The New Jersey Turnpike (NJTP) is a system of

controlled-access highway A controlled-access highway is a type of highway that has been designed for high-speed vehicular traffic, with all traffic flow—ingress and egress—regulated. Common English terms are freeway, motorway and expressway. Other similar terms i ...

s in the U.S. state of

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 ...

. The turnpike is maintained by the

New Jersey Turnpike Authority The New Jersey Turnpike Authority (NJTA) is a state agency responsible for maintaining the New Jersey Turnpike and the Garden State Parkway, which are two toll roads in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The agency is headquartered in Woodbridge Towns ...

(NJTA).The

Garden State Parkway The Garden State Parkway (GSP) is a controlled-access toll road that stretches the north–south length of eastern New Jersey from the state's southernmost tip near Cape May to the New York state line at Montvale. Its name refers to New Jersey ...

, although maintained by NJTA, is not considered part of the turnpike. The mainline's southern terminus is at a complex interchange with Interstate 295 (I-295), U.S. Route 40 (US 40), U.S. Route 130 (US 130), and Route 49 near the border of Pennsville and Carneys Point townships in

Salem County Salem County is the westernmost county in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Its western boundary is formed by the Delaware River and its eastern terminus is the Delaware Memorial Bridge, which connects the county with New Castle, Delaware. Its cou ...

, east of the

Delaware Memorial Bridge The Delaware Memorial Bridge is a dual-span suspension bridge crossing the Delaware River. The toll bridges carry Interstate 295 and U.S. Route 40 and is also the link between Delaware and New Jersey. The bridge was designed by the firm kn ...

. Its original northern terminus was at an interchange with

I-80 Interstate 80 (I-80) is an east–west transcontinental freeway that crosses the United States from downtown San Francisco, California, to Teaneck, New Jersey, in the New York metropolitan area. The highway was designated in 1956 as one o ...

and US 46 in Ridgefield Park,

Bergen County Bergen County is the most populous county in the U.S. state of New Jersey.George Washington Bridge The George Washington Bridge is a double-decked suspension bridge spanning the Hudson River, connecting Fort Lee, New Jersey, with Manhattan in New York City. The bridge is named after George Washington, the first president of the United St ...

and

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. Construction of the mainline from concept to completion took 23 months, from 1950 to 1952. It was opened to traffic on November 5, 1951, between its southern terminus and exit 10. The turnpike is a major thoroughfare providing access to various localities in New Jersey. The

toll road A toll road, also known as a turnpike or tollway, is a public or private road (almost always a controlled-access highway in the present day) for which a fee (or ''toll'') is assessed for passage. It is a form of road pricing typically implemented ...

provides a direct bypass southeast of

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

for long distance travelers between New York City and

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

According to the International Bridge, Tunnel and Turnpike Association, the turnpike is the nation's sixth-busiest toll road and one of the most heavily-traveled highways in the nation. The northern part of the mainline turnpike, along with the entirety of its extensions and spurs, is part of the

Interstate Highway System The Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways, commonly known as the Interstate Highway System, is a network of controlled-access highways that forms part of the National Highway System in the United States. Th ...

, designated as

I-95 Interstate 95 (I-95) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the East Coast of the United States, running from US Route 1 (US 1) in Miami, Florida, to the Houlton–Woodstock Border Crossing between Maine and the Canadia ...

between exit 6 in Mansfield Township and its northern end. South of exit 6, it has the

unsigned Unsigned can refer to: * An unsigned artist is a musical artist or group not attached or signed to a record label ** Unsigned Music Awards, ceremony noting achievements of unsigned artists ** Unsigned band web, online community * Similarly, the c ...

Route 700 designation. There are three extensions and two spurs, including the Newark Bay Extension at exit 14, which carries

I-78 Interstate 78 (I-78) is an east–west Interstate Highway in the Northeastern United States, running from I-81 northeast of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, through Allentown to western and northern New Jersey and terminating at the Holland T ...

; the Pennsylvania Turnpike Extension, officially known as the Pearl Harbor Memorial Turnpike Extension, at exit 6 which carries I-95 off the mainline turnpike; the Eastern Spur and the Western Spur which split traffic between

Newark Newark most commonly refers to: * Newark, New Jersey, city in the United States * Newark Liberty International Airport, New Jersey; a major air hub in the New York metropolitan area Newark may also refer to: Places Canada * Niagara-on-the ...

and Ridgefield; and the I-95 Extension which continues the mainline to the

George Washington Bridge The George Washington Bridge is a double-decked suspension bridge spanning the Hudson River, connecting Fort Lee, New Jersey, with Manhattan in New York City. The bridge is named after George Washington, the first president of the United St ...

in Fort Lee. All segments except for the I-95 Extension are tolled. The route is divided into four roadways between exit 6 and exit 14. The inner lanes are normally restricted to carrying only cars, with the outer lanes for cars, trucks, and buses. The turnpike has lanes, shoulders and 13 rest areas named after notable New Jersey residents. The Interstate Highway System took some of its design guidelines from those for the turnpike. The turnpike has been referenced in music, film, and television.

Route description

The mainline of the New Jersey Turnpike splits from

I-295 Interstate 295 is the designation for several Interstate Highways in the United States: *Interstate 295 (Delaware–Pennsylvania), a bypass of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania *Interstate 295 (Florida), a beltway around central Jacksonville *Interstate 29 ...

in Carneys Point Township and runs along a north-northeast route to Fort Lee just before the

, where the road continues as

in New York City; the original northern end was at

Teaneck Teaneck () is a township in Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is a bedroom community in the New York metropolitan area. As of the 2010 U.S. census, the township's population was 39,776, reflecting an increase of 516 (+1.3%) fr ...

. It is designated Route 700, an unsigned route, from exit 1 (Delaware Memorial Bridge) to exit 6, and as I-95 from exit 6 (Mansfield Township) to exit 18 (

Secaucus Secaucus ( ) is a town in Hudson County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States census, the town's population was 16,264,Carlstadt). The number of lanes ranges from four lanes south of exit 4 ( Mount Laurel Township), six lanes between exit 4 and exit 6 (Mansfield Township), 12 lanes between exit 6 and exit 11 ( Woodbridge Township), and 14 lanes between exit 11 and exit 14 (

). The default speed limit is between the southern terminus and milepost 97, and from there to the northern terminus. The Newark Bay Extension carries a limit. The turnpike has variable speed limit signs allowing for the limit to be lowered temporarily during unusual road conditions. Before the advent of the Interstate Highway System, the entire Turnpike was designated 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 ...

(NJDOT) as Route 700. The Pearl Harbor Memorial Turnpike Extension was Route 700P, and the Newark Bay Extension was Route 700N. None of these state highway designations have been signed. The entire length of the New Jersey Turnpike is part of the National Highway System, a network of roads important to the country's economy, defense, and mobility.

Pennsville to Springfield Township

The turnpike's southern terminus lies at the approach to the Delaware Memorial Bridge in Carneys Point and Pennsville townships, with a series of closely-spaced interchanges that provide access to Route 49, US 130, northbound I-295, eastbound US 40, Route 140 and County Route 540 (CR 540) along with several local roads. Through this section, the turnpike has three northbound lanes and two southbound lanes. The Route 49 and US 130 exits are labeled 1A and 1B respectively, while the other exits are unnumbered. The turnpike loses its third northbound lane, and continues on with two lanes in each direction and a speed limit. After crossing over Game Creek, the turnpike reaches the exit 1 toll plaza, where northbound drivers must obtain a ticket, and southbound drivers must surrender their ticket and pay the proper toll. Two Express

E-ZPass E-ZPass is an electronic toll collection system used on toll roads, toll bridges, and toll tunnels in the Eastern United States, Midwestern United States, and Southern United States. The E-ZPass Interagency Group (IAG) consists of member agencie ...

lanes are provided in each direction. Paralleling I-295, the turnpike continues north/northeast through rural

with two lanes in each direction. After passing under Route 48, the turnpike enters Oldmans Township, where it has the John Fenwick Service Area northbound and the Clara Barton Service Area southbound. The turnpike then briefly enters Pilesgrove Township before crossing the Oldmans Creek into Woolwich Township. Continuing northeast, the turnpike crosses the Southern Railroad of New Jersey's

Salem Branch The Salem Branch is a rail freight line in the southwestern part of New Jersey in the United States between the Port of Salem and Woodbury Junction where it and the Penns Grove Secondary converge with the Vineland Secondary, approximately sout ...

before passing to the south of Swedesboro. After crossing the Raccoon Creek, the highway reaches an interchange for US 322. A maintenance yard is present on the northbound side of the turnpike immediately north of the interchange into Harrison Township. The route heads northeast into East Greenwich Township past farmland before crossing Edwards Creek. Here, the turnpike passes by residential developments and soon crosses the Mantua Creek into West Deptford Township, where it passes through parkland before development near the route increases substantially. After passing under Route 45, the turnpike enters Woodbury Heights, where it passes by homes before crossing

Conrail Shared Assets Operations Conrail Shared Assets Operations (CSAO) is the commonly used name for modern-day Conrail (reporting mark CRCX), an American railroad company. It operates three networks, the North Jersey, South Jersey/Philadelphia, and Detroit Shared Assets Area ...

