NEW HOPE, PA – The Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission today issued two travel alerts advising its Bucks County, Pa. and Mercer County, N.J. bridge customers to prepare for increased traffic congestion and delays at the Trenton-Morrisville (Route 1) Toll Bridge, the Scudder Falls (I-95) Bridge and three other nearby lower-volume crossings on Monday evening and Tuesday morning.
The Commission owns and operates five vehicular bridges linking Bucks County bedroom communities with Mercer County job centers like Trenton and Princeton’s Route 1 corridor. These bridges – notably the Route 1 and I-95 crossings – are experiencing increased volumes due to the emergency closure of the Delaware River Bridge connecting the Pennsylvania Turnpike and New Jersey Turnpike.
On Monday, the peak commuting period traffic at the Trenton-Morrisville (Route 1) Toll Bridge backed up in the northbound direction (Pennsylvania to New Jersey) by more than a mile. Extended queuing and delays also occurred at the Route 29 exit from Route 1 northbound immediately after the Trenton-Morrisville Toll Bridge (first exit in New Jersey).
The Route 1 northbound congestion and delays had a slight spillover effect by exacerbating the normal traffic volumes on the various arterial roads leading to the Commission’s nearby weight-restricted Calhoun Street Toll-Supported Bridge and Lower Trenton (“Trenton Makes”) Toll-Supported Bridge, both of which connect Morrisville, PA and Trenton, NJ.
Meanwhile, at the Scudder Falls (I-95) Bridge linking Lower Makefield, PA with Ewing, NJ, the normal weekday morning traffic backups in northbound directions were considerably worse on Monday. At its peak, traffic approaching the bridge backed up by roughly six miles to a point between the PA Route 332/Newton interchange (exit 49) and the Route 1 interchange in Middletown Township, PA. (exits 46 A & B).
Like Route 1, the increased traffic volumes on the Pennsylvania approach to the Scudder Falls Bridge caused some local motorists to use the narrow Washington Crossing Toll-Supported Bridge as an alternative route.
Despite the challenges of motorists adjusting their schedules and routes for the first workday following the turnpikes’ bridge shutdown, no accidents were recorded at any of the Commission’s five Bucks-Mercer crossings on Monday.
“We want to thank our customers for their understanding, patience and caution this morning,” said Sean Hill, the Commission’s deputy executive director of operations. “This is a challenging situation for everyone involved.”
Recognizing the ongoing emergency of the turnpike connector bridge that served more than 40,000 vehicles daily, the Commission today issue two new travel alerts – one for the Monday evening drive time and the other for the Tuesday morning job commuter rush. In both alerts, the Commission urged its Bucks/Mercer bridge users to allow extra time to reach their destinations. The alerts apply to the following crossings:
- Trenton-Morrisville (Route 1) Toll Bridge
- Scudder Falls (I-95) Bridge
- Lower Trenton (“Trenton Makes”) Toll-Supported Bridge
- Calhoun Street Toll-Supported Bridge
- Washington Crossing Toll-Supported BridgeThe alerts may be viewed at http://www.drjtbc.org/alerts/.
