U.S. Route 322 in New Jersey

Route description

Gloucester County

US 322 enters New Jersey from Chester, Pennsylvania on the Commodore Barry Bridge over the Delaware River. Upon entering New Jersey, the highway runs concurrently with County Route 536. The road heads southeast into swampy areas of Logan Township as a five-lane road maintained by the Delaware River Port Authority, eventually becoming a six-lane divided highway as it passes over Springers Lane, an access road to Route 324, and comes to the westbound toll plaza for the bridge. A short distance later, US 322 has a cloverleaf interchange with U.S. Route 130 and continues south through the community of Bridgeport as it narrows into a two-lane undivided road known as Swedesboro-Bridgeport Road. It passes over Conrail Shared Assets Operations' (CSAO) Penns Grove Secondary and continues through rural areas of farms and woods prior to an interchange with Interstate 295, at which point the road widens into a four-lane divided highway. After I-295, US 322 continues through a small industrial park, and then makes a turn to the east and crosses into Woolwich Township. At this point, the road narrows back into a two-lane undivided road with no name. Here, the route crosses the Southern Railroad of New Jersey's Salem Branch and County Route 551 prior to an interchange with the New Jersey Turnpike.

Past the New Jersey Turnpike, US 322 starts to curve southeast and crosses into Harrison Township, where it passes suburban neighborhoods as Bridgeport-Mullica Hill Road and jurisdiction of the road is transferred to Gloucester County. It continues into Mullica Hill, where it intersects Route 45 and unsigned US 322 Bus. At this point, CR 536 turns south along with US 322 Bus./Route 45 and US 322 heads along the Mullica Hill Bypass concurrent with unsigned CR 536A, running southeast through wooded areas with some farm fields. At the end of the bypass, the route intersects US 322 Bus./CR 536 again and turns east onto Mullica Hill Road, again becoming concurrent with CR 536. US 322 continues through a mix of woods, farms, and homes, passing through Richwood. The route interchanges with Route 55 where state jurisdiction resumes. At the interchange, US 322 is briefly a four-lane road, and passes north of Inspira Medical Center Mullica Hill before entering Glassboro. In Glassboro, the route passes residential areas prior to crossing CSAO's Vineland Secondary and bisecting the campus of Rowan University, where it comes to a roundabout at Rowan Boulevard. A short distance later, US 322 crosses County Route 553 and becomes West Street, before coming to Route 47. Here, it turns south to form a concurrency with that route on three-lane Delsea Drive, passing more homes and businesses. US 322 splits from Route 47 by heading east on High Street, a two-lane road, and enters wooded areas with some development and farmland.

After exiting Glassboro for Monroe Township, US 322 continues east and crosses County Route 555 prior to reaching Williamstown, where the road passes residential and business development.

Atlantic County

Entering Folsom in Atlantic County, US 322 passes a couple lakes and some wooded residences before coming to a bridge over the Beesleys Point Secondary railroad line operated by the Cape May Seashore Lines railroad before an interchange with Route 54, where the route has a median. Past this interchange, the road continues southeast through heavily forested areas to an intersection with the southern terminus of Route 73 (signed as County Route 561 Spur). After this intersection, US 322 turns south and enters Hamilton Township, where it encounters County Route 559 at a traffic circle that has been modified to have US 322 run through it. After passing more woods and a clearing for farms, the road widens into a four-lane divided highway and has an interchange with Route 50. A short while after, the route enters a residential and commercial area, passing by Atlantic Cape Community College before heading to the south of the Hamilton Mall. Here, US 322 intersects U.S. Route 40, which merges onto the Black Horse Pike.