' (CSAO)

Vineland Secondary The Vineland Secondary is a rail line owned, operated and maintained by Conrail Shared Assets Operations for the use of CSX Transportation and Norfolk Southern Railway. It begins at Pavonia Yard in Camden and heads south, with a spur serving the P ...

and entering Deptford Township. Here, the turnpike passes under Route 47 before crossing the Big Timber Creek. Immediately northeast of this point, the turnpike passes under the Route 42 freeway and enters the Camden County borough of Bellmawr. After passing to the south of an industrial park, the turnpike enters Runnemede and comes to an exit for Route 168 (

Black Horse Pike The Black Horse Pike is a designation used for a number of different roadways that had been part of a historic route connecting the Camden area to the area of Atlantic City, New Jersey. Roadways now bearing the Black Horse Pike designation include ...

), serving the city of Camden to the north and providing access to the

Atlantic City Expressway The Atlantic City Expressway, officially numbered, but unsigned, as Route 446 and abbreviated A.C. Expressway, ACE, or ACX, and known locally as the Expressway, is a long toll road in the U.S. state of New Jersey, managed and operated by t ...

to the south. Immediately after the interchange, the turnpike crosses back into Bellmawr before entering Barrington, where it passes under Route 41. The turnpike then passes near packaging plants before entering Lawnside and crossing US 30. Still two lanes in each direction, the turnpike continues northeast past a warehouse and eventually comes within yards of I-295. Upon entering Cherry Hill, the turnpike passes over tracks carrying the

PATCO Speedline The PATCO Speedline (signed in Philadelphia as the Lindenwold Line and also known colloquially as the PATCO High Speed Line) is a rapid transit route operated by the Port Authority Transit Corporation (PATCO), which runs between Philadelphia, Pe ...

and

NJ Transit New Jersey Transit Corporation, branded as NJ Transit, and often shortened to NJT, is a state-owned public transportation system that serves the U.S. state of New Jersey, along with portions of New York State and Pennsylvania. It operates bu ...

Atlantic City Line The Atlantic City Line (ACL) is a commuter rail line operated by NJ Transit (NJT) in the United States between Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and Atlantic City, New Jersey, operating along the corridor of the White Horse Pike. It runs over trackage ...

before reaching the Walt Whitman Service Area along the southbound lanes. Continuing northeast, the turnpike passes under Route 70 before crossing the Pennsauken Creek into

Mount Laurel Mount Laurel is a township in Burlington County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is a suburb of Philadelphia and part of the South Jersey region. As of the 2010 U.S. census, the township's population was 41,864, reflecting an increase of 1 ...

, Burlington County, where it has an exit for Route 73. North of this point, the turnpike has three lanes in each direction. Still running within close proximity of I-295, the turnpike comes to a

New Jersey State Police The New Jersey State Police (NJSP) is the official state police force of the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is a general-powers police agency with statewide jurisdiction, designated by troop sectors. History As with other state police organization ...

station and passes under Route 38 before crossing CSAO's Pemberton Industrial Track. After the northbound James Fenimore Cooper Service Area, the road crosses over

Rancocas Creek Rancocas Creek is a tributary of the Delaware River in southwestern New Jersey in the United States. The creek's main stem is long, with a North Branch of and a South Branch flowing .U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-re ...

and passes to the northwest of Rancocas State Park. Now in Westampton Township, the distance between I-295 and the turnpike increases, and the turnpike reaches an exit for CR 541 (Burlington-Mount Holly Road). Northeast of this point, the turnpike continues as a six-lane highway into Burlington Township, where it passes by houses and the Burlington Country Club before entering Springfield Township. Here, the turnpike passes by agricultural areas before crossing Assiscunk Creek.

Mansfield Township to Newark

Now in Mansfield Township, the turnpike splits into a "dual-dual" configuration similar to a local-express configuration. The outer lanes are open to all vehicles and the inner lanes are limited to cars only, unless signed otherwise because of unusual conditions. The turnpike has now has a total of 12 lanes, six in each direction (3-3-3-3). Just north of the split is an interchange with the Pearl Harbor Memorial Turnpike Extension, where the turnpike mainline becomes

concurrent Concurrent means happening at the same time. Concurrency, concurrent, or concurrence may refer to: Law * Concurrence, in jurisprudence, the need to prove both ''actus reus'' and ''mens rea'' * Concurring opinion (also called a "concurrence"), a ...

with I-95. North of this point, the turnpike enters Bordentown Township and has an exit for US 206. Continuing northeast, the turnpike passes by a mix of residential neighborhoods and farmland and enters Chesterfield Township before passing over Crosswicks Creek and entering Hamilton Township in Mercer County. The highway then reaches the Woodrow Wilson and Richard Stockton service areas on the southbound and northbound sides, respectively. After the service areas, the turnpike enters Robbinsville Township and reaches an exit for

I-195 Interstate 195 (I-195) is the designation for the following Interstate Highways in the United States, all of which are related to I-95: *Interstate 195 (District of Columbia), a future designation for the north–south portion of I-395 from the Sout ...

, an east–west freeway connecting the state capital of Trenton with the Jersey Shore. North of I-195, the turnpike passes to the west of several warehouses and traverses numerous parks and wooded areas. After crossing Assunpink Creek, the turnpike enters East Windsor Township, where the road changes its course to a slightly more northerly path. Near

Hightstown Hightstown is a borough in Mercer County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough's population was 5,494,Route 133, which connects the turnpike with and provides a bypass for Route 33 in the area. North of here, the turnpike crosses the Millstone River into Cranbury Township, Middlesex County and passes more warehouses on both sides of the road in addition to the southbound Molly Pitcher Service Area. After entering Monroe Township, the turnpike has a modified

trumpet interchange In the field of road transport, an interchange (American English) or a grade-separated junction (British English) is a road junction that uses grade separations to allow for the movement of traffic between two or more roadways or highways, using ...

with Route 32 serving Jamesburg. The interchange has a ramp for traffic seeking Route 32 eastbound forming an "S" shape, taking traffic to Cranbury South River Road. Upon crossing into South Brunswick, the turnpike crosses CSAO's

Amboy Secondary The United New Jersey Railroad and Canal Company (UNJ&CC) was a railroad company which began as the important Camden & Amboy Railroad (C&A), whose 1830 lineage began as one of the eight or ten earliest permanent North AmericanList of Earliest Am ...

and passes by more industrial parks. The highway then enters East Brunswick, where suburban development along the corridor greatly increases, indicating the entrance to the built-up portion of the New York metropolitan area. Continuing north, the turnpike passes to the east of a golf course and has the northbound Joyce Kilmer Service Area. The route briefly enters Milltown before crossing back into East Brunswick, where it passes by many homes before reaching an exit for Route 18 serving the county seat of New Brunswick. After Route 18, the turnpike enters New Brunswick and crosses over the Raritan River on the

Basilone Memorial Bridge The Basilone Memorial Bridge is a bridge on the New Jersey Turnpike (I-95) in the U.S. state of New Jersey spanning the Raritan River. The bridge connects Edison on the north with New Brunswick on the south. The bridge, which opened along with ...

into Edison. The structure honors John Basilone, a Raritan resident who is the only United States Marine to be honored with the Medal of Honor, the Navy Cross and the Purple Heart. He died in the

Battle of Iwo Jima The Battle of Iwo Jima (19 February – 26 March 1945) was a major battle in which the United States Marine Corps (USMC) and United States Navy (USN) landed on and eventually captured the island of Iwo Jima from the Imperial Japanese Army (IJ ...

in 1945.

