PA 82 begins as Creek Road at the Delaware state line, where it meets the northern terminus of DE 82, in Kennett Township, Chester County. From the border, the route winds northwest as a two-lane undivided road through wooded areas alongside the Red Clay Creek. The road winds north along the creek's East Branch through more woodland with some homes. PA 82 turns west and heads into the borough of Kennett Square, where it becomes East South Street and passes through residential areas. The route passes north of Kennett High School before it turns north onto South Union Street and heads through commercial areas, coming to a bridge over an East Penn Railroad line. The road runs through wooded neighborhoods before it intersects the one-way pair of Cypress Street eastbound and State Street westbound (both of which comprise the Baltimore Pike) in the commercial downtown of Kennett Square. PA 82 becomes North Union Street and runs through more wooded areas of homes before leaving Kennett Square for Kennett Township again. The route passes a cemetery before it enters East Marlborough Township and immediately reaches a diamond interchange with the US 1 freeway, where the route is a divided highway.^[2][3]

Past this interchange, PA 82 becomes township-maintained and continues north as undivided Unionville Road through wooded areas of residential subdivisions, coming to a junction with PA 926 in the community of Willowdale.^[2][3][4] The road continues past more housing developments with some farmland, passing to the west of Unionville High School, as it heads toward the community of Unionville. Here, PA 82 intersects Doe Run Road at a roundabout and turns west onto that road. The route passes homes and comes to an intersection with PA 842, forming a concurrency with that route. The two routes intersect the western terminus of PA 162 in the center of the community before PA 842 splits from PA 82 by turning southwest. PA 82 leaves Unionville and continues west on Doe Run Road through farmland with some woods and residences.^[2][3] Upon crossing into West Marlborough Township, the route becomes state-maintained again and continues through more rural areas, curving to the northwest.^[2][3][4] In the community of Doe Run, PA 82 intersects the northern terminus of PA 841. The road heads to the north and crosses Buck Run into East Fallowfield Township. Here, the route passes more farms and woods before curving northwest into increasing residential development, passing through the community of Ercildoun and intersecting Buck Run Road. PA 82 turns to the north and crosses Strasburg Road. The road curves northeast and passes farmland with some woods.^[2][3]

PA 82 enters Valley Township and heads north near homes on Strode Avenue. The road runs past a Cleveland-Cliffs (formerly Lukens Steel Company) steel plant, where it crosses at-grade two branches of the Brandywine Valley Railroad serving the plant and enters the city of Coatesville. PA 82 intersects the eastern terminus of PA 372 and becomes lined with homes as it reaches a junction with US 30 Bus. At this point, the route turns east for a concurrency with US 30 Bus. on Lincoln Highway and runs past more residences before passing to the north of the steel plant. The road crosses the West Branch Brandywine Creek and a Brandywine Valley Railroad line at-grade before PA 82 splits from US 30 Bus. by heading northwest on four-lane undivided North 1st Avenue. PA 82 passes between the creek and railroad to the west and homes to the east before crossing under the High Bridge which carries Amtrak's Keystone Corridor railroad line. The route becomes a four-lane divided highway called Manor Road and winds north along the east bank of the West Branch Brandywine Creek through wooded hills with some development, becoming the border between Coatesville to the west and Valley Township to the east and reaching a partial cloverleaf interchange with the US 30 freeway.^[2][3]

Past this interchange, PA 82 comes to an intersection with PA 340, where it enters West Brandywine Township and becomes a two-lane undivided road. The road passes through wooded areas with some residences before it heads into a mix of farmland and woodland with development, reaching a roundabout with Cedar Knoll Road/Reeceville Road. In the community of Brandywine Manor, the route crosses US 322. PA 82 continues through rural land with some homes, passing through a part of Wallace Township before it heads into West Nantmeal Township. The road crosses the East Branch Brandywine Creek and reaches a junction with the western terminus of PA 282. The route runs through more farmland and woodland with homes as it comes to an intersection with the southern terminus of PA 345 and Little Conestoga Road in the community of Loag. At this point, PA 82 turns northwest to remain along Manor Road and heads through agricultural areas with some woods and homes. The road curves north and becomes South Chestnut Street, coming to a bridge over the Pennsylvania Turnpike (Interstate 76) before a junction with PA 401. At this point, the route enters the borough of Elverson and runs northeast through residential areas with some fields. PA 82 turns north and reaches its northern terminus at PA 23 in the center of Elverson, where North Chestnut Street continues north as State Route 4082 (SR 4082), an unsigned quadrant route.^[2][3]

When Pennsylvania first legislated routes in 1911, the current alignment of PA 82 between Kennett Square and Unionville was legislated as part of Legislative Route 273, which continued from Unionville north and east to West Chester.^[5] By 1926, what would become PA 82 existed as a paved road except for a portion north of Brandywine Manor and between Birdsboro and Baumstown.^[6][7] PA 82 was designated in 1928 to run from the Delaware border south of Kennett Square north to US 422/PA 17 in Baumstown, following its current alignment north to Elverson where it continued north through Birdsboro to Baumstown.^[7] By 1930, the entire length of PA 82 was paved.^[8] On October 19, 1998, the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) transferred maintenance of the route within East Marlborough Township to the township due to the township wanting to make improvements to the roads without waiting through the PennDOT approval process.^[9][10]

Prior to 2008, PA 82 continued north through Elverson on Chestnut Street and entered Berks County.^[11] It was called Elverson Road, Twin Valley Road and Haycreek Road. In Birdsboro, PA 82 was called Furnace Street and had a small concurrency with PA 724. PA 82 crossed the Schuylkill River and then terminated at a T-intersection with US 422 westbound.^[12] On September 8, 1987, torrential rains from Tropical Depression Nine flooded Hay Creek for days and destroyed several bridges that cross the creek just south of Birdsboro.^[13] Over the coming months, local residents got used to the lack of traffic and fought to keep the road permanently closed, forcing PennDOT to forgo any possible bridge replacement. However, they did rebuild the bridge just south of Douglas Street. As a result, PA 82 was impossible to transverse from end to end. In late 2008, PennDOT decommissioned this section of PA 82 north of PA 23 in Elverson, designating the old section of PA 82 in Chester County as SR 4082 and the remaining open sections in Berks County south of PA 724 in Birdsboro as SR 2082.^[14] The bulk of this area is now part of the Birdsboro Waters Forest section of the Hopewell Big Woods.^[15] In September 2010, PennDOT decided to hand over the closed portion of the former PA 82 to local landowners.^[16] When this section of PA 82 was decommissioned, PA 345 was extended north of its previous terminus in Birdsboro at PA 724 along PA 724 and then along the former routing of PA 82 to US 422.^[14]

In March 2023, construction began on a roundabout at the intersection with Cedar Knoll Road/Reeceville Road in West Brandywine Township in order to improve safety; the roundabout opened to traffic on September 12, 2023.^[17]

The entire route is in Chester County.

Pennsylvania Route 82 Alternate Truck is a truck route around a weight-restricted bridge on PA 82 over Buck Run in East Fallowfield Township, on which trucks over 33 tons and combination loads over 40 tons are prohibited. The route follows US 1, PA 41, PA 10, Gum Tree Road, and Buck Run Road. It was established in 2013.^[18][19]

•   U.S. Roads portal
•   Pennsylvania portal

• Pennsylvania Highways: PA 82
• PA 82 at AARoads.com
• Pennsylvania Roads - PA 82