EASTON, PA – Two travel lanes are open on I-78 eastbound near Phillipsburg, N.J. and that travel pattern is expected to remain in place until 8 p.m. tonight, when a single-lane travel restriction is scheduled to go into effect and remain in place until 6 a.m. Saturday, the Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission announced today.
Overnight roadway repair work along the highway segment on Thursday night had to be shut down due to an unforeseen emergency situation during early morning hours Friday. The Commission issued a severe travel warning for the Friday morning commuting period.
I-78 eastbound motorists traveling from Pennsylvania to New Jersey should anticipate moderate backups and delays moving forward through the day on Friday and overnight Friday.
A six-week-long roadway joints repair project is currently underway along the Commission’s 4.2-mile-long segment of I-78 on the New Jersey side of the Delaware River. Work that had been taking place overnight Thursday was shut down approximately 1 a.m. Friday, triggering the Commission to issue a severe traffic warning the Friday morning commuting period.
I-78 westbound was unaffected with three travel lanes remaining open. Traffic is heaviest in the eastbound direction during weekday morning commuting periods.
The Commission’s 4.2-mile-long New Jersey I-78 highway segment in particular ranks as the agency’s most geologically challenging to maintain. Large sections of the New Jersey approach traverse a karst limestone terrain that is prone to sink holes and other instances of subsidence. The combination of heavy traffic volumes and unsound topography causes cracking and shifting of the highway segment
The corridor is the Commission’s busiest, carrying a daily average of 63,500 vehicles in 2022. The bridge ranks among the nation’s most frequently used truck crossings.