2014-05-07 16 27 05 View of the New Jersey Turnpike mainline from an airplane heading for Newark Airport-cropped

After crossing the Rartian River, the turnpike passes by several warehouses and parks before crossing CSAO's Bonhamtown Industrial Track line and reaching an exit serving

I-287 Interstate 287 (I-287) is an auxiliary Interstate Highway in the US states of New Jersey and New York. It is a partial beltway around New York City, serving the northern half of New Jersey and the counties of Rockland and Westchester in N ...

and Route 440. Soon afterwards, the turnpike passes over the Middlesex Greenway and enters Woodbridge Township, where it reaches an exit serving the

and US 9. North of this interchange is the headquarters of the New Jersey Turnpike Authority. From Woodbridge Township to Newark,

high-occupancy vehicle lane A high-occupancy vehicle lane (also known as an HOV lane, carpool lane, diamond lane, 2+ lane, and transit lane or T2 or T3 lanes) is a restricted traffic lane reserved for the exclusive use of vehicles with a driver and one or more passengers, i ...

s (HOV lanes) exist on the outer roadway (truck lanes), thereby making it seven lanes in each direction (4-3-3-4). The HOV restrictions are in effect on weekdays, from 6:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. northbound, and 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. southbound (at times, the NJTA might suspend the HOV restrictions entirely during peak hours in case of unusual conditions). Continuing northeast, the turnpike passes under Route 35 and crosses NJ Transit's

North Jersey Coast Line The North Jersey Coast Line is a commuter rail Commuter rail, or suburban rail, is a passenger rail transport service that primarily operates within a metropolitan area, connecting commuters to a central city from adjacent suburbs or com ...

. Past this point, the turnpike crosses the Woodbridge River and reaches the Grover Cleveland Service Area northbound and the Thomas Edison Service Area southbound. After passing over CSAO's

Port Reading Secondary The Port Reading Secondary, also known as the Port Reading Branch, is a railway line in New Jersey. It runs from a junction with the Lehigh Line in Bound Brook, New Jersey, to Port Reading, New Jersey, on the Arthur Kill. Originally built by t ...

line, the turnpike enters Carteret and begins to run parallel to CSAO's

Chemical Coast Secondary The Chemical Coast is a section of Union and Middlesex counties in New Jersey located along the shores of the Arthur Kill, across from Staten Island, New York. The name is taken from the Conrail Shared Assets Operations, Conrail Chemical Coast Li ...

line, which is located east of the turnpike. In Carteret, the highway comes to an interchange serving the borough in addition to

Rahway Rahway () is a city in southern Union County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. A bedroom community of New York City, it is centrally located in the Rahway Valley region, in the New York metropolitan area. The city is southwest of Manhattan ...

. Immediately north of the interchange, the Wallberg-Lovely Memorial Bridge carries the turnpike over the Rahway River. The bridge is dedicated to Private Martin Wallberg from Westfield, and Private Luke Lovely from ,South Amboy, the first soldiers from New Jersey to die in World War I. In Linden, the turnpike passes to the east of a large industrial park before reaching an exit for

I-278 Interstate 278 (I-278) is an auxiliary Interstate Highway in New Jersey and New York in the United States. The road runs from US Route 1/9 (US 1/9) in Linden, New Jersey, northeast to the Bruckner Interchange in the New Yor ...

, which traverses the nearby

Goethals Bridge The Goethals Bridge () is the name of a pair of cable-stayed bridge spans connecting Elizabeth, New Jersey, to Staten Island, New York, in the United States. The spans cross a strait known as Arthur Kill, and replaced a cantilever bridge span bu ...

. North of this point, the speed limit drops to , and the turnpike crosses the Elizabeth River into the city of

Elizabeth Elizabeth or Elisabeth may refer to: People * Elizabeth (given name), a female given name (including people with that name) * Elizabeth (biblical figure), mother of John the Baptist Ships * HMS ''Elizabeth'', several ships * ''Elisabeth'' (sch ...

. After bisecting residential areas, the route comes to an exit for Route 81, providing access to

Newark Liberty International Airport Newark Liberty International Airport , originally Newark Metropolitan Airport and later Newark International Airport, is an international airport straddling the boundary between the cities of Newark in Essex County and Elizabeth in Union Count ...

. While passing to the east of the airport, the turnpike passes to the west of the

Elizabeth Center The Elizabeth Center is a power center located off Exit 13A on the New Jersey Turnpike in Elizabeth, New Jersey. The location near the exit is incorporated into the center's logo, as El13Abeth Center. The first tenant, IKEA, opened in 1990. It ...

big-box center and the

Port Newark–Elizabeth Marine Terminal Port Newark–Elizabeth Marine Terminal, a major component of the Port of New York and New Jersey, is the principal container ship facility for goods entering and leaving New York metropolitan area and the northeastern quadrant of North Amer ...

upon entering

. A section of the turnpike and the surrounding land in Elizabeth and Newark has been called "the most dangerous two miles in America" by New Jersey Homeland Security officials due to the high volume of traffic and the density of potential terrorist targets in the surrounding area.

Newark to Ridgefield Park

After reaching the north end of the airport, the HOV lanes end, and the turnpike reaches a junction with

, which is also the Newark Bay Extension of the turnpike east of the mainline. North of I-78, the turnpike passes over CSAO's Chemical Coast Secondary, Greenville Running Track, and National Docks Branch at the

Oak Island Yard Oak Island Yard is a freight rail yard located north of Port Newark-Elizabeth Marine Terminal and Newark International Airport in an industrial area of Ironbound, Newark, New Jersey at 91 Bay Ave., United States. The sprawling complex includes e ...

. At this point, the car-truck lane configuration ends, and the turnpike splits into two spurs: the Eastern Spur (the original roadway) and the Western Spur (opened in 1970). Both are signed as I-95. The Western Spur is posted for through traffic on I-95 seeking

I-280 Interstate 280 may refer to multiple highways, all of which are or were related to Interstate 80: * Interstate 280 (California), a north–south freeway running from San Jose to San Francisco * Interstate 280 (Iowa–Illinois), part of the beltway ...

and the

, while traffic seeking US 46,

, and the

Lincoln Tunnel The Lincoln Tunnel is an approximately tunnel under the Hudson River, connecting Weehawken, New Jersey, to the west with Midtown Manhattan in New York City to the east. It carries New Jersey Route 495 on the New Jersey side and unsigned New Y ...

is routed via the Eastern Spur. NJDOT, which calls every class of highway "Route", calls the Western Spur "Route 95W". The NJTA refers to the complex series of roadways and ramps linking the car–truck lanes, the two spurs, as well as traffic heading to and from I-78 as the "Southern Mixing Bowl". Both spurs have an exit for US 1/9 Truck and pass under the

Pulaski Skyway The Pulaski Skyway is a four-lane bridge-causeway in the Gateway Region, northeastern part of the U.S. state of New Jersey, carrying an freeway, expressway designated U.S. Route 1/9 (US 1/9) for most of its length. The structure has a ...

( US 1/9) at this point, and will meet up at US 46 and I-80 to continue to the George Washington Bridge where the Turnpike will eventually end.

Eastern Spur

The Eastern Spur crosses the Passaic River on the Chaplain Washington Bridge, which honors Rev. John P. Washington who gave up his life jacket and died as the ''SS Dorchester'' sank on February 3, 1943. After crossing over Amtrak's

Northeast Corridor The Northeast Corridor (NEC) is an electrified railroad line in the Northeast megalopolis of the United States. Owned primarily by Amtrak, it runs from Boston through Providence, New Haven, Stamford, New York City, Philadelphia, Wilmington, a ...

