Route 495 traffic shift to begin Friday as rehabilitation of the Bridge over Route 1&9/Paterson Plank Road advances

Route 495 traffic shift to begin Friday as rehabilitation of the Bridge over Route 1&9/Paterson Plank Road advances

Columbia Avenue Exit Ramp will be closed periodically during this stage

(Trenton) - New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT) officials today announced overnight lane closures to set up a traffic shift on Route 495 eastbound to the Lincoln Tunnel as the next phase of work to rehabilitate the Route 495 Bridge over Route 1&9 and Paterson Plank Road in North Bergen begins.

In addition to the traffic shift, the Columbia Avenue exit ramp to Paterson Plank Road also will be periodically closed during this stage as necessary. Motorists should continue to adjust their travel plans to avoid expected traffic congestion for the next two-and-a-half years.

Route 495 lane shifts begin Friday
Beginning at 9 p.m., Friday, September 21, until 9 a.m. the next morning, NJDOT’s contractor, IEW Corp, is scheduled to have various lane closures on Route 495 eastbound and Route 3 eastbound express to relocate the temporary concrete barrier in order to create a new work zone on the right side of Route 495. The current three lanes of 495 eastbound traffic in the new stage will be shifted to the left and this configuration is expected to be in place until summer of 2019. Intermittently on Friday night, lanes along Route 3 express and 495 eastbound will be closed to set up this shift. If adverse weather occurs, the closures and lanes shifts will take place Saturday night.

There will be no change to the Route 495 westbound configuration, as one lane on Route 495 westbound will remain closed. In addition, one lane from Route 3 eastbound to Route 495 will remain closed for the duration of the project. Both lanes from the New Jersey Turnpike to Route 495 eastbound will be maintained.

Additionally, the Columbia Avenue exit ramp to Paterson Plank Road will be periodically closed as necessary during this stage and the following detour will be in place.
Columbia Avenue Exit to Paterson Plank Road

Continue on the 30th Street ramp to Kennedy Boulevard

Turn left on Kennedy Boulevard and stay left to merge onto Bergen Turnpike

Turn left on Union Turnpike

Turn left on Liberty Avenue

Stay straight to continue on Paterson Plank Road

Consider alternate routes or public transportation
During construction, there is expected to be heavy congestion and delays, particularly in the eastbound direction coming from Route 3. Motorists are encouraged to continue using alternate routes and other means of mass transit.

The $90.3 million state-funded project began in September 2017 with local street improvements. The work in the first phase, which was necessary before the lane closures could be implemented, has been taking place under the bridge and along the Paterson Plank Road – Union Turnpike corridor.

The project to rehabilitate the nine-span viaduct includes repairs and reconstruction of the bridge deck, replacement and strengthening of deteriorated structural steel, and the repair and painting of the substructure. Construction will be accomplished in stages by first making improvements to local streets in the surrounding areas that will need to handle some of the diverted traffic during bridge construction.

The exclusive bus lane (XBL) will remain operational during construction. This construction is expected to last for about two and a half years while the entire bridge deck, parapets, light fixtures, guiderail, and drainage are replaced.

Community Outreach
NJDOT created a project-specific website – www.RestoreNJ495.com – which contains a wealth of information about the Route 495 Bridge rehabilitation, and will be updated with relevant new information as work progresses. The Department is carefully coordinating the Route 495 Bridge rehabilitation project with other regional transportation infrastructure projects to minimize traffic congestion.

The Department has a project hotline telephone number, 201.408.8495, and email, DOTOutreachRT495@dot.nj.gov. Anyone who has questions, concerns, or suggestions is encouraged to contact the Project Outreach Team as work progresses.

NJDOT will be using Variable Message Signs to provide advance notification to motorists of traffic pattern changes associated with the work. The precise timing of the work is subject to change due to weather or other factors.

Follow the project on Twitter @RestoreNJ495 and get real-time information on traffic conditions at www.511nj.org, where a widget will enable you to cut through all the other traffic information and focus in on the Route 495 area. For NJDOT news follow us on Twitter @NJDOT_info and our Facebook page.