New Jersey Route 4

"NJ 4" redirects here. NJ 4 may also refer to New Jersey's 4th congressional district.

Route 4
Route information
Maintained by NJDOT
Length:	10.83 mi[1] (17.43 km)
Existed:	1927 (1934 on present alignment) – present
Major junctions
West end:	Route 20 in Paterson
	Route 208 in Fair Lawn G.S. Pkwy. in Paramus Route 17 in Paramus CR 503 in Hackensack Route 93 / CR 501 in Englewood
East end:	I-95/NJTP/US 1-9/US 46/US 9W in Fort Lee
Highway system
New Jersey State Highway Routes Interstate and US ← Route 3 Route 5 →

Route 4 is a state highway in Bergen County and Passaic County, New Jersey, United States, that is also known as the Mackay Highway. The highway stretches 10.83 mi (17.43 km) from Route 20 (McLean Boulevard) in Paterson east to an interchange with Interstate 95, U.S. Route 1/9, U.S. Route 46, and U.S. Route 9W at the George Washington Bridge approach in Fort Lee. The route is a four- to six-lane 40 to 50 mph (64 to 80 km/h) divided highway its entire length, with the portion east of the Route 208 interchange in Fair Lawn a partial freeway consisting of interchanges and right-in/right-out intersections with a few businesses along the road, particularly in Paramus, where the route passes through a major shopping area consisting of numerous malls, Englewood, and Fort Lee. West of Route 208, the route is a surface arterial lined that runs through commercial areas. Route 4 intersects many important roads, including Route 208 in Fair Lawn and the Garden State Parkway and Route 17 in Paramus.

Route 4 was legislated in 1927 to run from Cape May to the George Washington Bridge. This route replaced pre-1927 Route 14 between Cape May and Seaville, what was planned as pre-1927 Route 19 between Seaville and Absecon, pre-1927 Route 4 between Absecon and Lakewood and South Amboy and Rahway, and a spur of pre-1927 Route 7 between Lakewood and Freehold, with the rest of the route to be built on a new alignment. The present-day routing of U.S. Route 9 between Cape May and South Amboy and Route 35 between South Amboy and Rahway bore the Route 4 designation prior to 1953, when the route was defined onto its current alignment. Several spurs of Route 4 existed before 1953 and the Garden State Parkway was originally planned as a bypass of Route 4 that was to be designated Route 4 Parkway. Today's stretch of the route was completed by 1934, not long after the opening of the George Washington Bridge in 1931. It was planned to be upgraded to a full freeway, but plans never materialized. Despite this, the route has seen improvements, such as to the interchanges with Route 17 in 1999 and with Route 208 in 2002.

Route description

Route 4 in Fair Lawn, taken from northbound train at Broadway Station.

Route 4 starts in Paterson, Passaic County at the intersection of Broadway and East 43rd Street at an interchange with Route 20 (McLean Boulevard), heading east on Broadway, a four-lane, divided highway with a Jersey barrier and a speed limit of 40 mph (64 km/h).^[1] The route passes over Route 20 and continues east, crossing the Passaic River into Elmwood Park, Bergen County and passing over County Route 507. Route 4 features a right-in/right-out in the eastbound direction that provides access to County Route 507.^[1] The route continues east on Broadway as a divided highway with a concrete then a grassy median, with businesses lining both sides of the roadway.^[2] At the intersection with Cyril Avenue, Route 4 runs along the border of Elmwood Park to the south and Fair Lawn to the north before entirely entering Fair Lawn, where the route passes under New Jersey Transit’s Bergen County Line near Broadway Station. It intersects County Route 67 (Midland Avenue) and continues east as a divided highway with a Jersey barrier through commercial areas of Fair Lawn.^[1][2]

Route 4 in Paramus, looking westbound.

