NJDOT begins major rehabilitation of Route 9 in Middlesex and Monmouth counties
Overnight pavement improvement work being coordinated
with NJ TRANSIT to limit impact to commuters

Route 9 is a major north-south connector serving central and southern New Jersey that carries between 50,000 and 80,000 vehicles per day within these project limits. NJDOT is closely coordinating with NJ TRANSIT, which operates five bus routes, 38 bus stops and six Park and Rides through this stretch of the highway, to limit the impact this project will have on their service.

NJDOT’s contractor, Intercounty Paving Associates, started preliminary construction activities including site mobilization and sign installation earlier this month, requiring shoulder closures. Mainline milling and paving work is expected to begin during overnight hours early next month.

The $37.6 million project, being constructed with federal funds, will mill and pave sections of deteriorated pavement on Route 9 in both directions from milepost 116.7 in Manalapan Township, through Marlboro, Old Bridge, Sayreville and South Amboy to the vicinity of milepost 135.6 in Woodbridge Township. The project will extend the useful life and improve the surface rideability of the highway, including all travel lanes, turn lanes, shoulders, ramps and median openings. The specific sections of Route 9 to be addressed are:

• Route 9 southbound from just north of Peyser Street (mp 135.6) to the vicinity of CR 656 (mp 132.7) in Woodbridge Township.
• Route 9 southbound from the vicinity of Kearny Road (mp 130.9) in Sayreville through South Amboy, Old Bridge and Marlboro to the vicinity of Symmes Road/Ryan Road (mp 116. 7) in Manalapan.
• Route 9 northbound from just south of Route 18 (mp 121.9) in Old Bridge through South Amboy to the vicinity of Kearny Road (mp 130.9) in Sayreville.
• Route 9 northbound from the vicinity of CR 656 (mp 132.7) to the vicinity of the NJ Turnpike (mp 134.8) in Woodbridge, with the work in this location requiring some partial and full depth pavement repairs.

The contractor is planning to begin the mainline paving work on Route 9 southbound in Marlboro.

Route 9 alternately carries two to three travel lanes in each direction through this 17-mile stretch of highway, lined by businesses and office complexes. NJDOT will maintain all travel lanes open in each direction during peak-period commuting hours throughout construction, utilizing traffic shifts. Single and double-lane closures will be allowed during overnight hours to perform the mainline resurfacing work. Interchange ramps will be repaved utilizing periodic, short-term closures with detours.

The project will also replace the structurally-deficient Ticetown Road/Throckmorton Road bridge deck that spans across Route 9 in Old Bridge, as well as make surface repairs to thirteen individual bridge decks along Route 9 within the project limits. The work at Ticetown Road/Throckmorton Road bridge will be staged to allow traffic to be maintained across the bridge (one lane in each direction), requiring temporary traffic signals. Guide rail, drainage and directional signage upgrades and various other incidental improvements, including highway striping with raised pavement markers (reflectors), are included in the contract.

NJDOT tracks the pavement condition on all of our almost 13,000 lane miles of state highway through a pavement management system - measuring both the International Roughness Index (IRI) and the Surface Distress Index (SDI) - and identifies areas in need of repair. This stretch of Route 9 was identified as a significant resurfacing need in 2009 through that system and this project was developed and advanced through design from there. The project, which was designed in-house by NJDOT engineers, is expected to be completed in fall 2014.

The precise timing of the work is subject to change due to weather or other factors. Motorists are encouraged to check www.511nj.org for real-time travel information.