A crash on the New Jersey Turnpike in Ridgefield, a disabled bus blocking the Route 495 bus lane and heavy delays at both Hudson River tunnels are slowing Thursday’s morning commute across North Jersey.

NEW JERSEY — Thursday morning commuters are facing a rough ride into New York City, with a disabled bus shutting down the exclusive bus lane on Route 495, a crash blocking a lane of the New Jersey Turnpike and delays reaching 50 minutes at the Lincoln Tunnel.

As of 8:34 a.m. Thursday, October 8, multiple crashes and traffic backups were affecting major highways across New Jersey, according to traffic information reported by the New Jersey Department of Transportation’s 511NJ traffic monitoring system.

Drivers approaching the Lincoln Tunnel from New Jersey Turnpike Exit 16E faced travel times of approximately 50 minutes, while motorists heading toward the Holland Tunnel were encountering 40-minute trips.

Disabled bus shuts down Route 495 bus lane

One of the morning’s biggest problems involves a disabled bus and related operational activity on Route 495 between North Bergen and Weehawken.

As of 8:34 a.m., all lanes of the exclusive bus lane were blocked between the area east of the New Jersey Turnpike in North Bergen and the area west of Boulevard East in Weehawken.

The blockage comes during the morning rush, when the dedicated bus lane carries commuters toward the Lincoln Tunnel and Manhattan.

At the Lincoln Tunnel itself, traffic was heavily congested. The reported travel time from Turnpike Exit 16E to the New York side was 50 minutes as of 8:25 a.m.

Turnpike crash blocks lane in Ridgefield

A crash on the southbound New Jersey Turnpike near Route 46 in Ridgefield was blocking the right lane as of 8:34 a.m.

The incident adds another obstacle for motorists using the Turnpike through Bergen County.

Farther south, traffic was backing up on the Turnpike’s Eastern Spur northbound from the Southern Mixing Bowl to just north of Interchange 15E near Routes 1 and 9 in Newark.

That stretch was experiencing approximately 1.5 miles of delays as of 8:27 a.m., with heavy traffic volume cited as the cause. All lanes remained open.

Holland Tunnel commuters face 40-minute trips

Traffic heading into Manhattan through the Holland Tunnel was also moving slowly Thursday morning.

As of 8:26 a.m., eastbound travel times were approximately 40 minutes from both New Jersey Turnpike Exit 14C and Route 139 at Tonnelle Circle in Jersey City.

All lanes were open, but congestion was building on the New Jersey approaches.

Crashes and delays on I-287, Route 55 and Route 23

On Interstate 287, a crash southbound north of Exit 14 at Route 22 in Bridgewater was reported at 8:01 a.m. All lanes were open at the time of the report.

Another section of I-287 was experiencing delays eastbound between the area north of Exit 37 near Route 24 in Hanover and the area east of Exit 1 at Whippany Road in Morris Township. All lanes remained open as of 8:26 a.m.

In South Jersey, a crash on Route 55 southbound north of Exit 39 at Route 40 in Franklin Township was blocking the left lane and left shoulder. One of the highway’s two southbound lanes was closed as of 7:24 a.m.

Drivers on Route 23 southbound were encountering congestion between Fairfield Road in Wayne and Riverview Drive in Totowa. All lanes were open, but delays were reported at 8:28 a.m.

Motorists traveling north on Routes 1 and 9 were also experiencing slowdowns from the area south of Bergen Boulevard in Palisades Park to the area south of Route 9W in Fort Lee.

Motorists urged to check conditions before heading out

Thursday’s congestion is concentrated along major commuter routes serving Bergen, Hudson, Essex and Morris counties, although the Route 55 crash is also creating problems for South Jersey drivers.

Motorists heading into Manhattan face some of the longest reported delays, particularly on the Lincoln Tunnel approach.

Traffic conditions can change rapidly as disabled vehicles are removed, crash scenes are cleared and the morning rush subsides. Drivers can check updated incidents and travel times through 511NJ before departing.