New Jersey Route 495 - Route Description

Route Description

Route 495 officially begins at the Exit 16E off-ramp of the northbound lanes of the New Jersey Turnpike near the boundary of Secaucus and North Bergen. The main roadway heads east through North Bergen as a freeway with three lanes in the eastbound direction and two lanes in the westbound direction. It has a speed limit of 50 mph (80 km/h) maintained by the New Jersey Turnpike Authority. The route has an interchange with Route 3, with access to eastbound Route 3 and U.S. Route 1/9 for traffic in the eastbound direction and to westbound Route 3 in the westbound direction. Past this interchange, Route 495 becomes a six-lane, 40 mph (64 km/h) freeway maintained by the New Jersey Department of Transportation that intersects U.S. Route 1/9 at a partial interchange, with a westbound exit and eastbound entrance. Past U.S. Route 1/9, the speed limit rises to 50 mph (80 km/h) and the freeway has an interchange with County Route 501 (John F. Kennedy Boulevard), which uses 30th Street and 31st Street as collector/distributor roads. East of this junction, Route 495 enters Union City and heads through developed residential areas, passing under numerous streets, with a speed limit of 40 mph (64 km/h). There is an eastbound exit and westbound entrance for Park Avenue, which provides access to Weehawken and Hoboken, where Route 495 becomes a 35 mph (56 km/h) freeway maintained by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. It enters Weehawken and comes to a westbound exit and eastbound entrance for Park Avenue.

At this point, the speed limit becomes 40 mph (64 km/h) and the roadway loops around itself at a section in the roadway locally known as The Helix, descending the New Jersey Palisades to reach the entrance to the Lincoln Tunnel under the Hudson River. The route has a westbound exit for County Route 677 (John F. Kennedy/Hudson Boulevard East) and another exit for Boulevard East with a westbound exit and eastbound entrance. After interchanging with Boulevard East, the road features an eastbound toll plaza and enters the Lincoln Tunnel, which has a 35 mph (56 km/h) speed limit. At the New York state line, which is located at the midpoint of the Hudson River, the road continues as New York State Route 495 and heads into midtown Manhattan in New York City.

Since 1971, one of the westbound lanes is converted during the morning rush hour to a contraflow bus lane, known as the "XBL", or exclusive bus lane. It is used by buses headed east, mainly to the Port Authority Bus Terminal just past the Lincoln Tunnel in Manhattan, serving over 60,000 bus commuters each weekday morning. This bus lane is the busiest in the United States. Route 495 is a busy route that sees 120,000 to 160,000 vehicles every day.