JERSEY CITY — NJDOT officials announced that the old Route 1&9T viaduct over St. Paul’s Avenue will be permanently closed to traffic starting this weekend in Jersey City.
Motorists destined for the Holland Tunnel and/or the Jersey City waterfront will now use the new Route 1&9T northbound viaduct to connect to the Tonnelle Circle and Route 139 eastbound via a new exit ramp from the right lane. The new traffic pattern is expected to be established by Saturday morning, Sept. 17.
All traffic headed to Route 1&9 northbound (Tonnelle Avenue) and the Lincoln Tunnel or the George Washington Bridge has been using the newly constructed Route 1&9T northbound viaduct over St. Paul’s Avenue and the Tonnelle Circle since late-August. NJDOT shifted Route 1&9T southbound traffic onto the new viaduct in February 2011.
NJDOT has replaced the Routes 1&9T viaduct over St. Paul’s Avenue with a new structure on a new alignment north of the present structure. The old viaduct had been constructed in 1928 and was rated as structurally deficient and functionally obsolete.
NJDOT’s contractor, George Harms Construction Co., will now demolish the old viaduct and begin constructing the permanent new ramp system that will accommodate access between the numerous state and local roadways in this location.
The $210 million federally funded project is building new approach roads to safely connect to Route 1&9T, Route 7, Pulaski Skyway, Route 139, Route 1&9 north of Tonnelle Circle and local streets in Jersey City.
The precise timing of the work is subject to change due to weather or other factors. Motorists are encouraged to check NJDOT’s traffic information website www.511nj.org for construction updates and real-time travel information.