New Jersey Route 81
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Route 76 (New Jersey) redirects here. For the current highway called Route 76, see Interstate 76.
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| Route 81 |
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| Length: | 1.18 mi[1] (1.9 km) | ||||||||
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| Formed: | 1970 | ||||||||
| South end: |   I-95 (NJTP) in Elizabeth |
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| North end: |  US 1-9 in Elizabeth |
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Route 81 is a state highway in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is the unsigned short connector between Exit 13A of the New Jersey Turnpike and the concurrency of U.S. 1-9 near Newark Airport. It runs for 1.18 miles (1.90 km), entirely within the City of Elizabeth.
The original plan, floated about 1965, was to connect the airport with Elizabeth Seaport, bypassing Humboldt Avenue, which at the time was designated as Route 164. The road would run parallel to the Turnpike from Exit 13 north to the vicinity of North Avenue, and then head west along the southern edge of the airport to U.S. 1 & 9, which was already being upgraded into a freeway. There are still ghost ramps standing that would have accommodated this alignment.
The city of Elizabeth had already been split by the Turnpike and resisted the notion of a parallel highway tearing the city up further. As a compromise, the Turnpike Authority built interchange 13A as a connection to a shorter Route 81, which opened in June 1982. The only designation of the road on state signage is an overhead traffic light sign at Dowd Avenue and one of the highway's ramps.
Exit 13A, in turn, revitalized the Port Newark-Elizabeth Marine Terminal area. A retail center has arisen on the east side of the Turnpike, accessible via North Avenue, one of the exits off Route 81.
Route 81 was initially numbered Route 76, but was renumbered when Interstate 80S became Interstate 76.
