NJ - 295/76/42 Construction Projects

[jeffandnicole]

A few more pics...

I-295 North approaching I-76 West.  The lane shift was done Friday Night, July 19th.  The painted interstate sign and writing on the pavement is typical in a construction zone for NJ.



I-295 South, opposite of the picture above.  Lane shift undertaken this weekend as well.  The median will be paved over in some areas to accommodate an overpass reconstruction of an overpass over Essex Ave in Bellmawr.



One of the newer ultra-tall expanded milepost signs, next to a smaller MP sign.  And the MP is on both sides as well, so if you are broken down on the side of the road, you should have no problem looking in front of you or behind you and finding one of these signs to pinpoint your location.

[jeffandnicole]

And a few more pics...  (Note: All lane closures are only on the weekends or overnight.  During the weekdays, all lanes and ramps are open)

Standing on Browning Road, where I-76 East becomes Rt. 42 South.  This pic overlooks Rt. 42 South (left) and I-295 South (right).



Again standing on Browning Road, looking at I-76 West Express Lanes (left), I-76 West Local Lanes (center) and I-295 North (right).  Notice the low-concrete barrier between the express & local lanes has been removed and replaced with orange pylons.



On I-295 North at I-76 North. 

[vdeane]

One of the newer ultra-tall expanded milepost signs, next to a smaller MP sign.  And the MP is on both sides as well, so if you are broken down on the side of the road, you should have no problem looking in front of you or behind you and finding one of these signs to pinpoint your location.

That's a regulation MUTCD milepost.

[1995hoo]

....



....

Something tells me the guy driving the Lincoln in the left lane was blindly relying on a sat-nav and was shocked to find he couldn't exit to the left. 

[jeffandnicole]

One of the newer ultra-tall expanded milepost signs, next to a smaller MP sign.  And the MP is on both sides as well, so if you are broken down on the side of the road, you should have no problem looking in front of you or behind you and finding one of these signs to pinpoint your location.

That's a regulation MUTCD milepost.

Regulation, yes.  But size wise, the MP is about 6' tall!  I think standard MPs are about 3' tall or less.

[Alps]

One of the newer ultra-tall expanded milepost signs, next to a smaller MP sign.  And the MP is on both sides as well, so if you are broken down on the side of the road, you should have no problem looking in front of you or behind you and finding one of these signs to pinpoint your location.

That's a regulation MUTCD milepost.

Regulation, yes.  But size wise, the MP is about 6' tall!  I think standard MPs are about 3' tall or less.

Regulation = standard

[njunderground]

I live only 14 miles from this project and travel it all the time, going to work, NYC, Philly, or to visit my girlfriend in North Jersey. I am kind of a "sign buff" and I was wondering if anyone had seen any renderings or drawings of what the new signage will be?
Mike, NJ

[jeffandnicole]

On the southbound side, they just put in some 'temporary' signage, which actually looks better in some cases and is using the current standards (other than being mounted close to the ground and behind construction equipment).  The final designs for signage probably won't be revealed until those contracts go out to bid.

[jeffandnicole]

