Extreme Makeover: Interchange Gets Ground Improvement Facelift

Abstract

As part of the massive, $159.9 million Interchange 14A Improvement Project in the cities of Bayonne and Jersey City, NJ, the New Jersey Turnpike Authority (NJTA) is realigning 12 ramps and roadways and constructing four new bridges to improve the existing interchange. With higher-capacity toll booths and ramps connecting I-78 directly to adjacent roadways and streets, the NJTA aims to upgrade waterfront and port access for heavy truck traffic while simultaneously decreasing congestion and increasing safety on local city streets. According to the Turnpike Authority, about 50,000 vehicles, including 6,000 trucks, typically use the interchange each weekday. These numbers are only expected to rise as the Ports of New York and New Jersey (already the largest on the U.S. East Coast) continue to grow with expansion of the local Global Container Terminal, related to upgrades being made on the Panama Canal. Turnpike work began in early 2015 and is scheduled for completion sometime in 2018.