The two routes continue to the southeast through business areas, meeting County Route 575 and a ramp to the Atlantic City Expressway. CR 575 turns east to form a concurrency with US 40/US 322. The road enters Egg Harbor Township, with CR 575 splitting from US 40/US 322 by turning to the south. The route passes more wooded residential and commercial areas, as well as the Storybook Land amusement park, before intersecting County Route 563. US 40/US 322 forms a concurrency with that route and passes through a business district that includes the Harbor Square shopping center. CR 563 splits from the road by continuing southeast and the Black Horse Pike heads east to an interchange with the Garden State Parkway. The only direct ramp present is between the Black Horse Pike westbound and the Garden State Parkway northbound, with all other movements provided by CR 563. Past here, US 40/US 322 continues east past more businesses, crossing County Route 651 before entering Pleasantville. In Pleasantville, the road crosses U.S. Route 9. Past this intersection, the roadway passes under the Somers Point Bike Path. Upon crossing County Route 585, the Black Horse Pike continues past residences as an undivided road, crossing back into Egg Harbor Township. The road passes more businesses, closely paralleling the Atlantic City Expressway before entering Atlantic City. Here, the name becomes Albany Avenue and it comes to a pair of ramps that provide access to and from the Black Horse Pike eastbound and the Atlantic City Expressway westbound. US 40/US 322 enters marshland, crossing the Great Thorofare onto Great Island, where it has an interchange providing access to Atlantic City High School that also has U-turn ramps, before passing over the Beach Thorofare. Past this bridge, the road passes between businesses to the west and the closed Bader Field airport and Surf Stadium to the east. US 40/US 322 crosses the Inside Thorofare on a drawbridge and continues as a county maintained road to its end at Atlantic Avenue and Pacific Avenue, one block from the boardwalk. In 2006, an average of 6,910 vehicles used the road daily in Atlantic County.

History

Before 1953

1953 to present

In the 1953 New Jersey state highway renumbering, several state highways concurrent with US 322 were removed, including Route S44, Route 51, Route 42, Route 48, and Route 55. The section of US 322 between former US 130 and Route 42 became state highway jurisdiction in 1955 after a state takeover.

When the Commodore Barry Bridge opened in 1974 and replaced the ferry across the Delaware River, US 322 was moved to the new bridge approach and the former piece of the route to the ferry dock became Route 324.

In the 1960s, plans started forming for a freeway along the US 322 corridor in Gloucester County. A parkway had been planned in 1932 to run from Bridgeport east to the planned Camden-Atlantic City Parkway as part of a network of such roads proposed for the Philadelphia area; however, it was never built. The freeway, which was planned to connect the then-proposed Commodore Barry Bridge to Route 42 in Williamstown, was projected to cost $59.6 million. This freeway was proposed to be incorporated into the Interstate Highway System in 1970; however, this was denied. By the end of the 1970s, the US 322 freeway was canceled due to the desire to use highway funds for mass transit.

Plans resurfaced for a freeway along the US 322 corridor in 1987, when Congressman William J. Hughes made a proposal for a road running from the New Jersey Turnpike to the Atlantic City Expressway, with access to the Route 55 freeway. This proposal was never built though.

In 1995, the New Jersey Turnpike Authority announced plans to build a toll road between the Commodore Barry Bridge and the Atlantic City Expressway, connecting with I-295, the New Jersey Turnpike, and Route 55. This proposal resulted from increased traffic volume on US 322 after the completion of Interstate 476 in Pennsylvania. However, this proposal was soon canceled due to the possible destruction it would cause to residences, businesses, and the environment.

The Cardiff Circle along US 40/US 322 at CR 563 and CR 608 in Egg Harbor Township was eliminated in a $3.7 million project completed in 2002.

In December 2008, jurisdiction of US 322 from the Woolwich–Harrison township line to the Route 55 interchange and a 0.35 mi segment within Glassboro was transferred from the state highway agency, the New Jersey Department of Transportation, to Gloucester County.

Construction of a bypass around Mullica Hill began in December 2010 in order to relieve severe traffic congestion through the town. The route originally went through the town's historical district, where it briefly joined Route 45. The new alignment removes the concurrency, so that the routes merely cross at an intersection. The road was estimated to cost $12 million, and is described by a freeholder as being the "largest infrastructure project that has ever been undertaken in Gloucester County." In addition to the bypass, a portion of US 322 in the Mullica Hill area was widened. Construction of the bypass portion initially awaited approval from the New Jersey Historical Sites Council to determine if it would impact the Mullica Hill Historic District. The Mullica Hill Bypass opened to traffic on January 11, 2012. With the rerouting of US 322 onto the Mullica Hill Bypass, the former alignment of US 322 to Mullica Hill is now US 322 Bus., however it is unsigned.