Over the past 50 days or so...
Construction tends to occur 24 hours a day during weekdays.  Daytime —where crews can work without lane closures.  Work done at night occurs where lanes need to be closed. Some work not requiring lane closures occur on Saturdays.
I-295:  South of the interchange, traffic has been shifted to the right, utilizing the middle lane, right lane & right shoulder.  The left lane has been milled several inches.  This traffic shift also will allow the overpass over Essex Ave to be dismantled and reconstructed in the median.  The ramp from 76 East to 295 South has been shifted onto new pavement to the right of the existing ramp.
North of the interchange, the NB lane of Bell Rd over 295 has been removed in full, including all bridge decking and pier structures in the median (essentially cutting them in half, as they still support the SB lane.  All traffic on Bell Rd now utilizes the SB lane, controlled by traffic lights on either end.  On 295 South itself, Steel sheeting and "I"  beams (maybe they're called "H"  beams) have been inserted into the ground, in many cases located in the former right lane of I-295 South.  New BGSs have been installed for the Exit 26, 76/295 split, which other than being close to the ground are actually better than the ones they replaced (I'll post pictures eventually).
76 East to 42 South: Land clearing has been taking place on the SB right shoulder between I-295 and Creek Rd., which often necessitates a ramp closure from 295 South to 42 South many weeknights. 
42 North to 76 West: Work continues on the temporary ramp from 42 North to 295 North, which will wrap around the 295 to 76 Local ramp.  "I"  beams have been installed to hold the old sound barrier panels, providing some noise relief to the nearby residents.
About a ½ mile of the low curbing between the 76 Express/Local lanes has been removed. Roadway was repaved in the area and construction-type concrete barrier was installed. Most likely, this will be used to separate 76 from 295 when the 42 to 295 North ramp is complete. In this area, 76 will be 3 or 4 continuous lanes wide.  The Express/Local lane divider will remain in place further north (west) for a while, but will eventually be removed as well.
Conditions have been challenging during this summer, as the area has received several rainfalls of 4"  or more in a short time period, amounting to what would be a month's worth of rain in a few hours.  The area has had more rain this summer than ever before...and that was just looking at the period from June thru the first week of August.  Thus, a lot of minor mud slides across the roadway and in areas that were just dug out. Flooding across 76 and 42 — in many cases not even in the construction zone — has resulted in gridlocked conditions where traffic can do nothing but only wait it out until the water has subsided.

[_Simon]

If those aren't for transmitting coordination between signals, I'll eat Thomas Jefferson.

When I lived in Pennsylvania, we had similar devices which were sensors for emergency vehicle pre-emption.  They used to light up with a white light when active,  had an EMT show me once.  Not sure if it's the same thing, but it looked very similar.

[NJ-Surveyor]

I am currently working on the first contract of the Direct Connect project. If anyone has any questions that I am able to answer I'll do my best to answer them.

[jeffandnicole]

I am currently working on the first contract of the Direct Connect project. If anyone has any questions that I am able to answer I'll do my best to answer them.

Awesome, and welcome aboard here!  Are you doing the physical labor or one of the planners/supervisors?

So far, it appears a fair amount of work has been done.  I'm using the online documents/designs/images/descriptions NJDOT has available online and comparing that to the work that's been going on, so I can figure out most of what is happening with the construction.  The only question I have, which I haven't figured out: A guy in my carpool noticed they are putting what appears to be concrete boxes into the trench that was dug along 295 South just south of Bell Rd (the first area where 295 South shifts to the left).  Any idea what that is?

Oh...and fix the cameras so they are viewable online! :-)  (Actually, that appears to be a statewide issue where a LOT of the online cameras aren't working!)

[NJ-Surveyor]

The boxes in the median between NB and SB? If so they are a temporary storm run that collects water and diverts it across 295 SB. We are starting a wall along Al-Jo's curve that will block the existing drainage system while it is built. Most of the work that has been done to date has been for traffic pattern switches. Within the next couple of weeks there should be a lot more building of things that will be part of the final plan. I am doing the layout work for one of the contractors on site. We're usually there twice a week and sometimes at night.

[jeffandnicole]

http://www.state.nj.us/transportation/business/procurement/ConstrServ/documents/DP_13148f.pdf

Contract #2 of 4 for this project is now advertised, with bids due in Dec. 5 (subject to change).  The link above contains the general items of what is contained within the bid packet.  Contract 1 & 2 will overlap for about 1 1/2 years (early 2014 - mid 2015).

[jeffandnicole]

Replacing the overhead signs at the top of Page 5 here is new signage on the sides of the roadway (which will be occasionally moved as the roadway is shifted around due to a bridge reconstruction).  Interesting to note, if you look carefully (and thru the light pole in the way) that the shields on the right sign are larger than the shields on the left sign. The signs were installed at the same time.  The font used on the left sign in the yellow is a bit larger than what was used on the other temporary signage in the area as well.