, the spur surfaces into Kearny, Hudson County as a six-lane highway, and has a partial junction with

, containing only a southbound exit and northbound entrance. Past this point, the spur passes over Route 7 and crosses the Hackensack River on the Lewandowski Hackensack River Bridge. The bridge was named in honor of the three Lewandowski brothers, Army Private Alexander, Marine Sergeant Walter and Air Force Lieutenant William, who were killed in action during World War II within 18 months of each other. The turnpike then enters

Secaucus Secaucus ( ) is a town in Hudson County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States census, the town's population was 16,264,Boonton Line before passing over NJ Transit's

Main Line Mainline, ''Main line'', or ''Main Line'' may refer to: Transportation Railway * Main line (railway), the principal artery of a railway system * Main line railway preservation, the practice of operating preserved trains on an operational railw ...

just north of the

Secaucus Junction Secaucus Junction (known as Secaucus Transfer during planning stages and signed simply as Secaucus) is a NJ Transit Rail Operations commuter rail hub in Secaucus, New Jersey. The $450 million, station opened on December 15, 2003, and was ded ...

station serving NJ Transit trains running along the Northeast Corridor and the Main Line. After the southbound lanes have the Alexander Hamilton Service Area, the turnpike reaches the exit 16E/18E toll plaza, serving as the northern end of the ticket system. Immediately afterwards is an interchange with Route 495 and Route 3, providing access to the

. After passing through swampland in the New Jersey Meadowlands, the spur crosses into Ridgefield,

Bergen County Bergen County is the most populous county in the U.S. state of New Jersey.River Subdivision line, the highway merges back together with the Western Spur as it passes east of PSE&G's

Bergen Generating Station Bergen Generating Station is a gas-fired power plant owned and operated by Public Service Electric and Gas Company (PSE&G).http://www.pjm.com/pub/planning/project-queues/facilities/a05_fac.pdf It located on the banks of Overpeck Creek near its co ...

and crosses Overpeck Creek into Ridgefield Park, where the turnpike comes to its original northern terminus at US 46.

Western Spur

The Harry Laderman Bridge, named after the first turnpike employee killed on the job, carries the Western Spur over the Passaic River. Running north with six lanes, the Western Spur has a full interchange with I-280 before crossing over Route 7 and the Boonton Line. The spur then enters Lyndhurst and crosses NJ Transit's Main Line and Berrys Creek before passing over NJ Transit's

Bergen County Line The Bergen County Line is a commuter rail line and service owned and operated by New Jersey Transit in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The line loops off the Main Line between the Meadowlands and Glen Rock, with trains continuing in either direc ...

and entering

East Rutherford East Rutherford is a borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the borough's population was 10,022, reflecting an increase of 1,109 (+12.4%) from the 8,913 counted in the 2010 census.

. Here, the Western Spur has a junction with Route 3, where it loses a lane in each direction. The highway reaches the exit 18W toll plaza before passing by the Meadowlands Sports Complex and the American Dream shopping and entertainment complex, which are served by a southbound exit and northbound entrance with connections to Route 120 and CR 503 via Route 3. After crossing the Hackensack River, the Western Spur has access to the Vince Lombardi Service Area before crossing the River Subdivision line and merging with the Eastern Spur.

Extensions

The turnpike has three extensions; the first, the Newark Bay Extension, at , opened in 1956, and is part of I-78. It connects Newark with

Lower Manhattan Lower Manhattan (also known as Downtown Manhattan or Downtown New York) is the southernmost part of Manhattan, the central borough for business, culture, and government in New York City, which is the most populated city in the United States with ...

via the

Holland Tunnel The Holland Tunnel is a vehicular tunnel under the Hudson River that connects the New York City neighborhood of Hudson Square in Lower Manhattan to the east with Jersey City in New Jersey to the west. The tunnel is operated by the Port Author ...

Jersey City Jersey City is the second-most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey, after Newark.Jersey barrier A Jersey barrier, Jersey wall, or Jersey bump is a modular concrete or plastic barrier employed to separate lanes of traffic. It is designed to minimize vehicle damage in cases of incidental contact while still preventing vehicle crossovers resu ...

divider), has a speed limit. The extension traverses the

Newark Bay Bridge The Newark Bay Bridge, officially the Vincent R. Casciano Memorial Bridge, is a steel through arch bridge that is continuous across three spans. It crosses Newark Bay and connects the cities of Newark (in Essex County) and Bayonne (in Hudson Cou ...

(officially the Vincent R. Casciano Memorial Bridge), which is a steel cantilever bridge spanning Newark Bay and connecting Newark and

Bayonne Bayonne (; eu, Baiona ; oc, label= Gascon, Baiona ; es, Bayona) is a city in Southwestern France near the Spanish border. It is a commune and one of two subprefectures in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department, in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine re ...

. Dubbed the "world's most expensive road" by ''

The Jersey Journal ''The Jersey Journal'' is a daily newspaper, published from Monday through Saturday, covering news and events throughout Hudson County, New Jersey. ''The Journal'' is a sister paper to ''The Star-Ledger'' of Newark, ''The Times'' of Trenton and ...

'', it was completed April 4, 1956, as part of the turnpike's Newark Bay Extension. Casciano was a state assemblyman and a lifetime resident of Bayonne. The second extension, known as the Pearl Harbor Memorial Turnpike Extension (or Pennsylvania Turnpike Connector), carries I-95 off the mainline of the New Jersey Turnpike at exit 6 and connects to the

Pennsylvania Turnpike The Pennsylvania Turnpike (Penna Turnpike or PA Turnpike) is a toll highway operated by the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission (PTC) in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. A controlled-access highway, it runs for across the state. The turnpike's we ...

via the

Delaware River–Turnpike Toll Bridge The Delaware River–Turnpike Toll Bridge is a four-lane, steel through arch bridge crossing the Delaware River between Burlington Township, Burlington County, New Jersey and Bristol Township, Bucks County, Pennsylvania. As a part of Interstat ...

, a continuous truss bridge spanning the Delaware River. This extension, and the Delaware River bridge, were opened to traffic on May 25, 1956. A , six-lane highway, it has an exit, designated as 6A, to US 130 near

Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico an ...

. The extension was formerly designated as Route 700P, but was officially designated as I-95 after the

Somerset Freeway Interstate 95 (I-95) is a major Interstate Highway System, Interstate Highway that traverses nearly the full extent of the East Coast of the United States, East Coast of the United States, from Florida to Maine. In the state of New Jersey, it r ...

was cancelled, and was signed as such when the first components of the

Pennsylvania Turnpike/Interstate 95 Interchange Project The Pennsylvania Turnpike/Interstate 95 Interchange Project is an ongoing road construction project to build an interchange where Interstate 95 (I-95) crosses the Pennsylvania Turnpike in Bristol Township, Bucks County, Pennsylvania, in the Uni ...

were completed on September 22, 2018. The third extension, the stretch of I-95 north of US 46 came under NJTA jurisdiction in 1992, as NJDOT sold the road to balance the state budget, and it is not tolled. This section of the road – known as the I-95 Extension – extends the mainline to travel past the interchange for

where the original terminus was, and through a cut in the Hudson Palisades to the GWB Plaza. Even though it was not constructed when the Turnpike first opened, the I-95 Extension is still considered to be a part of the mainline, not just a spur like the Newark Bay or Pennsylvania Turnpike extensions are, despite it being tolled. Past I-80 to Fort Lee, the Turnpike logo is only signed southbound in this segment, and rarely northbound since it terminates very soon in that direction. The turnpike terminates at

US 9W U.S. Route 9W (US 9W) is a north–south U.S. Highway in the states of New Jersey and New York. It begins in Fort Lee, New Jersey, as Fletcher Avenue crosses the US 1–9, US 46, and the Interstate 95 (I-95) approaches ...

(exit 72), with the final approaches to the

along I-95 maintained by the

Port Authority of New York and New Jersey The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, PANYNJ; stylized, in logo since 2020, as Port Authority NY NJ, is a joint venture between the U.S. states of New York and New Jersey, established in 1921 through an interstate compact authorized ...