In 2021, a 1.2 mi portion of US 322 in Logan Township was widened to four lanes, resulting in a minimum of two continuous lanes in each direction between I-95 in Chester and Stone Meetinghouse Road in Swedesboro, just east of I-295.

Major intersections

(westbound toll; cash or E-ZPass)

References

References

1. "US 322 Straight Line Diagram". [[New Jersey Department of Transportation]].
2. "Overview of U.S. Route 322 in New Jersey".
3. "County Route 536 Straight Line Diagram". New Jersey Department of Transportation.
4. (November 2008). "Gloucester County, New Jersey Official Map". Gloucester County Department of Public Works.
5. (August 31, 2008). "Answer Guy: How did the White Horse and Black Horse Pikes get their names?". [[The Press of Atlantic City]].
6. A. G. Lichtenstein & Associates. (September 1994). "New Jersey Historic Bridge Survey". New Jersey Department of Transportation.
7. Williams, Jimmy and Sharon. "NJ 1920s Route 18-S". 1920s New Jersey Highways.
8. (November 11, 1926). "United States System of Highways Adopted for Uniform Marking by the American Association of State Highway Officials". [[United States Geological Survey]].
9. "1927 Tydol Trails Map - South". Tydol Trails.
10. State of New Jersey, Laws of 1927, Chapter 319.
11. "1927 New Jersey Road Map". 1920s New Jersey Highways.
12. State of New Jersey, Laws of 1938, Chapter 283.
13. (2004). "US 322 Straight Line Diagram". New Jersey Department of Transportation.
14. [[H.M. Gousha]]. (1941). "Map of Pennsylvania and New Jersey". Mid-West Map Co..
15. State of New Jersey, Laws of 1939, compiled.
16. "1953 renumbering". New Jersey Department of Highways.
17. (December 16, 1952). "New Road Signs Ready in New Jersey". [[The New York Times]].
18. [[H.M. Gousha]]. (1969). "Map of New Jersey". [[Chevron Oil Company]].
19. "Route 324 straight line diagram". New Jersey Department of Transportation.
20. (1961). "New Jersey Builds Better Highways". [[New Jersey State Highway Department]].
21. (1932). "Regional Plan of the Philadelphia Tri-State District". Regional Planning Federation.
22. (1967). "New Jersey Highway Facts". New Jersey Department of Transportation.
23. (1969). "1985 Regional Transportation Plan". [[Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission]].
24. Anderson, Steve. "US 322 Freeway (New Jersey, unbuilt)". Eastern Roads.
25. Sardella, Carlos M.. (August 16, 1987). "Route 55 Extension Plan Due". The New York Times.
26. (February 1995). "Proposed Atlantic City Expressway-New Jersey Turnpike Connector – Alternative Route Development Study Phase I – Executive Summary". [[Parsons Brinckerhoff]].
27. (May 1, 2002). "Temporary detour of traffic at the Cardiff Circle to begin Friday evening, May 3". New Jersey Department of Transportation.
28. (December 9, 2008). "Jurisdiction and Transfer Agreement between New Jersey Department of Transportation and Gloucester County".
29. Barna, John. (December 29, 2010). "Gloucester County breaks ground on Route 322 bypass". Gloucester County Times.
30. Hefler, Jan. (October 21, 2007). "Can’t get around fight over road to the Shore". [[The Philadelphia Inquirer]].
31. McCarthy, Pete. (October 9, 2009). "Project needs group’s approval". [[Gloucester County Times]].
32. Forand, Rebecca. (January 11, 2012). "Route 322 Bypass now open". Gloucester County Times.
33. "US 322 Business Straight Line Diagram". [[New Jersey Department of Transportation]].
34. "Overview of U.S. Route 322 Business".
35. (May 5, 2021). "Route 322 traffic signal testing to begin tomorrow as roadway widening project advances in Gloucester County". New Jersey Department of Transportation.