State Route 24 (abbreviated SR 24) is part of
Maine
Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and ...
's system of
numbered state highways, running from
Bailey Island south of
Orr's Island in
Harpswell northward to
Gardiner, passing through
Brunswick along the way.
Route description
SR 24 begins at an intersection with Abner Point Road on Bailey Island in the town of
Harpswell. It formerly began at the southern tip of the island, where the road dead-ends. It proceeds northward through the "downtown" area of Harpswell on Orr's Island and continues onto mainland
Maine
Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and ...
where it crosses into the town of
Brunswick.
SR 24 used to traverse downtown Brunswick, but now bypasses the downtown area. The route continues north until reaching the southern terminus of its
business route, then interchanges with a freeway portion of
US 1
U.S. Route 1 or U.S. Highway 1 (US 1) is a major north–south United States Numbered Highway that serves the East Coast of the United States. It runs from Key West, Florida, north to Fort Kent, Maine, at the Canadian border, making ...
, which it then joins until it reaches SR
196
Year 196 ( CXCVI) was a leap year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Dexter and Messalla (or, less frequently, year 949 ''Ab urbe condita ...
. SR 24 exits US 1 to join Route 196 and both routes cross the
Androscoggin River
The Androscoggin River ( Abenaki: ''Aləssíkαntekʷ'') is a river in the U.S. states of Maine and New Hampshire, in northern New England. It is U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, ...
into
Topsham. SR 24 splits off from Route 196 immediately after crossing the river and rejoins its former alignment.
SR 24 enters the town of
Bowdoinham where it meets the northern terminus of
SR 125 and turns northeast. SR 24 enters
Richmond
Richmond most often refers to:
* Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States
* Richmond, London, a part of London
* Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England
* Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada
* Richmond, California, ...
and briefly overlaps with
SR 197 before continuing into
Gardiner, paralleling the river at this point. SR 24 comes to an end in the heart of Gardiner at the intersection of Maine Avenue and Bridge Street (US 201,
SR 9,
SR 27, and
SR 126).
History
SR 24 between its southern terminus and the Androscoggin River crossing was formerly designated
SR 124. It was renumbered to 24 in the early 1930s when the number 124 was reassigned to a completely new route. From
Topsham, SR 24 was designated over a new routing to its current northern terminus in
Gardiner and ultimately as far as
Guilford.
From Gardiner, SR 24 used to run concurrently with US 201 and SR 27 to
Sidney, a designation which was simply dropped following SR 24's truncation in 1954. The remainder of the route, which runs from Sidney to
Guilford, was renumbered
SR 23. This 1954 routing remains to the present.
[Maine State Route Log via floodgap.com](_blank)
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Brunswick bypass and new business route
In 2014, SR 24 was removed from its existing alignment in downtown Brunswick and Topsham and routed along the US 1 freeway and the southernmost of SR 196 to bypass downtown. This re-routing reduced the overall length of SR 24 by approximately and eliminated its concurrency with US 201. Its existing alignment was redesignated SR 24 Business.
SR 24 departs its old alignment at the intersection of Gurnet and Bath Roads. Instead of turning left onto Bath Road, it now continues straight onto the US 1 bypass. It runs concurrently with US 1, then exits onto SR 196 northbound. SR 24 departs SR 196 at Bypass Road and rejoins its existing alignment at Elm Street in Topsham.
Major intersections
Bannered business route
State Route 24 Business was designated in 2014 along the former alignment of SR 24 through downtown Brunswick and into Topsham, after the parent route was realigned to bypass downtown via US 1 and SR 196.
References
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Transportation in Cumberland County, Maine
Transportation in Sagadahoc County, Maine
Transportation in Kennebec County, Maine