ATLANTIC CITY, NJ – A wave of severe traffic disruptions swept across New Jersey on Monday evening, with flooding closing down a major highway in Egg Harbor Township and crashes clogging up key routes from the Turnpike to the George Washington Bridge during the height of rush hour.
All lanes of US Route 40 west of the Atlantic City Expressway were shut down as of 5:48 p.m. due to heavy flooding, making the road completely impassable in both directions. The closure left drivers stranded and forced major detours just as commuter volume hit its peak.
Compounding the chaos, a crash at 5:51 p.m. on NJ Route 3 eastbound near the Garden State Parkway in Clifton blocked two of four lanes, intensifying delays in the already congested corridor.
Further south, a crash on NJ Route 42 northbound near Exit 10B in Gloucester Township caused more backups, with the left shoulder blocked as emergency responders worked the scene. Around the same time, another crash partially closed the northbound entrance ramp to the New Jersey Turnpike Eastern Spur at Interchange 15E in Newark.
In Manhattan, eastbound traffic on the George Washington Bridge upper level slowed due to a crash on the Upper Trans Manhattan Expressway. One center lane was blocked, adding to bridge travel times that already hovered around 25 minutes from I-80 to the Alexander Hamilton Bridge.
A disabled truck on the Western Spur of the New Jersey Turnpike also contributed to delays near Interchange 15E in Newark, with the right lane blocked.
Meanwhile, heavy volume alone was enough to cause miles-long delays on the Garden State Parkway, Pulaski Skyway, I-280, and both the Eastern and Western Spurs of the Turnpike. Some stretches saw congestion as long as six miles.
The combined impact of weather-related road closures and accident-related lane blockages created one of the most difficult evening commutes of the summer so far.
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Key Points
- Flooding shut down all lanes of US Route 40 in Egg Harbor Township Monday evening
- Crashes and disabled vehicles snarled multiple routes including NJ 3, NJ 42, the Turnpike, and GWB
- Delays stretched for miles across major highways statewide during peak evening commute
Storm runoff and wrecks collided to create traffic gridlock across New Jersey just in time for rush hour.