. Signs saying “Turnpike Entrance” southbound past I-80 mean entering the tolled parts of the Turnpike. Exit numbers along this section follow the mile markers I-95 would have had had the Somerset Freeway been built.

Services

Service areas

Molly Pitcher Service Area; Main Restaurants

The New Jersey Turnpike is noted for naming its

service area Service area may refer to: * Rest area A rest area is a public facility located next to a large thoroughfare such as a motorway, expressway, or highway, at which drivers and passengers can rest, eat, or refuel without exiting onto secondary r ...

s after notable deceased people who had a connection to New Jersey. Turnpike service areas consist mostly of fast food restaurants operated by Iris Buyer LLC (

Applegreen Applegreen is an Irish company founded in 1992 that operates 620 petrol stations in Ireland, the UK and the US. It is a major petrol retailer in Ireland, and operates convenience stores and motorway service areas. Applegreen's headquarters are ...

). Each rest area also includes restrooms, water fountains, a

Sunoco Sunoco LP is an American master limited partnership organized under Delaware state laws and headquartered in Dallas, Texas, that is a wholesale distributor of motor fuels. It distributes fuel to more than 5,500 Sunoco-branded gas stations, ...

gas station with a small convenience store, with gas price signs posted about half a mile (0.8 km) before reaching the rest area, and a separate parking area for cars and trucks. Some have a dedicated bus parking area, Wi-Fi, and a gift shop as well. Before 1982, there was a service area on the northbound side named for Admiral William Halsey. However, in 1982, exit 13A was created, which caused the obscuring of the rest area, as they both overlapped with each other. Anyone who wanted to get to the service area missed exiting at exit 13A, and (northbound) drivers who took that exit missed that service area. The service area closed permanently on June 4, 1994. Today, it can be seen by motorists when exiting 13A from the northbound car lanes, where a temporary concrete barrier obstructs an open asphalt lot. Two service plazas were located on the Newark Bay Extension (one eastbound and one westbound) located west of exit 14B. These were closed in the early 1970s. The eastbound plaza was named for John Stevens, the westbound plaza for

Peter Stuyvesant Peter Stuyvesant (; in Dutch also ''Pieter'' and ''Petrus'' Stuyvesant, ; 1610 – August 1672)Mooney, James E. "Stuyvesant, Peter" in p.1256 was a Dutch colonial officer who served as the last Dutch director-general of the colony of New Net ...

. In late March 2010, it was revealed that the state Transportation Commissioner was considering selling the naming rights of the rest areas to help address a budget shortfall. The Grover Cleveland Service Area in

Woodbridge Woodbridge may refer to: Places Australia *Woodbridge, Western Australia formerly called ''West Midland'' *Woodbridge, Tasmania Canada *Woodbridge, Ontario England *Woodbridge, Suffolk, the location of ** Woodbridge (UK Parliament constituency ...

was temporarily closed because of storm damage from

Hurricane Sandy Hurricane Sandy (unofficially referred to as ''Superstorm Sandy'') was an extremely destructive and strong Atlantic hurricane, as well as the largest Atlantic hurricane on record as measured by diameter, with tropical-storm-force winds spann ...

in October 2012, with only fuel available. It was rebuilt and fully reopened on November 23, 2015. In 2015, the NJTA installed Tesla supercharging stations in the Molly Pitcher and Joyce Kilmer services areas to allow Tesla car owners to charge their vehicles. A proposal to offer charging stations for non-Tesla vehicles is also under consideration.

Emergency assistance

The New Jersey Turnpike Authority offers shoulders wherever possible, and disabled vehicle service may be obtained by dialing #95 on a cellular phone. Towing and roadside assistance are provided from authorized garages. The

is the primary police agency that handles calls for service on the turnpike. Other emergency services such as fire and first aid are usually handled by the jurisdictions in which that section of the turnpike passes.

History

New Jersey Turnpike Construction 1951 LOC

Precursors and planning

Route 100 and Route 300 were two state highways proposed in the 1930s by the

New Jersey State Highway Department 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 ...

as precursors to the New Jersey Turnpike. The road that is now the New Jersey Turnpike was first planned by the State Highway Department as two untolled freeways in 1938. Route 100 was the route from New Brunswick to the George Washington Bridge, plus a spur to the Holland Tunnel (now the Newark Bay Extension of the Turnpike). Route 300 was the southern part of the turnpike from the Delaware Memorial Bridge to New Brunswick. However, the State Highway Department did not have the funds to complete the two freeways, and very little of the road was built under its auspices. Instead, in 1948, the New Jersey Turnpike Authority was created to build the road, and the two freeways were built as a single toll road. Route S100 was a proposed spur of Route 100 in Elizabeth. It was never built, although Route 81 follows a similar alignment. According to a letter to the editor written by Kathleen Troast Pitney, the daughter of

Paul L. Troast Paul Lyman Troast (November 19, 1894 – July 21, 1972) was a wealthy American building contractor from Passaic, New Jersey, chairman of the New Jersey Turnpike Authority during its construction, and failed gubernatorial candidate in 1953. B ...

, the first chairman of the New Jersey Turnpike Authority, A brochure ''Interesting Facts about the New Jersey Turnpike'', dating from soon after the road's opening, says that when the turnpike's bonds are paid off, "the law provides that the turnpike be turned over to the state for inclusion in the public highway system". Due to new construction, and the expectation that the turnpike pays for policing and maintenance, this has never come to pass.

Construction

The project of building the turnpike had its challenges. One major problem was the construction in the city of Elizabeth, where either 450 homes or 32 businesses would be destroyed, depending on the chosen route. The engineers decided to go through the residential area, since they considered it the grittiest and the closest route to both Newark Airport and the

Port Newark-Elizabeth Marine Terminal A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Ham ...

seaport. When construction finally got to Newark, there was the new challenge of deciding to build either over or under the

. If construction went above the skyway, the costs would be much higher. If they went under, the costs would be lower, but the roadway would be very close to the Passaic River, making it harder for ships to pass through. The turnpike was ultimately built to pass under. As part of a 2005

seismic retrofit Seismic retrofitting is the modification of existing structures to make them more resistant to seismic activity, ground motion, or soil failure due to earthquakes. With better understanding of seismic demand on structures and with our recent exp ...

project, the NJTA lowered its roadway to increase vertical clearance and allow for full-width shoulders, which had been constrained by the location of the skyway supports. Engineers replaced the bearings and lowered the bridge by , without shutting down traffic. The work was carried out under a $35 million contract in 2004 by Koch Skanska of Carteret. The project's engineers were from a joint venture of Dewberry Goodking Inc. and HNTM Corp. Temporary towers supported the bridge while bearings were removed from the 150 piers and the concrete replaced on the pier tops. The lowering process for an section of the bridge was done over 56 increments, during five weeks of work. While continuing up to the

New Jersey Meadowlands New Jersey Meadowlands, also known as the Hackensack Meadowlands after the primary river flowing through it, is a general name for the large ecosystem of wetlands in northeastern New Jersey in the United States, a few miles to the west of N ...

, the crossings were harder because of the fertile marsh land of silt and mud. Near the shallow mud, the mud was filled with crushed stone, and the roadway was built above the water table. In the deeper mud, caissons were sunk down to a firm stratum and filled with sand, then both the caissons and the surrounding areas were covered with blankets of sand. Gradually, the water was brought up, and drained into adjacent meadows. Then, construction of the two major bridges over the Passaic and Hackensack Rivers was completed. The bridges were built to give motorists a clear view of the New York City skyline, but with high retaining walls to create the illusion of not being on a river crossing. The Passaic River (Chaplain Washington) Bridge cost $13.7 million to build; the Hackensack River Bridge cost $9.5 million. After the turnpike was built in 1952, the NJTA and the

New York State Thruway Authority The New York State Thruway Authority (NYSTA) is a public benefit corporation in New York State, United States. The NYSTA was formed in 1950 with the responsibility of constructing, maintaining, and operating the New York State Thruway, a syste ...

proposed a extension of the New Jersey Turnpike that would run from its end (at US 46 in Ridgefield Park at the time) up to

West Nyack, New York West Nyack is a hamlet and census-designated place in the town of Clarkstown, Rockland County, New York, United States. It is located north of Blauvelt, east of Nanuet, southwest of Valley Cottage, southeast of Bardonia, and west of Central Nyac ...

