New Jersey Route 495 - History

History

The road was built as an approach to the Lincoln Tunnel, with the first section opening December 22, 1937 when the first (now the center) tube of the tunnel was completed. This section ran only from the tunnel portal south through the toll booths to a plaza with Park Avenue and Hudson County Boulevard East. Marginal Street, providing access from Hudson County Boulevard East west over Park Avenue to 32nd Street and the Bergen Turnpike, was also opened at that time. In 1939, the Port Authority opened the rest of the approach, up the helix and west to Route 3, and it was designated as an eastern extension of Route 3. The final section of today's Route 495 opened on January 15, 1952 with the completion of the New Jersey Turnpike. The interchange (exit 16) only served traffic to and from the south; exit 17 at Route 3 served traffic towards the north on the Turnpike.

With the creation of the Interstate Highway System in 1956, the approach to the Lincoln Tunnel was planned to become an Interstate highway along with present-day Route 3, which itself was not included in the Interstate Highway System because New Jersey thought it would be too expensive to bring it up to Interstate Highway standards. The Essex Freeway was selected as the interstate corridor, which was called FAI Corridor 105 before being designated I-280 in 1958. However, the Lincoln Tunnel approach was included in the Interstate Highway System and in 1958, it was renumbered from Route 3 to Interstate 495 despite the fact it does not meet Interstate Highway standards. Shortly after the road became Interstate 495, the western portion of the road was brought up to Interstate Highway standards with the improvements of the interchanges with the New Jersey Turnpike and Route 3. Interstate 495 was intended to connect with New York’s Interstate 495 by way of the Mid-Manhattan Expressway; however, this proposed controlled-access highway through Manhattan was canceled in 1971 due to strong opposition to the road running through the heart of Manhattan. Due to the fact that New Jersey’s Interstate 495 would not be connected to New York’s, the route was officially renumbered as New Jersey Route 495 in 1979.

The entire highway east of Route 1 and 9 on is listed on the New Jersey Register of Historic Places for its engineering, architecture and history. The designations were given in segments between 1991 and 2003 and include the Lincoln Tunnel Approach and Helix as well as the toll booths and ventilation towers as well as the tunnels.