U.S. Route 522 (US 522) is a part of the U.S. Highway System that runs from Powhatan, Virginia to Selinsgrove, Pennsylvania. In West Virginia, the U.S. highway runs 19.0 miles (30.6Â km) from the Virginia state line near Ridge north to the Maryland state line at the Potomac River in Hancock just south of Hancock, Maryland. US 522 passes through Ridge and Valley Province of the Appalachian Mountains in the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia. The portion of the U.S. highway in West Virginia serves to connect Winchester with Hancock via Berkeley Springs, the county seat of Morgan County. US 522 is part of the National Highway System for its entire length in West Virginia.
Route description
US 522 begins at the Virginia state line near Ridge. The U.S. highway heads south as a four-lane divided highway toward Winchester. US 522 heads north as a two-lane highway through a narrow valley immediately to the east of the parallel Warm Spring Ridge and a short distance to the east of Cacapon Mountain. The highway passes through the hamlets of Ridge, the site of a fish hatchery, Omps, and Rock Gap and by the entrance to Cacapon Resort State Park. The U.S. highway begins to parallel Warm Spring Run as it approaches Berkeley Springs, where the highway is named Washington Street and passes by Berkeley Springs State Park. Within the town, US 522 has two intersections with WV 9 surrounding a short concurrency. From the south end of town, WV 9 heads east as Martinsburg Road toward Martinsburg; at the north end of downtown Berkeley Springs, WV 9 heads west as Union Street, ascending Cacapon Mountain on its way toward Great Cacapon. US 522 passes through Burnt Factory, the site of a sand extraction and processing facility, on its way toward its northern terminus at Hancock, a hamlet that sits across the Potomac River from Hancock, Maryland and contains Potomac Airpark. The airpark is accessed from US 522's last intersection in West Virginia before crossing over the river and CSX's Cumberland Subdivision into Maryland.
Future
The West Virginia Division of Highways (WVDOH) has now selected a Preferred Alternative for the US 522 project. In general terms, the route runs parallel toâ€"and east ofâ€"the existing Route 522 for approximately 22 miles (35 km) from the Maryland state line to the Virginia state line. It will be, for most of its length, within 50 feet (15 m) of the current 522. In the vicinity of the proposed Ridge Historic District, however, the alignment extends farther away to avoid impacting either that site or the adjacent fish hatchery. Also, immediately south of Berkeley Springs, the projected route would veer further east to avoid the downtown area.
Major intersections
The entire route is in Morgan County.
References