, at

I-87 Interstate 87 may refer to either of two unconnected Interstate Highways in the United States: * Interstate 87 (New York), a highway running from New York City north to the Canadian border in Champlain, New York. * Interstate 87 (North Carolina) ...

, on the

New York State Thruway {{Infobox road , state = NY , type = NYST , alternate_name = Governor Thomas E. Dewey Thruway , maint = NYSTA , map = {{maplink, frame=yes, plain=yes, frame-align=center, frame-width=290, type=line, stroke-width=2, type2=line, from2=New Yor ...

. The section through New Jersey was to be constructed and maintained by the New Jersey Turnpike Authority, while the section in New York was to be built and maintained by the New York State Thruway Authority. The purpose of this extension was to give motorists a "more direct bypass of the New York City area" to New England, by using the Tappan Zee Bridge. The extension was to parallel New York State Route 303 (NY 303) and the present-day CSX River Subdivision, and have limited interchanges. It was to have an interchange with the

Palisades Interstate Parkway The Palisades Interstate Parkway (PIP) is a limited-access highway in the U.S. states of New Jersey and New York (state), New York. The parkway is a major commuter route into New York City from Rockland County, New York, Rockland and Orange County ...

and at I-87 (New York State Thruway) in West Nyack. This project did not survive; by 1970, it became too expensive to buy right-of-way access, and community opposition was fierce. Therefore, the New Jersey Turnpike Authority and the New York State Thruway Authority cancelled the project. The New Jersey Department of Transportation did construct a small segment of this extension, the portion between US 46 and I-80, as part of the I-95 Extension. This segment was later transferred to the New Jersey Turnpike Authority.

1950s to 1990

New Jersey Turnpike Exit 11 Tollbooth at night, 1992

With the turnpike completed, traffic began to increase, which prompted the NJTA's first widening project. In 1955, the authority proposed to widen the turnpike from four lanes to six lanes (three in each direction) between exit 4 in Mount Laurel Township and exit 10 in Woodbridge Township, and from four lanes to an eight-lane, dual-dual setup (2-2-2-2, two express carriageways and two local carriageways in each direction) between exit 10 and exit 14 in Newark. In 1966, the Turnpike was widened between exit 10 and exit 14 under a new expansion plan. This abolished the express-local roadway plan and created the car and truck-buses lane configuration (3-3-3-3). This project also included closing the old exit 10 at Woodbridge and replacing it with a new exit 10 in Edison Township; exit 11 was also rebuilt to provide complete access to the Garden State Parkway. The dual-dual setup was widened south to exit 9 in East Brunswick Township in 1973, and again extended farther south in 1990 to exit 8A in Monroe Township. In 1971, the NJTA proposed building the Alfred E. Driscoll Expressway. It was to start at the Garden State Parkway south of exit 80 in Dover Township (now Toms River) and end at the turnpike approximately north of exit 8A in South Brunswick. As a proposed part of the turnpike system, its seven interchanges would have included toll plazas except at the northern end of the turnpike. By 1972, the proposed road met fierce opposition from

Ocean The ocean (also the sea or the world ocean) is the body of salt water that covers approximately 70.8% of the surface of Earth and contains 97% of Earth's water. An ocean can also refer to any of the large bodies of water into which the wo ...

Monmouth Monmouth ( , ; cy, Trefynwy meaning "town on the Monnow") is a town and community in Wales. It is situated where the River Monnow joins the River Wye, from the Wales–England border. Monmouth is northeast of Cardiff, and west of London. I ...

and

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, historic county in South East England, southeast England. Its area is almost entirely within the wider urbanised area of London and mostly within the Ceremonial counties of ...

counties with quality of life being the main concern. The NJTA proceeded anyway and began selling bonds. But by December 1973, Governor-elect

Brendan Byrne Brendan Thomas Byrne (April 1, 1924 – January 4, 2018) was an American politician, statesman, and prosecutor, serving as the 47th governor of New Jersey from 1974 to 1982. A member of the Democratic Party, Byrne started his career as a privat ...

decided to stop the project altogether. Despite this, the authority continued with its plan. It was not until February 1977 that the authority abandoned its plan to build the road. The rights-of-way were sold in 1979, shelving the project indefinitely. A series of roadway accidents occurred on the New Jersey Turnpike in the town of Kearny, on October 23 and 24, 1973. The first collision occurred at 11:20 p.m. EDT on the 23rd. Further accidents continued to occur until 2:45 a.m. the next day as cars plowed into the unseen accident ahead of them. Sixty-six vehicles were involved, and nine people died as a result. Thirty-nine suffered non-fatal injuries. The primary cause of the accident was related to a fire consisting of burning garbage, aggravated by foggy conditions. This produced an area of extremely poor visibility. Exit 13A in Elizabeth was constructed in the late 1990s as part of the construction of the

Jersey Gardens The Mills at Jersey Gardens, originally and also still colloquially called Jersey Gardens, is a two-level indoor outlet mall in Elizabeth, New Jersey. The mall opened on October 21, 1999, and is the largest outlet mall in New Jersey, and much clos ...

outlet mall. The exit, which opened in 1999, cost $140 million and was funded by the developers of Jersey Gardens.

2000s to present

On September 30, 2000, NJTA began using

for electronic toll collection. In January 2004, the authority opened the refurbished 18W toll gate in Carlstadt; the refurbishment included two E-ZPass express lanes in both directions. In July 2004, the New Jersey Turnpike Authority opened the new exit 1 toll gate in Carneys Point Township, with 23 lanes, including two E-ZPass express lanes in either direction. In 2005, the authority opened exit 15X to allow access to the newly built

train station. The authority lowered the Eastern Spur (between mileposts 107.3 and 107.5 in Newark) in 2005. The lowered spur now consists of a minimum vertical clearance and a horizontal clearance on the shoulders underneath the Pulaski Skyway ( US 1/9). In February 2006, the authority updated exit 8A in Monroe Township. The former exit ramp that allowed traffic onto Route 32 westbound, has been closed off. Instead, a new ramp leads to a traffic light at the intersection of the ramp and County Route 535 (CR 535) in South Brunswick Township. CR 535 was expanded between the new ramp intersection and Route 32. The authority planned to build Route 92, an east–west spur from US 1 and Ridge Road in the township of South Brunswick to the mainline of the turnpike at exit 8A in Monroe Township. This proposition was cancelled on December 1, 2006. Throughout the first decade of the 21st century, the NJTA made repairs to several bridge decks, including the bridge crossing the Rancocas Creek, which was resurfaced in 2007. The NJTA reconfigured exit 12 in the Borough of Carteret to reduce truck traffic. A new grade separated interchange-ramp was constructed from Roosevelt Avenue east and connects to the toll gate. In addition, the seven-lane toll gate was demolished and replaced with a new 17-lane one. This project was completed in April 2010, five to six months behind schedule. The authority rebuilt exit 16W in the Borough of East Rutherford. Several new ramps were built, and old ones were destroyed. One major modification was destroying the old ramp from the tollgate to Route 3 west and having a new ramp swing around in the opposite direction and merge with Route 3 west, thereby completing the double trumpet-like interchange. This project was completed by March 2010. The NJTA began accepting E-ZPass on all toll lanes at all turnpike interchanges on March 5, 2011. On April 28, 2011, attempts to privatize toll collection on the New Jersey Turnpike were thwarted as a deal between the New Jersey Turnpike Authority and two unions to reduce toll collector salaries was made instead. The Authority reconstructed the Route 495 westbound overpass across the turnpike at exit 16E in Secaucus. This was finished in the middle of 2011. Safety improvements were made at exit 2 in Woolwich Township, when the NJTA installed a traffic signal at the entrance to the turnpike with US 322, and the intersection was widened with turn lanes on all approaches. Construction was complete in late 2012. On March 31, 2014, the NJTA began a new lane control system on the eastbound lanes of the Newark Bay–Hudson County Extension, using the shoulder as a travel lane between exit 14 to 14C. This system was discontinued on May 20, 2019, as part of a bridge redecking project. On March 24, 2020, the New Jersey Turnpike Authority temporarily suspended cash toll collection due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

. Drivers without

transponders had their license plates photographed at the toll plazas and were sent bills in the mail. Cash collection resumed on May 19 of that year. The NJTA also announced in 2020 that it would build E-ZPass express lanes at exit 18E; the lanes opened in November 2021.

