Route 12 is a state highway located in

Hunterdon County Hunterdon County is a county located in the western section of the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the county's population was 128,947, making it the state's 18th-most populous county,New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. It runs from the Uhlerstown–Frenchtown Bridge at the

Delaware River The Delaware River is a major river in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. From the meeting of its branches in Hancock (village), New York, Hancock, New York, the river flows for along the borders of N ...

border with

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

in Frenchtown east to an intersection with

U.S. Route 202 U.S. Route 202 (US 202) is a spur route of US 2. It follows a northeasterly and southwesterly direction stretching from Delaware to Maine, also traveling through the states of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Massa ...

(US 202) and Route 31 at the

Flemington Circle Flemington is a borough in and the county seat of Hunterdon County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.Flemington. The route is mostly a two-lane undivided road that passes through rural areas of woodland and farmland. It intersects Route 29 and County Route 513 (CR 513) in Frenchtown, CR 519 in Kingwood Township, CR 579 on the border of Delaware Township and Raritan Township, and CR 523 in Raritan Township. The route was designated in 1927 to run from Frenchtown to Raritan, Somerset County, running along its current alignment to Flemington and following present-day US 202 between Flemington and Raritan. By the 1940s, US 202 and Route 29 replaced Route 12 east of Flemington, and the route was officially designated to end in Flemington in 1953. There are currently plans to modify or eliminate three

traffic circle A roundabout is a type of circular intersection (road), intersection or junction in which road traffic is permitted to flow in one direction around a central island, and priority is typically given to traffic already in the junction.''The N ...

s along the route in Flemington to ease traffic congestion.

Route description

Route 12 begins at the Uhlerstown–Frenchtown Bridge over the Delaware River in Frenchtown at the Pennsylvania / New Jersey border, where it connects to

Pennsylvania Route 32 Pennsylvania Route 32 (PA 32) is a scenic two-lane highway that runs along the west side of the Delaware River in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. It runs from U.S. Route 1 (US 1) in Falls Township outside of Morrisville northwest to PA 611 in the v ...

. The bridge and short portion of its eastern approach is maintained by the

Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission The Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission (DRJTBC) is a bistate, public agency that maintains and operates river crossings connecting the U.S. states of Pennsylvania and New Jersey. The agency's jurisdiction stretches roughly along the Dela ...

. The route continues through the downtown area of Frenchtown as county-maintained (designated and signed by Hunterdon County as County Route 610) two-lane undivided Bridge Street. Here, it intersects Trenton Avenue which is also the northern terminus of Route 29 before turning north onto Race Street and intersecting the southern terminus of CR 513. Route 12 heads east on Kingwood Avenue and passes through residential areas. The route crosses into Kingwood Township, where it becomes maintained by the

New Jersey Department of Transportation The New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT) is the agency responsible for transportation issues and policy in New Jersey, including maintaining and operating the state's highway and public road system, planning and developing transportat ...

with two eastbound lanes and one westbound lane. As Route 12 climbs into the

Hunterdon Plateau Hunterdon Plateau is a plateau in western Hunterdon County, New Jersey. It borders the higher Musconetcong Mountain to the northwest, the Delaware River to the west, Amwell Valley to the south and the lower lying areas of the Newark Basin to the ...

, it heads through a mix of woods and farms with intermittent residences, narrowing to one lane in each direction at the top of the plateau before crossing CR 519 in Baptistown. Route 12 continues southeast through rural areas, crossing the

Lockatong Creek Lockatong Creek is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed April 1, 2011 tributary of the Delaware River in Hunterdon County, New Jersey in the United States. Lockatong is deriv ...

before intersecting CR 615, where it becomes the Samuel Hill Highway. A short distance past this intersection, the route briefly passes through the southern corner of Franklin Township before entering Delaware Township. Here, the road crosses

Wickecheoke Creek Wickecheoke Creek is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed April 1, 2011 tributary of the Delaware River in Hunterdon County, New Jersey in the United States. It originates i ...

before coming to an intersection with CR 579. Past this intersection, Route 12 enters Raritan Township, where it continues through rural areas with some residences. The residential development along the road increases before it reaches the Dvoor's Circle (a

) with CR 523. Past the traffic circle, the route crosses a small stream and enters Flemington. Here, Route 12 passes businesses and heads south of a

park and ride A park and ride, also known as incentive parking or a commuter lot, is a parking lot with public transport connections that allows commuting, commuters and other people heading to city centres to leave their vehicles and transfer to a bus, Rail t ...

lot serving

Trans-Bridge Lines Trans-Bridge Lines is an interstate bus transportation company operating based in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. It operates in New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania and offers daily service from the Lehigh Valley to both New York City and Philadelphia ...

buses before crossing the Black River & Western Railroad and coming to the Main Street Circle, a modern-designed

roundabout A roundabout is a type of circular intersection or junction in which road traffic is permitted to flow in one direction around a central island, and priority is typically given to traffic already in the junction.''The New Shorter Oxford En ...

, where it intersects CR 611 and Reaville Avenue. From here, the route continues east a short distance as a four-lane

divided highway A dual carriageway ( BE) or divided highway ( AE) is a class of highway with carriageways for traffic travelling in opposite directions separated by a central reservation (BrE) or median (AmE). Roads with two or more carriageways which are ...

before ending at US 202 and Route 31 at the Flemington Circle.

History

Route 12 was legislated as a new route in the

1927 New Jersey state highway renumbering In 1927, New Jersey's state highways were renumbered. The old system, which had been defined in sequence by the legislature since 1916, was growing badly, as several routes shared the same number, and many unnumbered state highways had been d ...

that was to run from Frenchtown east to

Route 28 Highway 28 may refer to: Australia * Cumberland Highway * Mountain Highway (Victoria) * - NT Canada * Alberta Highway 28 * British Columbia Highway 28 * Nova Scotia Trunk 28 * Ontario Highway 28 * Saskatchewan Highway 28 China Taiwan * Provi ...

in Raritan borough, running along its current alignment to Flemington and following present-day US 202 to Raritan.State of New Jersey, Laws of 1927, Chapter 319. By the 1940s, US 202 and Route 29 were designated along the alignment of Route 12 between Flemington and Raritan, cutting the route's eastern terminus back to Flemington. In the

1953 New Jersey state highway renumbering On January 1, 1953, the New Jersey Highway Department renumbered many of the State Routes. This renumbering was first proposed in 1951 in order to reduce confusion to motorists. A few rules were followed in deciding what to renumber: *No state ro ...

, Route 12 was officially legislated to run from Frenchtown to US 202 and Route 69 (now Route 31) in Flemington. There are currently plans to modify or eliminate the three traffic circles along Route 12 in Flemington in order to ease traffic congestion along the route. The Main Street Circle was converted to a modern roundabout in 2010 while plans are still being thought out for the other two traffic circles. By Joint Resolution No. 1, approved April 22, 1940, the

New Jersey Legislature The New Jersey Legislature is the legislative branch of the government of the U.S. state of New Jersey. In its current form, as defined by the New Jersey Constitution of 1947, the Legislature consists of two houses: the General Assembly and the ...

designated Route 12 from the junction with present-day Route 31 to Croton as the Samuel Hill Highway, in memory of local industrial pioneer Samuel Hill.State of New Jersey; ''Laws of 1940, Joint Resolution No. 1''

Major intersections

References

External links

New Jersey Roads: Route 12Speed Limits for Route 12
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Transportation in Hunterdon County, New Jersey

Route description

History

Major intersections

See also

References

External links