[jeffandnicole]

A NJ Construction Zone rarity...Big Orange Signs.

[jeffandnicole]

Over the past 80 days or so...

Outside the interchange:
Shoulders and/or lane shifts are in place where it appears new overhead signage spans will be installed.  The new spans appear to start about 2 miles out on both 42 North & 295 North approaching the interchange.  I want to believe these structures will be built in a manner that signage for the 42/295 missing move ramps can be used on these overhead spans as well.

295, south of 42/76:
Both NB & SB lanes have been narrowed and shifted to the Center Lane, Right Lane and Right shoulder.  Workers have been taking apart the inner portions of the overpass over Essex Ave, much of which is open.  A new overpass will be constructed in its place.  On Essex Ave itself, lanes have been narrowed, and a separate pedestrian pathway was created using jersey barriers and fencing.

295 North on the ramp towards 42 has been shifted to the left, partially on new pavement, for workers to work on the former right lane/right shoulder area of 295, along with room for the new ramp from 42 North to 295 North.

295 South alongside Rt. 42 is shifted to the right for pipe installations beneath the roadway.

295, north of 42/76:
The embankment was rebuilt along with a wider left lane/shoulder on the curve from Rt. 42, to accommodate a future temporary 3rd lane thru this stretch.  The end and center piers for Bell Rd's NB (WB) lane have been constructed. The new overpass will be approximately 5 feet taller than the current overpass, providing nearly 20' of clearance over the current 295.  I imagine 295 must be getting raised in this area; otherwise there'd be no reason for the additional clearance.  Typical new overpass clearances in NJ are 15' — 16' high.

295 South continues to be shifted to the left as what appears to be a lower road profile (future ramps to 42/76) is getting constructed to the right.  This construction area suffered some flooding issues when a heavy rain caused the swamp's high water level to wash over the protected steel wall that was constructed just a month or so prior.  Construction equipment was still in the zone when the flooding started to occur, and pumps were needed to clear the area of water.

Rt. 42:
Construction continues on Rt. 42 North in the area of Creek Rd to 295, including the construction of the temporary ramp from 42 North to 295 North.  On Rt. 42 South, construction continues along the right shoulder to widen the roadway slightly, probably for future lane shifts.

I-76 West:
The rest of the curbing that divided the express/local lanes has been removed from 295 to US 130, and pylons are installed in its place.  Lanes are shifted out from this divider to work on an overpass, probably concrete work for crowning the roadway differently.  The original plans called for tri-cattle shuts in this area...2 lanes to the far right, 1 lane in the Express Left lane, then 2 contra-flow lanes on I-76 East.  I'm wondering if they redesigned the construction zone to eliminate that whole plan...if so, that will be a decent money saver for this portion of the project.  Soon, the express/local lane division will be eliminated when the weave between 295 North & 76E/42N is eliminated.

I-76 East to 295 North:  Work appears to be nearly complete on a retaining wall in the swamp area between this ramp and the Aljo Curve.

[BrianP]

Thanks for the updates.  I only make a few trips to NJ per year.  And even then I don't see all that's going on. 

Shoulders and/or lane shifts are in place where it appears new overhead signage spans will be installed.  The new spans appear to start about 2 miles out on both 42 North & 295 North approaching the interchange.  I want to believe these structures will be built in a manner that signage for the 42/295 missing move ramps can be used on these overhead spans as well.

That makes sense.  The missing moves ramps are a separate project but it does look like they will be constructed.

The new overpass will be approximately 5 feet taller than the current overpass, providing nearly 20' of clearance over the current 295.  I imagine 295 must be getting raised in this area;

Yeah I guess they don't want a dip in the road since I-295 will be at a high level crossing over both I-76 and Browning Rd at the same time.  Plus there's the added bonus of avoiding possible flooding like the flooding you mentioned there.