Widening between interchanges 6 and 9

New Jersey Turnpike widening Robbinsville

New Jersey Turnpike widening Robbinsville Nov 2014

In November 2004, Governor Richard Codey advocated a plan to widen the turnpike by extending the dual-dual configuration south from exit 8A in Monroe Township to exit 6 in Mansfield Township. This was to be completed by 2014 when Pennsylvania was supposed to finish an interchange, that would connect its turnpike to the existing I-95 in Bristol Township, Pennsylvania. Finances were to be supplied by rerouting money from the planned Route 92 Turnpike extension. As part of this project, the NJTA expanded the turnpike by changing the dual-dual configuration (from 2-3-3-2 to 3-3-3-3) between exit 9 in East Brunswick Township and exit 8A in Monroe Township. Minimal construction was needed since overpasses were already built with future expansion in mind. Only final preparation and paving of an outer lane in the outer roadways were required to accommodate the extra lane. New signage and lighting were installed as part of the widening project. It was thought that some transmission towers that ran near the turnpike would have to be reconfigured to make room for the newly constructed roadways. However, this idea was dismissed because it would have been cost prohibitive, and the towers, in fact, did not need to be relocated. The widened turnpike features six lanes in each direction (3-3-3-3), double the previous capacity. The following interchanges were upgraded with this widening project: exit 6 (Mansfield), exit 7 ( Bordentown Township), exit 7A ( Robbinsville), exit 8 ( East Windsor), and exit 8A (Monroe). On July 2, 2009, a ceremonial groundbreaking took place near exit 8 to initiate the widening of the turnpike. On January 28, 2014, the last two of the project's 31 construction contracts was awarded. On May 17–18, 2014, the NJTA switched traffic from the inner roadway for the new outer roadway to do repairs and resurfacing of the inner roadway. A total of six northbound lanes between exits 6 and 9 opened on October 26, 2014, while the southbound lanes opened a week later on November 3, 2014. The final cost reported to be $2.3 billion. The project employed 1,000 workers a day, and at one point was the largest active road construction project in the Western Hemisphere. In late October 2015, the southbound inner roadway exit ramp at exit 7A was closed to make repairs to the overpass crossing over the truck lanes. Steel plates beneath the deck of the exit ramp overpass "were not built to specification" when it was originally constructed. The ramp was reopened in late November 2015. On January 1, 2007, the NJTA released its plan for exit 8 in East Windsor Township. The old interchange, located west of the turnpike, was demolished and replaced with a new one located to the east of the turnpike. The new interchange configuration opened in January 2013, featuring a new toll plaza consisting of 10 lanes, with direct access to the Route 133 (Hightstown Bypass) without going through any traffic lights, as well as to Route 33 by using a grade-separated interchange. Construction of a realigned Milford Road, near the interchange, was open to traffic in October 2011. Milford Road was converted into an overpass crossing over the new interchange 8 ramp. The junction with the realigned Milford Road, Route 33 and Monmouth Street was also modified.

Other construction

Due to traffic congestion outside exit 8A, the NJTA plans to improve Route 32 from its intersection at US 130 in South Brunswick to the exit 8A tollgate in Monroe Township. Named the "Interchange 8A to Route 130 Connection", plans and dates have yet to be determined. To reduce congestion, the NJTA has widened Route 18 and reconstructed all the associated ramps at exit 9 (except the ramp to Route 18 north) in East Brunswick Township. Construction began in late 2012 and was completed in mid-2016. The authority is planning a roadway and bridge, called the "Tremley Point Road Connector", from Industrial Highway in the Borough of Carteret to Tremley Point Road in the City of Linden. The purpose of this project is to increase truck access to the Tremley Point industrial area in Linden while moving trucks off local streets in residential neighborhoods. The authority chose this access road rather than a full interchange with Tremley Point Road from the turnpike mainline because of its proximity to both exits 12 and 13. The estimated completion date of the connector has yet to be determined, but as of October 2019, a construction contract has been awarded. In conjunction with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey's replacement of the

, improvements are being studied at exit 13 in Elizabeth and Linden. The authority plans to improve exit 14A in Jersey City and connecting roads in Bayonne because the current interchange is in "poor condition" and suffers from chronic congestion. This is part of a bigger project that addresses future congestion along Route 440. Official groundbreaking occurred on March 11, 2015, with an expanded toll plaza and connector bridge targeted for completion in late 2018 with a $310 million budget. The newly expanded exit 14A reopened in May 2018 ahead of its anticipated opening later in the year. All of the turnpike's original

variable-message sign A variable- (also changeable-, electronic-, or dynamic-) message sign, often abbreviated VMS, CMS, or DMS, and in the UK known as a matrix sign, is an electronic traffic sign often used on roadways to give travelers information about special ...

s (VMS) were replaced from 2010 to 2015, and many new signs were also added. The replacement signs, which feature full graphic color matrix technology, are more up-to-date and feature travel times to major routes when not otherwise in use. The NJTA plans to add an additional lane in each direction between Exits 1 4. Construction is planned to begin in 2025 and be completed in 2032.

Tolls

The New Jersey Turnpike is a closed-system

, using a system of long-distance

tickets Ticket or tickets may refer to: Slips of paper * Lottery ticket * Parking ticket, a ticket confirming that the parking fee was paid (and the time of the parking start) * Toll ticket, a slip of paper used to indicate where vehicles entered a tol ...

, obtained once by the motorist upon entering and surrendered upon exiting at toll gates. The toll fee depends on the distance traveled—longer distances result in higher tolls. , the automobile toll from exit 1 to exit 18 is $19.45 using cash and $19.42 using

electronic toll collection. If the ticket is lost, the driver must pay the highest toll fee upon exiting. In September 2000, the turnpike introduced E-ZPass electronic toll collection. Discounts were available to all users of the E-ZPass system until 2002. The cost to implement the E-ZPass system forced the NJTA to eliminate the discounts during peak hours and instead impose a $1 per month E-ZPass fee to account holders. E-ZPass customers with NJ accounts still receive a discount during off-peak hours, when the automobile toll from exit 1 to exit 18 is $14.15. Cash customers do not receive this discount. Four toll plazas on the turnpike have Express E-ZPass lanes, allowing E-ZPass customers to travel through toll areas at highway speeds, thanks to the addition of E-ZPass sensors on an overhead gantry. These high-speed toll gates are located at the northern terminus of the road on both the Western Spur and the Eastern Spur, the southern terminus in Carneys Point, and on the Pennsylvania Turnpike Extension. At each location, traditional E-ZPass and cash lanes are also available. Every toll lane on the turnpike accepts E-ZPass. The non-tolled

, which parallels the turnpike for much of its southern length, is often used as an alternate route for

shunpiking Shunpiking is the act of deliberately avoiding roads that require payment of a fee or toll to travel on them, usually by traveling on alternative "free" roads which bypass the toll road. The term comes from the word ''shun'', meaning "to avoid", an ...

by locals and through travelers alike; before the expansion of the exit 1 toll plaza, this route was promoted through signage and radio announcements from the

as a bypass of summer congestion at the plaza. On March 24, 2020, the New Jersey Turnpike Authority temporarily suspended cash toll collection because of the

. Drivers without

transponders had their license plates photographed at the toll plazas and were sent bills in the mail. Cash collection resumed on May 19 of that year. The Turnpike and the

raised tolls in 2020 and 2021 and, in its 2023 budget, called for another toll increase of 7.4% in 2023. The New Jersey Turnpike Authority said the increase was due to “…pressures on discretionary travel and costs due to an inflation rate of 8.3%....”

