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Originally published in 1939
Some of this information may no longer be current and in that case is presented for historical interest only.
Edited by GET NJ, COPYRIGHT 2002
Highways:
Although in 1890 New Jersey became the first State to provide State
aid in construction of highways, the roads were not sufficiently developed
to meet the wartime need. All through the State, businessmen patronized
the motor express lines that sprang up by hundreds. The old county and
town roads nearly went to pieces under the pressure of the new freight
traffic. The slogan of "Win the War with Transportation" brought the
State into long-delayed action. The legislature in 1917 voted to build a
State system of 15 roads connecting the principal industrial and shipping
centers.
Post-war use of the motor truck demanded speed and expansion in this
program. In 1926 a special road commission recommended an expenditure of $300,000,000 for the highway network, half of which has been
spent on road construction and maintenance to date.
New Jersey's present highway system is generally considered to be surpassed only by that of California. It is 26,767 miles in extent, of which
17,315 miles are "improved." The State-controlled portion totals 1,877
miles; the remainder is administered by local communities or by counties.
The Federal Government has given important aid in the improvement and
development of the State's highways. In addition to previous extensive
projects carried through under the Works Progress Administration, twenty
new county-wide projects have been approved for New Jersey (April
1938), averaging approximately one million dollars expenditure in each
county. These projects provide for improvement of principal and secondary roads of the present system, construction of new roads, widening
of highways, and building of bridges and culverts. Up to March 23, 1938,
grants made to the State of New Jersey under the Public Works Administration totaled $2,817,655. These grants were made for the construction of bridges and viaducts and for the elimination of various grade
crossings, the total cost of which is estimated at $6,693,221. The Civilian
Conservation Corps also has done valuable work in the improvement of
public properties in the State.
The excellence of the system, however, has not prevented an appalling
record of death and accident on the highways. One of the most dangerous
roads in the State is US 1, the superhighway from George Washington
Bridge to Trenton. Efforts to reduce hazards on the roads include the
gradual elimination of the three-lane highway, considered among the most
treacherous of road designs; increased use of divided highways, and the
institution of the cloverleaf crossing. This latter device, introduced in
New Jersey, cuts down the risk of collision at congested intersections by
sorting the traffic into one-way streams without crossings. The State is
also experimenting with daylight illumination (sodium vapor lighting) to
reduce the dangers of night driving.
New Jersey's State highway system is largely a war product.
When a vast output of munitions and war supplies was rushed to the
Atlantic coast, trunk line railroads were overloaded, and motor trucks were
drafted. Railroad freight was dumped beside the rails and reshipped by
truck.
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