Route 18 reconstruction in
New Brunswick moves forward

The rebuilt New Street interchange opened to traffic on October 27, a major milestone in the $200 million Route 18 reconstruction project in New Brunswick.

The Commercial Avenue interchange closed for reconstruction at that time.

The New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT) fully reconstructed the New Street interchange in order to accommodate the widening of Route 18. The New Street overpass bridge was demolished and replaced with a new structure that connects traffic from Route 18 northbound with the City of New Brunswick.

The interchange also features new access ramps to and from Route 18 southbound and New Street. NJDOT also has repaved Route 18 through the interchange and installed new striping, signage, and lighting to ensure safety and improve traffic flow. Motorists should continue to use Commercial Avenue to travel from Route 18 southbound to local streets.

At the Commercial Avenue interchange crews will remove the traffic signal and eliminate the double left turn from Route 18 northbound onto Commercial Avenue. Barrier curb will be placed at this location to prevent left turns onto Commercial Avenue.

In addition, the third lane on Route 18 northbound will end at George Street, rather than its current terminus at Albany Street. NJDOT will install deceleration lanes for the exits at New Street and Albany Street.

This project will fully reconstruct Route 18 from Route 1 to the NJ TRANSIT/Amtrak Northeast Corridor rail bridge and add auxiliary lanes in both directions to reduce the extreme congestion caused by vehicles traveling in and out of downtown New Brunswick.

An average of 80,000 cars per day travel on Route 18 in New Brunswick, including those heading into downtown and destinations such as Rutgers University, Johnson & Johnson's corporate headquarters, Saint Peter's University Hospital and Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital.

NJDOT contractor Conti Enterprises of South Plainfield began the reconstruction of Route 18 in August 2005 and is expected to complete the project in summer 2009.