Exit list

Mainline and Eastern Spur

Pearl Harbor Memorial Turnpike Extension

Newark Bay Extension

Western Spur

I-95 Extension

In popular culture

* Somerdale-based Flying Fish Brewing currently makes the "Exit Series" of beers, which are named in honor of various Turnpike exits, with each beer intended to be reflective of the communities in or near where the relevant exit is located. *In 2015, lyrics on

Passenger A passenger (also abbreviated as pax) is a person who travels in a vehicle, but does not bear any responsibility for the tasks required for that vehicle to arrive at its destination or otherwise operate the vehicle, and is not a steward. The ...

's song "Riding to New York" on the '' Whispers'' album describe a man riding a bike from

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

: "And fly through Pennsylvania and the Jersey turnpike tolls." *From 2009 to 2012, "Jersey Turnpike" was the name of a dance move created by Deena Nicole Cortese of ''

Jersey Shore The Jersey Shore (known by locals simply as the Shore) is the coastal region of the U.S. state of New Jersey. Geographically, the term encompasses about of oceanfront bordering the Atlantic Ocean, from Perth Amboy in the north to Cape May Po ...

'', which aired on

MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...

. *From 1999 to 2007, the opening credits of every episode of ''

The Sopranos ''The Sopranos'' is an American Crime film#Crime drama, crime drama television series created by David Chase. The story revolves around Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini), a New Jersey-based American Mafia, Italian-American mobster, portraying h ...

'', which aired on

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...

, features shots of the New Jersey Turnpike, including Exits 12, 13, 14-14C, and 15W. *In 2001, the

video game Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This fee ...

'' Need for Speed: The Run'', a racing event starts on the Newark Bay Extension at Exit 14B before entering

Jersey City Jersey City is the second-most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey, after Newark.Liberty State Park Liberty State Park (LSP) is a park in the U.S. state of New Jersey, located on Upper New York Bay in Jersey City, New Jersey, Jersey City opposite Liberty Island and Ellis Island. The park opened in 1976 to coincide with United States Bicentenn ...

and ending in the

as the driver, who is the player of the game, is chased by police while driving into New York City. *In 2001, the song " Where I Come From" by country singer

Alan Jackson Alan Eugene Jackson (born October 17, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter. He is known for blending traditional honky-tonk and mainstream country pop sounds (for a style widely regarded as "neotraditional country"), as well as penning many o ...

begins with the lyrics: "Well I was rollin' wheels and shiftin' gears 'round that Jersey Turnpike." *In 1999, on ''

The West Wing ''The West Wing'' is an American serial (radio and television), serial political drama television series created by Aaron Sorkin that was originally broadcast on NBC from September 22, 1999, to May 14, 2006. The series is set primarily in the ...

'' episode "

The State Dinner The first season of the American political drama television series ''The West Wing'' aired in the United States on NBC from September 22, 1999 to May 17, 2000 and consisted of 22 episodes. Cast Main cast * Rob Lowe as Sam Seaborn, Deputy Wh ...

", character

Leo McGarry Leo Thomas McGarry is a fictional character played by American actor John Spencer on the television serial drama ''The West Wing''. This role earned Spencer the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series in 2002. ...

responds to a truckers union representative who uses inappropriate language: "This is the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in 1800. ...

. It's not the Jersey Turnpike." *In 1999, in the film ''

Being John Malkovich ''Being John Malkovich'' is a 1999 American fantasy comedy film directed by Spike Jonze and written by Charlie Kaufman, both making their feature film debut. The film stars John Cusack, Cameron Diaz, and Catherine Keener, with John Malkovich as a ...

'', characters are transported into

John Malkovich John Malkovich (born December 9, 1953) is an American actor. He is the recipient of several accolades, including a Primetime Emmy Award, in addition to nominations for two Academy Awards, a British Academy Film Award, two Screen Actors Guild Aw ...

's mind and then are suddenly dropped in a ditch beside the New Jersey Turnpike. *In 1988, one of the promotional taglines in the film ''Moving'' is: "On the New Jersey Turnpike, no one can hear you scream." *In 1986,

The Dead Milkmen The Dead Milkmen is an American punk rock band formed in 1983 in Philadelphia. Their original lineup consisted of vocalist and keyboardist Rodney Linderman ("Rodney Anonymous"), guitarist and vocalist Joe Genaro ("Joe Jack Talcum"), bassist Da ...

's album '' Eat Your Paisley!'' includes the song "Vince Lombardi Service Center", the name of a New Jersey Turnpike service center, as a CD bonus track. *In 1982, the

Bruce Springsteen Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen (born September 23, 1949) is an American singer and songwriter. He has released 21 studio albums, most of which feature his backing band, the E Street Band. Originally from the Jersey Shore, he is an originat ...

song, "State Trooper" on the ''

Nebraska Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the southwe ...

'' album describes driving the New Jersey Turnpike. In 1975, Springsteen's song "

Jungleland "Jungleland" is the closing song on Bruce Springsteen's 1975 album ''Born to Run''. It contains one of E Street Band saxophonist Clarence Clemons' most recognizable solos. It also features short-time E Streeter Suki Lahav, who performs the deli ...

" on the ''

Born to Run ''Born to Run'' is the third studio album by American singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen, released on August 25, 1975, by Columbia Records. As his effort to break into the mainstream, the album was a commercial success, peaking at number thr ...

'' album also mentions the New Jersey Turnpike. *In 1981, the character "Paulie Herman" on ''

Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock. Michaels currently serves a ...

'', played by

Joe Piscopo Joseph Charles John Piscopo ( ; born June 17, 1951) is an American actor, comedian and conservative radio talk show host. He was a cast member on ''Saturday Night Live'' from 1980 to 1984, where he played a variety of recurring characters. His f ...

, was known for a sketch from 1981 in which he says: "Are you from Jersey? I'm from Jersey. What exit?", referring to New Jersey Turnpike and

exits. *In 1972,

Simon & Garfunkel Simon & Garfunkel were an American folk rock duo consisting of the singer-songwriter Paul Simon and the singer Art Garfunkel. They were one of the best-selling music groups of the 1960s, and their biggest hits—including the electric remix of " ...

's song "

America 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 ...

" includes the lyric: "Counting the cars on the New Jersey Turnpike". *In 1966, the autobiographical

Mamas & Papas Mamas & Papas is a UK-based nursery brand and manufacturer supplying prams, pushchairs, baby products, furniture and maternity wear. It was established in Huddersfield in 1981 by David and Luisa Scacchetti, both of Italian ancestry, who ...

song "

Creeque Alley “Creeque Alley” is an autobiographical hit single written by John Phillips and Michelle Phillips of The Mamas and the Papas in late 1966, narrating the story of how the group was formed, and its early years. The third song on the album '' Del ...

" includes the lines: "Standing on the turnpike, thumb out to hitchhike/Take her to New York right away", referring to a broke

Mama Cass Elliot Ellen Naomi Cohen (September 19, 1941 – July 29, 1974), known professionally as Mama Cass and later on as Cass Elliot, was an American singer and voice actress. She was a member of the singing group the Mamas & the Papas. After the group brok ...

hitching a ride from

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

back to New York City via the New Jersey Turnpike. *In 1956,

Chuck Berry Charles Edward Anderson Berry (October 18, 1926 – March 18, 2017) was an American singer, songwriter and guitarist who pioneered rock and roll. Nicknamed the " Father of Rock and Roll", he refined and developed rhythm and blues into th ...

's song "

You Can't Catch Me "You Can't Catch Me" is a song written and recorded by Chuck Berry, released as a single in 1956. Background The song's lyrics describe racing a souped-up "air-mobile" down the New Jersey Turnpike, then unfolding its wings and taking off. At the ...

" includes the lyrics: "New Jersey Turnpike in the/wee wee hours I was/rolling slowly 'cause of/drizzlin' showers."

Notes

References

External links

Route description

Pennsville to Springfield Township

Mansfield Township to Newark

Newark to Ridgefield Park

Eastern Spur

Western Spur

Extensions

Services

Service areas

Emergency assistance

History

Precursors and planning

Construction

1950s to 1990

2000s to present

Widening between interchanges 6 and 9

Other construction

Tolls

Exit list

Mainline and Eastern Spur

Pearl Harbor Memorial Turnpike Extension

Newark Bay Extension

Western Spur

I-95 Extension

In popular culture

See also

Notes

References

Further reading

External links