I-287 traffic pattern to be changed in Piscataway
NJDOT to begin reconstruction of northbound
bridge deck over Possumtown Road

(Trenton) - The New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT) today announced a new traffic pattern in connection with the ongoing reconstruction of the Interstate 287 bridge deck over Possumtown Road in Piscataway Township.

Northbound traffic will be shifted to accommodate work now starting on that side of the bridge. Reconstruction of the southbound bridge travel lanes has been completed.

On Tuesday night, August 10, NJDOT will temporarily close lanes on I-287 in both directions in order to shift traffic. Southbound traffic will be returned to the southbound travel lanes, and a northbound contra-flow lane will be established on the southbound side of the bridge. The shift will be in place prior the Wednesday, August 11 morning peak travel period.

Northbound traffic will be shifted to the right to accommodate workers, and a crossover lane will be built to shift one lane of northbound traffic to the contra-flow lane on the southbound side of the bridge.

The northbound contra-flow lane will be opened to traffic about a month from now. It will divert the left-most lane of northbound traffic across the median and to the southbound side of the bridge, permitting NJDOT to maintain three travel lanes in each direction at all times. After crossing the bridge, traffic in the contra-flow lane will be shifted back across the median to rejoin mainline I-287 northbound.

The $29 million federally funded roadway rehabilitation project will provide a safer, smoother ride on I-287 between Stelton Road in Piscataway, Middlesex County and Main Street in Franklin Township, Somerset County. This work will extend the lifespan of the roadway by more than 15 years and the lifespan of the new bridge decks by 50 years. The entire project is expected to be substantially completed by the end of 2011.

Motorists are encouraged to check NJDOT’s traffic information website, www.511nj.org for traffic updates.