Route 4 and 17 project to be accelerated
Governor Christie Whitman today announced that the New Jersey Department of Transportation and the contractor for the Route 4 and 17 interchange project had reached agreement on accelerating the schedule for completion.
"The residents of Bergen County got an early Christmas present today," the Governor said. "I applaud NJDOT and the contractor, Bishop-Sanzari-Fletcher Creamer, Inc., for their efforts to get the Route 4 and 17 interchange overhaul done as quickly as possible. The interchange is not only the crossroads of an entire region, it is the cornerstone of continued economic growth and opportunity for North Jersey."
Under the terms of the agreement, NJDOT will pay Bishop-Sanzari-Fletcher Creamer, Inc., up to $3.5 million to accelerate work in order to open almost all of the interchange to traffic by Thanksgiving of this year. The flyover ramp connection from Route 17 northbound to Route 4 westbound would open by Christmas.
"There remains much work to do, but if the past 10 months are indicative of what can be accomplished, NJDOT and the contractor have shown they can deliver," said Transportation Commissioner James Weinstein. " For the 285,000 motorists who use this antiquated interchange every day, relief is just around the corner."
Built in 1932 as a state of the art cloverleaf, the Route 4 and 17 interchange is a main transportation connector for one of the most densely-populated regions in the Northeast. The $120 million overhaul of the interchange began in October of 1998.
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