Major Improvements Coming To Route 202/206, Route 22 Interchange In Bridgewater

BRIDGEWATER, NJ — Major improvements are coming to the Route 22 and Route 202/206 interchange area in Bridgewater to help reduce crashes and congestion.

The New Jersey Department of Transportation(NJDOT) made a presentation before the Bridgewater Township Council on May 22, showing their proposed plan for the project from Peters Brook to Commons Way.

"The purpose of this project is to improve safety and reduce congestion while minimizing the surrounding impacts to environmental right of way, utilities, and the traveling public," said Bernard Boerchers, who spoke at the meeting with NJDOT.

Looking at data from 2014 to 2016, the Route 22 area within the proposed project has a high crash rate, more than three times higher than the statewide average for a similar cross-section.

In addition, both Route 22 and Route 202/206 rank in the top two percentiles for congestion.

More recent data collected from 2018 to 2020 showed Route 22's crash rate remained high. Route 202/206's crash rate also increased from 1.6 times higher than the state average to 2.3 times higher in the new data.

A Preliminary Preferred Alternative(PPA) is being proposed in the area.

The PPA proposes a collector-distributor roadway along Route 22 West, which will provide a physical separation between the through movement of Route 22 and the weaving movements between the entrance ramp from Route 202/206 North and the exit ramp to Route 202/206 South.

The PPA also proposes extending a third lane along Route 22 East to Route 202/206 North, and Route 202/206 South through the interchange. This also includes pedestrian safety improvements at the intersections of the ramps by Mountain Avenue near Immaculata High School.

The Route 22 West distributor roadway will begin after the exit ramp to Route 202/206 North and will continue west through the interchange past the entrance ramp from Route 202/206 South.

The third eastbound through lane will begin at the existing three-lane section west of the interchange and continue east of Mercer Street.

Widening the bridge that carries Route 202/206 North over Route 22 and replacing the bridge carrying Route 202/206 South over Route 22 is also proposed.

On Route 22 East, the acceleration lane for the ramp from Route 202/206 North to Route 22 East and the stop control for the Mountain Avenue ramp are maintained.

"However, the proposed third eastbound through lane eliminates the two-lane bottleneck east and west of the interchange, which in turn will provide more traffic from Route 202/206 North and Mountain Avenue to enter onto Route 22 east," said Boerchers.

To provide for the third Eastbound through-lane, the entrance lane from Commons Way is converted into an acceleration lane that will end before the driveways for Buffalo Wild Wings.

"This will maintain the existing shoulder adjacent to the restaurant for motorists to safely enter and exit the establishment," said Boerchers.

The proposal also includes sidewalk improvements and enhanced pedestrian crossings with high-visibility crosswalks and ADA-compliant curb ramps along Mountain Avenue adjacent to the high school.

"We’ll be eliminating the bottleneck on Route 22 Eastbound where there are three lanes west of the interchange and three lanes east of the interchange," said Boerchers. "We’ll be adding a third throughlane along Route 202/206 Southbound that will connect to the acceleration lane for the Somerville Circle and be adding a third through lane north so that will enhance the operation from the Somerville Circle up to the ramp that takes Route 202/206 Northbound to Route 22 Eastbound."

The existing weaving section at the merge of Route 202/206 North to Route 22 East is currently graded as an "F" for its operation.

"Both of the weaving sections along Route 202/206 through the interchange operate at level F or worse, so they’ll be significantly improved, and the travel time through the interchange, both northbound and southbound, will be reduced by at least 30 percent," said Boerchers.

The project is anticipated to be constructed in six major stages while maintaining all existing lanes of traffic with only minor short-period closures to install overhead cranes.

Boerchers said, "all access to the pedestrian bridges will be maintained and all pedestrian access from the high school to the mall will also be maintained at all times during construction."

The NJDOT anticipates advancing to the engineering stage in Spring 2026, followed by the final design stage in Winter 2028, and then construction should begin in the summer of 2030.

Boerchers said they anticipate the project to be completed in 2033, which includes a pause during the winter seasons.

Watch the full presentation here or below (begins around 22:28):

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