NJDOT announces second phase of construction on South Salem Street Bridge in Dover

(Trenton)-Commissioner Kris Kolluri today announced that the New Jersey Department of Transportation will close South Salem Street in Dover overnight on November 2. The closure is part of the $11 million South Salem Street Bridge replacement project.

NJDOT will close South Salem Street) from Friday, November 2 at 10 p.m. until Saturday, November 3 at 6 a.m. in order to paint new traffic stripes at the intersection of South Salem Street and East Blackwell Street.

The following overnight detour will be implemented:

• Traffic traveling north on South Salem Street toward East Blackwell Street will be directed onto Franklin Road, onto Rockaway Road and back to East Blackwell Street.

• Traffic traveling along East Blackwell Street toward South Salem Street will be directed east along East Blackwell Street to Rockaway Road, onto Franklin Road and back to South Salem Street.

In addition, NJDOT will shift northbound traffic on South Salem Street slightly to the west, eliminating an existing island in order to create a right-turn only lane on South Salem Street to East Blackwell Street. NJDOT also will install a new barrier curb.

NJDOT will replace the South Salem Street Bridge with a new, 115-foot long steel bridge with one travel lane and shoulder in each direction. The structure will include sidewalks, safety railings and improved lighting and traffic signals.

NJDOT is currently building the eastbound portion of the new bridge. Construction is taking place adjacent to the existing bridge and motorists will continue to travel on the existing bridge until summer 2008. From summer 2008 to spring 2009, crews will demolish the original bridge and build the western portion of the new bridge. Motorists will be diverted to the newly built bridge and have access to one travel lane in each direction.

The South Salem Street Bridge is part of the Old Main, Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Rail Road Historic District.

NJDOT will post variable message signs throughout the corridor to alert motorists of upcoming traffic pattern changes and construction activity. Additional information is available via the NJDOT website at https://nj-dot.nj.gov/transportation/commuter/.