NJ Turnpike Construction rolls on

[swbrotha100]

Just out of curiousity, are there any current I-95 shields anywhere on the Turnpike south of exit 10? I know they don't have to offically sign anything yet, but just womdering. Maybe a lone "To I-95" sign or two somewhere.

Yes. They've been there for decades. As a kid I was amused by the fact that 295 and 'to 95' were right next to each other.

When I was a kid my family did the trip from northern NJ to the Philly area on a somewhat regular basis. I remember a few shields that said "To I-95" going southbound. Those are probably long gone now.

[SignBridge]

Roadman65, you and I must think alike about this stuff. I too am puzzled by the lack of destinations shown on the new Turnpike entrance signs. Interchange 15X is like that too. The MUTCD requires destinations and I'm surprised that the Turnpike Authority considers just north and south to be adequate signing. All the more puzzling considering that the 1950's era signs at interchanges read New York and North / Trenton and South as the standard destinations.

Interesting to also note that the G.S. Parkway is signed as just north and south in some places notably at the I-80 interchange in Saddle Brook. Not sure if that's NJDOT or the NJT Authority's doing.

[PHLBOS]

Roadman65, you and I must think alike about this stuff. I too am puzzled by the lack of destinations shown on the new Turnpike entrance signs. Interchange 15X is like that too. The MUTCD requires destinations and I'm surprised that the Turnpike Authority considers just north and south to be adequate signing. All the more puzzling considering that the 1950's era signs at interchanges read New York and North / Trenton and South as the standard destinations.

IIRC, those newer signs that don't have the control destinations are likely from contracts that predate NJTA's adoption of the more the MUTCD-type signage.

Interesting to also note that the G.S. Parkway is signed as just north and south in some places notably at the I-80 interchange in Saddle Brook. Not sure if that's NJDOT or the NJT Authority's doing.

Those BGS' that you speak of are at least 10 to 15 years old, so they're likely NJHA's (New Jersey Highway Authority) doing.

[NJRoadfan]

When I was a kid my family did the trip from northern NJ to the Philly area on a somewhat regular basis. I remember a few shields that said "To I-95" going southbound. Those are probably long gone now.

Still there as of today. They somehow survived in the median during all the construction. I believe there are still some at the Exit 3 on-ramp too.

[lepidopteran]

All the more puzzling considering that the 1950's era signs at interchanges read New York and North / Trenton and South as the standard destinations.

Can't speak for other exits, but since at least 1970, the signs at Interchange 8 read New York and North / Camden and South.  The sign was still up (and lit?) when I took my swan song trip through the old Exit 8 tollbooth last Sunday, even though by then all traffic entered through the new plaza and the signs no longer served any purpose.

Back in those days there was a small sign reading "Camden↑" just before the SB Exit 8 off ramp.  On the NB side, there were also signs reading "New York XX Miles" at multiples of 10 miles starting with at least 90 miles.  (New York and the miles were on separate lines)

[Mr. Matté]

Why are we talking about little things like cities listed on the guide signs?

The big news is that for the first time probably ever, an old sign is being reused in a new location! Remember this sign posted on eastbound 33?


Instead of being sent to the chipper, it's found a new home at the new onramp to the Turnpike from 33 east! (including the notice about extra gas)

[NJRoadfan]

Instead of being sent to the chipper, it's found a new home at the new onramp to the Turnpike from 33 east! (including the notice about extra gas)

That notice about the extra gas is what people were being ticketed for after Sandy. Now for the big question, did they wire up the light?

[hbelkins]

"Carrying gas in extra containers prohibited." Trying to make people use the service plazas?

[jeffandnicole]

Instead of being sent to the chipper, it's found a new home at the new onramp to the Turnpike from 33 east! (including the notice about extra gas)

That notice about the extra gas is what people were being ticketed for after Sandy.

Which never happened. 

People said they saw cop cars on the side of the road pulling people over, and someone told a newspaper they were stopping people for filling up a gas container.  They actually weren't stopped for it...they just decided to make the baseless claim.  Like many other urban legends, no one actually was pulled over, much less getting a ticket.  Why would the cops wait until someone pulled onto the mainline?  They would just sit at the pump, or just after the pump in the parking lot.  And it wasn't just one or two people...we're talking lines' worth of people.

In addition, the turnpike workers at the Sunoco station would be subject to discipline for filing such a container, if the practice remanded prohibited just after Hurricane Sandy.

Even the NJ Turnpike Authority made reference to filing the containers in a press release, advising patrons to use caution while standing in line to get their gas containers filled.  Yes, normally, the practice was prohibited.  In the few weeks following Hurricane Sandy, many prohibitations large and small were temporarily ignored.

Feel free to find someone who can state they actually got a ticket on the Turnpike for filling a gas container after Hurricane Sandy.  I'll wait.

[lepidopteran]

Regarding that notice about carrying extra gas in containers, a notice which I think was there since the '80s.  I seem to recall that in the early '70s, a similar sign at that location read "Hitch hiking prohibited on turnpike".  Not sure if that was one or two words.  But was thumbing really ever that much of a problem on the pike?

There was a sign on the toll booth, facing entering traffic that read "No House Trailers", and "Exits 1 to 18" IIRC.

[Alps]

Regarding that notice about carrying extra gas in containers, a notice which I think was there since the '80s.  I seem to recall that in the early '70s, a similar sign at that location read "Hitch hiking prohibited on turnpike".  Not sure if that was one or two words.  But was thumbing really ever that much of a problem on the pike?

There was a sign on the toll booth, facing entering traffic that read "No House Trailers", and "Exits 1 to 18" IIRC.

This is what you get now:

[SignBridge]

Hmmm.........again we have the Turnpike Authority not following the MUTCD. That is a regulatory sign and is required to be black and white. Green is for directional signs only. But the NJTA is not the only agency to ever make this mistake either.

