NJDOT announces weekend closure of the Route 7/Wittpenn Bridge

(Trenton) - The New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT) today announced the upcoming start of full roadway closures associated with an interim bridge repair project on the Route 7/Wittpenn Bridge over the Hackensack River in Jersey City and Kearny, Hudson County.

NJDOT is performing interim repairs to keep the bridge in service while a new replacement bridge is designed.

Tonight at approximately 10 p.m. NJDOT will fully close the bridge to traffic for the entire weekend period until around 5:30 a.m. Monday morning, December 6. NJDOT will implement full weekend closures of the Wittpenn Bridge over approximately five additional weekends, spread out periodically over the duration of the project. Advance notice will be provided before each future weekend closure.

Further construction operations will require NJDOT to also implement overnight full closures of the bridge on weeknights as well. These closures, which have not been scheduled yet, will take place Monday through Thursday from 9 p.m. to 5:30 a.m. the following morning. Advance notice will be provided before the start of any weeknight closures of the Wittpenn Bridge.

The following detours will be in effect during all full closures of the bridge:

• Route 7 eastbound traffic will take Fish House Road to Pennsylvania Avenue to Central Avenue and then continue to Route 1&9T northbound and return to Route 7.

• Route 7 westbound traffic will take to Route 1&9T southbound to Central Avenue and then continue to Pennsylvania Avenue to Fish House Road and return to Route 7.

The $3.7 million interim repair project will make structural and mechanical repairs and safety and operational improvements to the Route 7 Wittpenn vertical lift bridge. The proposed work includes bridge deck repairs with a new asphalt overlay, superstructure and substructure repairs, and the installation of a staircase and lighting on the lift span tower. The bridge will remain open to traffic weekdays from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. throughout construction, but traffic shifts and lane closures may occur overnight and on weekends. The project is scheduled for completion in April 2011.

NJDOT has plans to replace the existing structurally deficient Route 7 Wittpenn Bridge with a new, wider structure. That project is currently in the design phase.

Real time travel and construction information is available online at www.511nj.org