The state highway runs 17.34 miles (27.91 km) from an entrance to Aberdeen Proving Ground in Edgewood north to MD 146 near Taylor.

MD 152 parallels the western edge of Harford County, connecting the communities of Joppatowne and Fallston with Interstate 95 (I-95), U.S. Route 40 (US 40), and US 1.

MD 152 south of Joppa was built around 1940; shortly thereafter, the highway was reconstructed as a wartime access project.

MD 152 crosses over CSX's Philadelphia Subdivision railroad line to arrive in the community of Joppa, where the highway is paralleled to the west by its old alignment, Old Mountain Road South.

MD 152 veers more toward the west at its intersection with the old alignment and Carrs Mill Road, which leads to the historic home Rockdale.

As the state highway passes through the hamlet of Scarff, its surroundings transition from suburban residential development to farmland.

The state highway reaches its northern terminus at MD 146 (Jarrettsville Pike) near Taylor.

[13][12] Only two years later, the southern segment of MD 152 was widened and resurfaced as a military access project.

[14] A bridge over the railroad was constructed as part of a new alignment built starting in 1942 to provide better access to the Edgewood Arsenal; the project was completed by 1944.