Interstate 495 New Jersey

Interstate 495 New Jersey
NJ Route 495 east at Lincoln Tunnel

New Jersey Route 495 east at the Weehawken entrance to the Lincoln Tunnel. Consisting of three tubes which opened in 1937, 1945 and 1957 respectively, the Lincoln Tunnel connects Union City, New Jersey with Midtown Manhattan in New York City. Photo by Cesar Centeno, Jr. (01/01/08).

Overview

New Jersey Route 495 comprises a limited access highway linking Interstate 95 (New Jersey Turnpike) in the town of Secaucus with the Lincoln Tunnel to Midtown Manhattan, New York. The freeway connects with Route 3, U.S. 1/9, and commercial and neighborhood areas of North Bergen Township and Union City. The New Jersey Turnpike Authority, the New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT) and the Port Authority of New York share maintenance along the 3.45 mile long route.

The eastern half of the Lincoln Tunnel and the ramp system to Dyer Avenue and 34th Street are part of New York Route 495. The state route is not marked.

History

Interstate 495 was originally intended to connect I-95 (New Jersey Turnpike) in North Jersey with I-78 (Clearview Expressway) in Queens, New York City. As part of the proposed Mid-Manhattan Expressway, the Lincoln Tunnel would have linked with a freeway route across Manhattan, connecting Union City, New Jersey with the Queens-Midtown Tunnel across the East River. The Mid-Manhattan Expressway was deleted from the Interstate system, with approval by the American Association of State Highway Officials (AASHO) on June 23, 1969.

With the cancellation of the Mid-Manhattan Expressway in 1971,1 the section of I-495 between I-95 and the Lincoln Tunnel was permanently disconnected from the Queens Midtown / Long Island Expressway segment east of the Queens Midtown Tunnel.

Route Information

  • East End – Manhattan, NY

  • West End – Secaucus, NJ

  • Mileage – 3.45 NJ / 1.10 NY

  • Cities – Union City, NJ New York, NY

  • Junctions – I-95 NJ Turnpike

Source: New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT) Straight Line Diagrams
New York Routes (Routes 450-499)

The 1977 Interstate System Route Log and Finder List attributed 2.10 miles for I-495 in New Jersey and 8.35 miles for I-495 in New York

Manhattan, NY - 1961
The proposed routing of the cross island freeway between the West Side Highway (NY 9A) and FDR Drive – 1961 Gousha map of Manhattan

The tunnel approaches to both the Lincoln and Queens-Midtown were to extend southward to the Mid Manhattan Expressway as part of Interstate 495.

I-495 East - Lincoln Tunnel

Filmed in October 1998, A remaining Interstate 495 reference was located east of the New Jersey Turnpike toll plaza. This overhead appeared in the 1976 movie Cannonball.

I-495 in New Jersey was initially deleted from the Interstate System on September 14, 1979, when the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) approved the withdrawal of 2.1 miles from I-95 (New Jersey Turnpike) to the Lincoln Tunnel approach at Pleasant and Park Avenues. This left 1.5 miles of I-495 remaining active east to the New York state line. The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) subsequently approved the elimination of I-495 between North Bergen Township and Union City on June 24, 1980. The reason cited:

The Federal Highway Administration has approved eliminating I-495, between I-95 and Pleasant-Park Avenue, from the Interstate System because it is not essential to the completion of a unified and connected Interstate System.

I-495 New Jersey - 1969 Map

Interstate 495 between I-95 (New Jersey Turnpike) and the Lincoln Tunnel – 1969 New Jersey Official Map.

The FHWA eventually approved the withdrawal from the Interstate System of I-478 (Westway) from Manhattan, New York City on September 30, 1985. The action severed the short sections of I-495 through the Lincoln Tunnel in both New Jersey and New York from the rest of the Interstate System. Since they were no longer linked, the action also removed I-495 west from I-478 under the provisions of 23 U.S.C. 103 (f).

NJDOT and the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) followed with separate applications to AASHTO formally requesting the removal of the Lincoln Tunnel from the Interstate System. They were approved on June 10, 1986.

The freeway west from the Lincoln Tunnel was redesignated as New Jersey Route 495. The New York section of Interstate 495 remains east of the Queens Midtown Tunnel. It was eventually extended to cover the remaining distance of the Long Island Expressway to Riverhead in 1984.

Route 495 East

I-95 north at Route 495 - Secaucus, NJ

New Jersey Route 495 stems east from a two-wye interchange (Exit 16E) with I-95 (New Jersey Turnpike Eastern Spur) at the town of Secaucus. Photo by Peter Johnson (06/09/21).

Route 495 east at Route 3 - North Bergen Twp, NJ

The ramps from the New Jersey Turnpike Eastern Spur (I-95) combine along Route 495 east ahead of a directional cloverleaf interchange with Route 3 south to U.S. 1/9. Photo by Peter Johnson (06/09/21).

Route 495 east at Kennedy Bl - North Bergen Twp, NJ

Route 495 continues east from U.S. 1/9 to Kennedy Boulevard along the Union City line. The forthcoming diamond interchange with Pleasant Avenue represented the west end of Interstate 495 from 1979 to 1985. Photo by Peter Johnson (06/09/21).

Route 495 east at Central Av - Union City, NJ

Route 495 travels below grade across Union City, passing under Central Avenue a third of a mile from the exit to Pleasant Avenue for Weehawken Township. Photo by Peter Johnson (06/09/21).

Route 495 east at Pleasant Av - Union City, NJ

Pleasant Avenue branches south from nearby Park Avenue to Plank Road in Weehawken. Park Avenue runs north to West New York. Photo by Peter Johnson (06/09/21).

Route 495 east at Lincoln Tunnel, Weehawken, NJ

Operated by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, the Lincoln Tunnel consists of three tubes ranging from 7,482 to 8,216 feet in length. The center tube opened to traffic on December 22, 1937. The north tube followed on February 1, 1945 and the south tube on May 25, 1957.2 Photo by Peter Johnson (06/09/21).

Route 495 east - Lincoln Tunnel

Accommodating two lanes per tube, the Lincoln Tunnel roadways are 21 feet 6 inches wide. The tunnel crosses the Hudson River at a maximum depth of 97 feet.2 Photo by Peter Johnson (06/09/21).

NY 495 east at Dyer Av - New York

The east end of the Lincoln Tunnel (NY 495) ties into Dyer Avenue between W 38th and W 39th Streets at Hell’s Kitchen in Manhattan, New York City. Photo by Peter Johnson (06/09/21).

NY 495 east at Dyer Av - New York

Interstate 495 concluded eastbound at the separation of ramps for Dyer Avenue north to W 42nd Street and south to W 34th Street. Photo by Peter Johnson (06/09/21).

Sources:

  1. Lincoln Tunnel (NY 495-NJ 495). NYCRoads.com) NYCRoads.com.
  2. Lincoln Tunnel – Facts & Info. Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, web site.

Page updated July 13, 2021.