U.S. Route 40 in New Jersey
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
U.S. Route 40 |
|||||||||
Harding Highway Black Horse Pike Maintained by NJDOT and Atlantic County |
|||||||||
Length: | 64.28 mi[1] (103.45 km) | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
West end: | I-295/US 40 at Delaware border on the Delaware Memorial Bridge | ||||||||
Major junctions: |
US 130/NJ 49 in Pennsville Twp NJTP in Carneys Point Twp NJ 55 in Franklin Twp US 322 in Hamilton Twp GSP in Egg Harbor Twp US 9 in Pleasantville ACE in Atlantic City |
||||||||
East end: | Atlantic Avenue/Pacific Avenue in Atlantic City | ||||||||
|
U.S. Route 40 serves as a major east-west highway in southern New Jersey from Delaware and points south to the Jersey Shore. It runs from the Delaware border on the Delaware Memorial Bridge through three counties, Salem, Gloucester, and Atlantic, and ending concurrent with US 322 in Atlantic City. Along its trip through these counties, some of the small towns that depend on the traffic US 40 brings are Woodstown, Elmer, Newfield, and Buena. An eclectic mix of rural, suburban, and urban environs are experienced on this relatively-short lifeline across South Jersey.
US 40 also remains the preferred route to Atlantic City from Delaware, Maryland, and points south and west, due to the non-existence of other viable alternatives (the Atlantic City Expressway starts about 25 miles north of where US 40 enters New Jersey). This fact, along with the relatively rural lifestyle enjoyed by the people who live along this artery, has made for sticky situations in the summer, the peak of tourist season at the Jersey Shore.
Contents |
[edit] Route description
US 40 is Interstate-standard as it enters the state concurrent with Interstate 295, and eventually the New Jersey Turnpike. It shortly exits off the Turnpike (as the last exit before the toll barrier) and proceeds onto Wiley Road, a 4-lane rural divided highway. The road continues for about 3 miles until it reaches the terminus of Route 48 in eastern Carneys Point Township. Until the concurrency of US 322 in Hamilton Township, the vast majority of the highway is two lanes.
The next concurrency happens in Woodstown, where Route 45 meets US 40 for about a half-mile through the downtown area. Then, US 40 continues through the countryside of Pilesgrove and Upper Pittsgrove townships to meet Route 77 at the Pole Tavern Circle; from there, US 40 makes a bee-line for Elmer, another small borough like Woodstown.
The next major junction is Route 55; this is where travelers heading for Cape May County beaches would exit US 40, as this freeway provides access to Route 47. Continuing on US 40, the next concurrency is Route 47 in Malaga; this concurrency only lasts for about a mile. From there, US 40 has one more concurrency with a primary New Jersey Route near Mays Landing with Route 50.
When US 40 meets US 322 in Hamilton Township, the highway finally returns to a 4-lane highway; this will last to its terminus in Atlantic City. The newly-joined US 40/322 continue through Egg Harbor Township, Pleasantville, and finally past Bader Field to end at Atlantic and Pacific avenues near the Boardwalk.
Some roadside attractions include the Cowtown Rodeo, Hamilton Mall, and Bernie Robbins Stadium. Numerous mom-and-pop restaurants, stores, and produce stands line the highway, as well as larger chains, most prominently Wawa Food Markets.
[edit] History
From its creation in 1926, US 40 has ended in Atlantic City, though it has come from Delaware in different ways. [2] For the first three decades, it utilized two different ferry routes at different times; one from Wilmington, Delaware to Penns Grove (along DE/NJ 48) from 1926 to 1936, then one from New Castle, Delaware to Pennsville from 1936 to the opening of the Delaware Memorial Bridge on August 16, 1951, which is the routing the road remains at today.
Originally completely concurrent with Route 48 for its length, over the years US 40 eventually became independent of the state route; first, from the rerouting of US 40 and US 130 to the ferry terminal in Pennsville in 1936, and finally with legislation in 1953 resulting in the truncation of Route 48 to its present terminus in eastern Carneys Point Township. [3]
[edit] Junction list
County | Location | Mile[1] | Roads intersected | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
Salem | Carneys Point Township | 0.00 | I-295 | Delaware Memorial Bridge Continues into Delaware |
0.95 | New Jersey Turnpike | Eastern end of concurrency Western end of concurrency |
||
1.17 | US 130/Route 49 | |||
1.70 | New Jersey Turnpike | Eastern end of concurrency | ||
1.85 | Route 140/CR 540 | |||
5.42 | Route 48 | |||
Pilesgrove Township | 10.02 | Route 45 | Western end of concurrency | |
Woodstown | 10.67 | Route 45 | Eastern end of concurrency | |
Upper Pittsgrove Township | 14.57 | CR 581 | ||
16.52 | Route 77 | Pole Tavern Circle | ||
21.82 | CR 553 | |||
Gloucester | Franklin Township | 25.54 | Route 55 | |
26.71 | Route 47 | Western end of concurrency | ||
27.20 | Route 47 | Eastern end of concurrency | ||
30.21 | CR 555 | |||
32.67 | CR 557 | Western end of concurrency | ||
Atlantic | Buena | 35.13 | Route 54 | |
Buena Vista Township | 35.26 | CR 557 | Eastern end of concurrency | |
38.19 | CR 540 | |||
Hamilton Township | 45.17 | CR 552 | ||
46.35 | Route 50 | Western end of concurrency | ||
46.97 | Route 50/CR 559 | Eastern end of concurrency Western end of concurrency |
||
47.30 | CR 559 | Eastern end of concurrency | ||
51.73 | US 322 | Western end of concurrency | ||
51.93 | CR 575 | Western end of concurrency | ||
Egg Harbor Township | 53.85 | CR 575 | Eastern end of concurrency | |
57.34 | CR 563 | |||
57.42 | Garden State Parkway | |||
Pleasantville | 59.09 | US 9 | ||
59.46 | CR 585 | |||
Atlantic City | 62.12 | Atlantic City Expressway | Westbound entrance/ eastbound exit only |
|
64.28 | Atlantic Ave/Pacific Ave | Eastern terminus of |
[edit] References
- ^ a b Straight Line Diagram from NJDOT for U.S. Route 40
- ^ US Highway Begin and End Table. US-Highways.com. Retrieved on 2008-02-25.
- ^ New Jersey Roads. AlpsRoads.net. Retrieved on 2008-02-25.
|
U.S. Route 40 | ||
---|---|---|
Previous state: Delaware |
New Jersey | Next state: Terminus |