Route 18 construction update
Archived article from Sep 8, 2003
By Pam Orel
Detours, lane closures and roadblocks associated with the Route 18 extension project greeted faculty and staff upon their return to Rutgers' Busch and Livingston campuses in Piscataway, but the first benefits of the massive road project should begin to emerge this academic year.
Motorists should be prepared for lane and road closures for at least part of the fall semester on Avenue E, Davidson Road, Hoes Lane and River Road. Parking and Transportation Services has rerouted one bus line away from the construction area and has also added service to another route serving the area, in anticipation of additional traffic.
Construction crews will wrap up the first phase of the seven-stage project this fall, according to state Department of Transportation project manager John McCleerey.
During the second stage, to start this winter, a new bridge will serve as a temporary connection from the new highway to the Livingston campus, improving traffic flow from Avenue E and bypassing the former intersection of the avenue with Metlars Lane and Davidson Road. A section of Metlars Lane will continue to connect Route 18 and River Road with the Busch campus while construction progresses, but it will eventually be replaced by the highway extension.
Among other changes, Brett and Bevier roads, which formerly connected the Busch campus to Metlars Lane, should be replaced in the spring with a highway interchange allowing motorists direct access to Route 18 from the Busch campus. Brett and Bevier roads have been closed at Metlars Lane since Dec. 17, 2002. Further down the road, a new highway overpass is expected to be in place by late spring, alleviating the backups at the River Road/Metlars Lane interchange.
The $78 million initiative is among the state's most complex road projects. Designed to link the terminus of Route 18 at the John Lynch Bridge with Hoes Lane, it will allow motorists direct access from Route 18 to Route 287 and will cut truck traffic traveling through a residential area of River Road near Route 287. The project is to wrap up in 2005.
For the latest information on the status of the project, visit http://route18update.rutgers.edu.
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