[cpzilliacus]

Hmmm.........again we have the Turnpike Authority not following the MUTCD. That is a regulatory sign and is required to be black and white. Green is for directional signs only. But the NJTA is not the only agency to ever make this mistake either.

The District of Columbia likes to install white-on-green regulatory signs in places - especially those that forbid (or maybe I should say discourage) truck traffic.

[lepidopteran]

One exception to the MUTCD om the NJTP that seems to remain, as far as I know:

"No Stopping Except For Repair"   (Repairs?)

I think these were white-on-green, mounted on (or painted on?) bridge piers, usually the farthest right.  I think they got smaller over the years.  But in any event, it's no MUTCD-style freestanding black-on-white "Emergency Stopping Only" or "Emergency Parking Only".

[vdeane]

NYSDOT likes white on green as well (varies by region).  NYSTA loves it; I don't think I've every seen them use anything else, though there are two white on brown signs between exits 40 and 41.

[1995hoo]

The odd sign I always got a kick out of was the one that said something like, "You have left the New Jersey Turnpike. Obey local speed laws." I know it meant that the laws on the Turnpike might be different from elsewhere, but my father and I always laughed at the implication that you could go as fast as you wanted on the Turnpike. Heck, for most of my years as a kid that seemed to be true.

[Alps]

One exception to the MUTCD om the NJTP that seems to remain, as far as I know:

"No Stopping Except For Repair"   (Repairs?)

I think these were white-on-green, mounted on (or painted on?) bridge piers, usually the farthest right.  I think they got smaller over the years.  But in any event, it's no MUTCD-style freestanding black-on-white "Emergency Stopping Only" or "Emergency Parking Only".

No longer an exception... Check out the brand new SL standard drawings at http://www.state.nj.us/turnpike/standard-drawings.html (P.S. I drew them )

[Steve D]

I haven't been through the area in a few months- is the new exit 8 fully open now?  Also, are the new exit 7a toll-to-north ramps open yet?

Thanks...

[NJRoadfan]

I haven't been through the area in a few months- is the new exit 8 fully open now?  Also, are the new exit 7a toll-to-north ramps open yet?

Thanks...

Exit 7A is still using the old ramps.

[Mr. Matté]

I haven't been through the area in a few months- is the new exit 8 fully open now?

All the ramps to and from the Turnpike are now through the new Exit 8 booths now but there's a lot of chicanery in order to get to the mainline itself (at least going to and from the north) and the bridge over Route 33 isn't open yet; Tpke/133 traffic go through the SPUI's traffic lights.

It still seems odd to me that they sign 133 west for East Windsor even though the intersection itself is in E.W., 1/3 of the land in the township is on this side of the Turnpike, and its largest housing development (Twin Rivers, about 25% of the population) is further east of here on 33.


But as I mentioned before, the old sign remains (albeit with a bunch of 2x4s behind it which doesn't exactly bode well for it):

[vdeane]

How does that work, anyways?  Do they have the SPUI temporarily configured to act like a normal diamond?

[Alps]

How does that work, anyways?  Do they have the SPUI temporarily configured to act like a normal diamond?

Yeah, in a nutshell. Two lanes go through on either side, so the only advantage is that you can run your lefts concurrently for 133 EB and WB and for 33 EB and WB, but you still end up with 4 phases for the time being, plus all the traffic that comes from running a configuration that's not designed for.

[cpzilliacus]

The odd sign I always got a kick out of was the one that said something like, "You have left the New Jersey Turnpike. Obey local speed laws."

The one on the southbound side of the Turnpike after the Exit 1 mainline barrier was especially worthy of scorn and odium, for darned close to 100% of that traffic was (and is) headed for I-295 and the Delaware Memorial Bridge, and then back to I-95 and the Delaware Turnpike, though I think it was removed when the old Exit 1 toll plaza was replaced with the new one (a big improvement, though the Turnpike Authority should have made the barrier-separated approach to the E-ZPass only lanes on the southbound side a lot longer) some years ago.

Also rather remarkable that Delaware extensively signs for the New Jersey Turnpike on the northbound side of I-95/Delaware Turnpike and I-295, yet there is not one mention of the Delaware Turnpike on the southbound side of the New Jersey Turnpike (there used to be a sign on  the southbound N.J. Turnpike directing motorists to the  Delaware Turnpike, but  it was removed quite a few years ago).

[Steve D]

I haven't been through the area in a few months- is the new exit 8 fully open now?

All the ramps to and from the Turnpike are now through the new Exit 8 booths now but there's a lot of chicanery in order to get to the mainline itself (at least going to and from the north) and the bridge over Route 33 isn't open yet; Tpke/133 traffic go through the SPUI's traffic lights.

It still seems odd to me that they sign 133 west for East Windsor even though the intersection itself is in E.W., 1/3 of the land in the township is on this side of the Turnpike, and its largest housing development (Twin Rivers, about 25% of the population) is further east of here on 33.


But as I mentioned before, the old sign remains (albeit with a bunch of 2x4s behind it which doesn't exactly bode well for it):

Thanks for the pictures.  I grew up 1/4 mile from there in Twin Rivers.

I'm also surprised the signs say "East Windsor" (use the highway) when you are actually in East Windsor and there is no official downtown.  I'm surprised the mayor hasn't made a fuss about this; she usually is vocal with Turnpike and sign issues from what I've read.

[lepidopteran]

Steve - which "quad" in Twin Rivers did you live?  I was in Quad I from 1970 to '74; we were the original owners of a house on Bennington.  All the schools I went to were in Hightstown, which means my school buses passed under the Turnpike and the trumpet ramps every day.   Amazing how close the interchange is to Twin Rivers now.