens to four lanes and is called Sumneytown Pike again, passing woods and development before reaching an interchange with I-476 (Pennsylvania Turnpike Northeast Extension). The I-476 junction includes a full interchange via a ramp passing through the toll plaza along with additional E-ZPass-only ramps to southbound I-476 and from northbound I-476. Southeast of I-476, the route enters a commercial area in the community of Kulpsville, where the highway turns northeast onto Forty Foot Road, a five-lane road with a center left-turn lane.[4][3] PA 63 passes through suburban areas, narrowing to three lanes before widening back to five lanes. Along this stretch, the route passes southeast of Dock Mennonite Academy.[4] A short distance later, PA 63 turns southeast onto two-lane Welsh Road and Forty Foot Road continues northeast toward the borough of Hatfield as PA 463.[3] Along Welsh Road, PA 63 forms the border between Hatfield Township to the northeast and Towamencin Township to the southwest. The road heads through residential neighborhoods.[4][3]

At the intersection with Squirrel Lane, PA 63 briefly forms the border between the borough of Lansdale to the northeast and Towamencin Township to the southwest before fully entering Lansdale and becoming Main Street.[3] The road passes a mix of homes and businesses before coming to the northern terminus of PA 363 (Valley Forge Road). After the PA 363 junction, the road runs through the downtown area of Lansdale, where the route crosses SEPTA's Lansdale/Doylestown Line at-grade south of the Lansdale station and intersects Broad Street.[4][3] The road leaves the downtown and heads into areas of homes and businesses.[4] At a crossing of Wissahickon Creek, PA 63 forms the border between Lansdale to the northeast and Upper Gwynedd Township to the southwest before running along the border of Montgomery Township and Upper Gwynedd Township after crossing North Wales Road.[3]

PA 63 westbound past North Wales Road in Lansdale

At North Wales Road, PA 63 again becomes Welsh Road and passes several businesses as a four-lane divided road. The route becomes a two-lane undivided road again as it passes between business parks to the northeast and farms and woods to the southwest ahead of a junction with US 202 Bus. (Dekalb Pike). Upon intersecting the US 202 parkway and the southern terminus of the US 202 Parkway Trail, PA 63 forms the border between Montgomery Township to the northeast and Lower Gwynedd Township to the southwest.[4][3] The road passes through a mix of residential and commercial development, widening into a three-lane road with two westbound lanes and one eastbound lane.[4] PA 63 leaves the North Penn Valley region as it becomes the border between Horsham Township and Lower Gwynedd Township and crosses PA 309 (Bethlehem Pike), with jughandles controlling the movements from PA 309 to PA 63.[4][3]

The route narrows back to two lanes as it passes residential subdivisions, crossing the Park Creek before becoming the border between Horsham Township to the northeast and Upper Dublin Township to the southwest at the Tennis Avenue intersection. Farther southeast, the road reaches a junction with Butler Pike. Upon reaching the community of Maple Glen, PA 63 passes businesses and crosses PA 152 (Limekiln Pike) and Norristown Road.[4][3] Past Maple Glen, the road continues past more homes along with a few farms.[4][3]

PA 63 eastbound on Moreland Road in Willow Grove

Farther southeast, the route widens into a three-lane road with one eastbound lane and two westbound lanes as it passes near business parks and some residential and commercial development.[4] PA 63 soon widens to four lanes at Dresher Road, with two lanes in each direction. The road becomes a five-lane road with a center left-turn lane as it comes to the Blair Mill Road intersection, at which point it forms the border between Upper Moreland Township to the northeast and Upper Dublin Township to the southwest.[4][3]