295 South continues to be shifted to the left as what appears to be a lower road profile (future ramps to 42/76) is getting constructed to the right. 

Lower since the ramp to I-76 east goes under I-76.

http://www.state.nj.us/transportation/about/press/2013/110813.shtm
Bell Road Bridge over Interstate 295 to be closed overnight

[jeffandnicole]

295 South continues to be shifted to the left as what appears to be a lower road profile (future ramps to 42/76) is getting constructed to the right. 

Lower since the ramp to I-76 east goes under I-76.

Technically it'll be going to Rt. 42 South as the 42/76 split occurs midway thru the interchange.

And because of that ramp, this interchange will actually be an unconventional 4 level interchange, although it's never been promoted as that.  The ramp will be considered a tunnel by NJDOT, and will use features specific to tunnel construction in NJ, including traffic lights to show the lanes which are open and closed (although the traffic lights for the tunnel in Trenton, NJ has never shown anything other than green, even when lanes are closed).

Regarding that 4 level stack: It doesn't appear all 4 levels will be directly on top of each other - the 295 South to 42 South ramp will be about 300' away from the rest of the stack.  But for those counting...From bottom to top: 
   Ramp from 295 South to 42 South
   Rt. 42/I-76 mainline
   Browning Road
   I-295 mainline, plus I believe the ramp from 42 North

http://www.state.nj.us/transportation/about/press/2013/110813.shtm
Bell Road Bridge over Interstate 295 to be closed overnight

Thanks for the Update.  The former bridge had two center piers.  The new overpass only has one, and the end piers are much further back than previous.  (And take note Delaware...you don't need to close the entire highway all night long to do the work!!!)  The detour itself is only about a mile out of way for traffic at most, and Bell Rd is lightly used, especially at night.

[NJRoadfan]

Unless it has changed, NJ-42 and I-76 never touched each other, at least according to the SLDs. Heading north, when I-295 merges into the interchange, NJ-42 ends. I-76's mile 0 marker used to be in front of the Exit 1B gore sign where I-295 north left the roadway (photo used to be on aaroads, but seems to have been removed). The enlarged view also confirms this.

http://www.state.nj.us/transportation/refdata/sldiag/enlarged_view_27.pdf

[jeffandnicole]

I don't think the SLD is entirely accurate.  It don't appear to allow for overlaps, and the route designation for a stretch of road where two route numbers applies defaults to the higher class road (in this case, I-295 is over NJ 42).

Additionally, take a look at the 295 SLD.  In the stretch of highway where it meets Rt. 42 North, it still shows the road as 2 lanes, whereas if it controlled jurisdiction of the entire roadway, it would be 7 lanes wide (2 lanes for 295, 2 lanes for 42/76 Local, 3 Lanes for 42/76 Express within the interchange)

On the SB side, due to the jersey barrier, 295 and 42 remain on their separate carriageways.

[NE2]

I don't think the SLD is entirely accurate.  It don't appear to allow for overlaps,

http://www.state.nj.us/transportation/refdata/sldiag/00000295__-.pdf
See that vertical line at mile 0.73? That's the end of the US 40 overlap. Farther along, the US 130 overlap is shown similarly.

It's worth pointing out, however, that precise ends are not always logical ends. I can't find any egregious examples in New Jersey, but often a 3DI will end in the middle of the bridge over the parent when it logically ends at the exit ramp. And there's this in Ohio:

[danlb_2000]

For anyone who is interested in this project I have started a blog with regular photo updates on the construction:

http://i295directconnection.blogspot.com/

I'll try to get some pictures of the Bell Road steel going in over the next few days.

[jeffandnicole]

Nice - I should send you some of the pics I've taken while driving thru the area as well!

[danlb_2000]

Everything in place to start installing the steel on the Bell Road bridge tonight:



http://i295directconnection.blogspot.com/2013/11/bell-road-progress.html