Charles Street (Baltimore)

Maryland Route 139
Charles Street
Route information
Maintained by MDSHA and Baltimore DOT
Length	10.9 mi[1] (17.5 km) MD 139 is 7.89 mi (12.70 km).[2][3] The unnumbered portion of Charles Street south of US 1 is 3.0 mi (4.8 km).[1]
Existed	1927–present
Tourist routes	Baltimore's Historic Charles Street
Major junctions
South end	Dead end near Wells Street in Baltimore
Major intersections	MD 2 in Baltimore US 40 in Baltimore I-83 in Baltimore US 1 / US 40 Truck in Baltimore MD 134 in Towson I-695 in Lutherville
North end	Nightlingale Way in Lutherville
Location
Country	United States
State	Maryland
Counties	City of Baltimore, Baltimore
Highway system
Maryland highway system Interstate US State Scenic Byways
← MD 138 → MD 140

Charles Street, known for most of its route as Maryland Route 139 (MD 139), runs through Baltimore and the Towson area of Baltimore County. On the north end, it terminates at an intersection with Bellona Avenue near Interstate 695 (I-695). At the south end, it terminates in Federal Hill in Baltimore. Charles Street is one of the major routes through Baltimore, and is a major public transportation corridor. For the one-way portions of Charles Street, the street is functionally complemented by the parallel St. Paul Street, including St. Paul Place and Preston Gardens, Maryland Avenue, Cathedral Street, and Liberty Street.

Though not exactly at the west–east midpoint of the city, Charles Street is the dividing line between the west and east sides of Baltimore. On any street that crosses Charles Street, address numbers start from the unit block on either side, and the streets are identified as either "West" or "East," depending on whether they are to the west or east of Charles.^[4]

The west and east designations also apply to streets that do not cross Charles Street, but exist on both sides of it. The entire length of Charles Street is a National Scenic Byway known as Baltimore's Historic Charles Street.^[5][6]