The road becomes a four-lane divided highway that soon becomes undivided as it crosses over the Pennsylvania Turnpike (I-276) and Norfolk Southern's Morrisville Line before heading into a mix of residential and commercial areas as a five-lane road again. Upon forming the border between Upper Moreland Township and Abington Township, PA 63 becomes Moreland Road, briefly turning into a divided highway at the Fitzwatertown Road intersection. The route heads into the community of Willow Grove as a five-lane road. The road enters business areas, becoming a divided highway again as it passes to the northeast of the Willow Grove Park Mall. PA 63 intersects Easton Road and becomes undivided as it crosses SEPTA's Warminster Line at-grade. The route passes a mix of homes and businesses as it comes to an junction with PA 611 (Old York Road).[4][3]

At this point, PA 63 heads into wooded residential areas as a two-lane road.[4] At the intersection with Edge Hill Road, the route turns southwest onto that road and fully enters Abington Township, eventually turning southeast onto Old Welsh Road. The road curves to the east and crosses into Lower Moreland Township.[3] The road becomes Welsh Road again and widens to four lanes as it enters a mix of residential and commercial establishments in the community of Huntingdon Valley, crossing the Pennypack Trail at the Terwood Road intersection and the Pennypack Creek. At the intersection with Carson Terrace/Walton Road, there is a westbound jughandle for right turns and U-turns. Upon intersecting PA 232 (Huntingdon Pike) in Bethayres, the route becomes Philmont Avenue and narrows back to two lanes. PA 63 turns south onto Red Lion Road and crosses SEPTA's West Trenton Line at-grade as it continues through wooded residential subdivisions, making a turn to the southeast into the city of Philadelphia in Philadelphia County.[4][3]

PA 63 westbound on Woodhaven Road at the Franklin Mills Boulevard/Millbrook Road exit in Northeast Philadelphia

PA 63 enters the Northeast Philadelphia section of the city a short distance past the Pine Road intersection. PA 63 widens into a four-lane divided highway and passes between a former golf course (site of the former Budd Company Red Lion plant) to the north and homes and industrial developments to the south. The road continues through a mix of residential and commercial development as it crosses PA 532 (Bustleton Avenue). East of PA 532, the route passes over CSX's Trenton Subdivision and comes to an intersection with US 1 (Roosevelt Boulevard).[4][5]

PA 63 turns northeast and follows a concurrency with US 1, which at this point is a wide boulevard with local-express lanes.[4][5] The road carries a 3-3-3-3 lane configuration as it heads northeast through areas of businesses and industrial parks.[4] After intersecting Byberry Road, the concurrency with US 1 ends at an unfinished cloverleaf interchange with Woodhaven Road, where PA 63 heads southeast onto the Woodhaven Road freeway. Woodhaven Road continues northwest of US 1 as an unnumbered divided road to an intersection with Evans Street, which connects to Byberry Road, before coming to a dead end at an entrance to an industrial park.[5]

Woodhaven Road, a six-lane freeway lined with frontage roads, carries the route southeast between an industrial park to the northeast and residential neighborhoods to the southwest as it crosses Byberry Creek and comes to the Thornton Road interchange. Past here, the freeway passes residential areas on both sides and has a westbound exit for Academy Road and a full interchange with Knights Road. At this point, the surroundings along PA 63 become commercial as it comes to the Franklin Mills Boulevard/Millbrook Road interchange that provides access to the Philadelphia Mills shopping mall.[4][5] Within the interchange, the road is temporarily four lanes wide.[4] The frontage roads end past that interchange as Woodhaven Road turns south to cross Poquessing Creek and head into Bensalem Township in Bucks County.[4][5] Upon entering Bucks County, PA 63 has an interchange with US 13. A short distance south of US 13, PA 63 ends at an interchange with I-95. This interchange also has access to the park and ride at the Cornwells Heights station on Amtrak's Northeast Corridor and SEPTA's Trenton Line.[6]

In 2015, PA 63 had an annual average daily traffic count ranging from a high of 65,000 vehicles between Knights Road and I-95 to a low of 10,000 vehicles between PA 309 and PA 152.[7] The entire length of PA 63 is part of the National Highway System.[8]