Route 4 comes to an interchange Route 208, where the route continues east on the Route 208 alignment, becoming a divided highway with four lanes in the eastbound direction and three lanes in the westbound direction. The interchange between Route 4 and Route 208 also features access to County Route 79 (Saddle River Road). The route continues east as a limited access road that is lined with businesses.^[1][2] Route 4 crosses the Saddle River and then enters Paramus, which is home to one of the largest concentrations of retail shopping districts in the state.^[1][3] Upon entering Paramus, Route 4 has a cloverleaf interchange with County Route 62 (Paramus Road/Passaic Street). The route features a partial interchange with the Garden State Parkway, with access from westbound Route 4 to the southbound Garden State Parkway and from the northbound Garden State Parkway to eastbound Route 4.^[1] Route 4 has an interchange which provides access to Westfield Garden State Plaza, located on the south side of the road, and a large IKEA store, located on the north side of the road.^[1][2] Past this, Route 4 features a cloverleaf interchange with Route 17 and continues east as a six-lane divided highway with a 50 mph (80 km/h) speed limit.^[1] It interchanges with Spring Valley Road and passes by The Outlets at Bergen Town Center located on the south side of the road. Route 4 interchanges with County Route 59 (Forrest Avenue/Maywood Avenue).^[1][2]

As the road leaves Paramus, it becomes a partial freeway and businesses no longer line the route.^[2] Route 4 enters River Edge, where the route crosses Van Saun Mill Creek, and it heads to the southeast and features ramps that provide access to County Route 51 (Kinderkamack Road), which the route passes over along with New Jersey Transit’s Pascack Valley Line just south of North Hackensack Station. Upon crossing the Pascack Valley Line, Route 4 heads into Hackensack, where it interchanges with County Route 503 (Hackensack Avenue) near The Shops at Riverside. The route crosses the Hackensack River into Teaneck and heads through the campus of Farleigh Dickinson University.^[1][2] Route 4 features ramps that provide access to County Route 41 (River Road), which it later passes over.^[1] The road continues southeast through wooded residential areas, intersecting a few roads at right-in/right-out intersections, before interchanging with Queen Anne Road . It interchanges with County Route 39 (Teaneck Road) and Webster Avenue/Farragut Drive before crossing into Englewood where the route crosses Overpeck Creek and businesses resume along the road with access to businesses and a few local roads provided by right-in/right-out ramps.^[1][2] In Englewood, Route 4 features a cloverleaf interchange with Route 93 and County Route 501 (Grand Avenue).^[1] Past this interchange, businesses stop along the road and it continues east with three lanes in the eastbound direction and two lanes in the westbound direction, coming to an interchange with Jones Road . Past this interchange, the road continues south with businesses along the road, crossing into Fort Lee. In Fort Lee, the lanes split as Route 4 approaches Interstate 95, with the eastbound lanes passing over Interstate 95. Route 4 continues south with Interstate 95 in the median, ending at an interchange with Interstate 95, U.S. Route 1/9, U.S. Route 46, and U.S. Route 9W, at the George Washington Bridge approach.^[1][2]

History

The Route 4 interchange with Route 17 in Paramus that underwent a $120 million improvement completed in 1999, as viewed from Route 17 south.

Route 4 was originally legislated in the 1927 New Jersey state highway renumbering to run from Cape May north to the George Washington Bridge, running through Pleasantville, Toms River, Freehold, Perth Amboy, Rahway, and Paterson.^[4][5] The route replaced portions of the alignments of several pre-1927 state highways including pre-1927 Route 14 between Cape May and Seaville, pre-1927 Route 19 between Seaville and Absecon, pre-1927 Route 4 between Absecon and Lakewood and between South Amboy and Rahway, a spur of pre-1927 Route 7 between Lakewood and Freehold. The rest of the proposed route was to be built on a new alignment. Of the pre-1927 state highways that Route 4 was to follow, pre-1927 Route 14 was originally legislated in 1917, pre-1927 Route 19 was legislated in 1923 but never built, pre-1927 Route 4 was created in 1916, and the spur of pre-1927 Route 7 was created in 1925.^[6][7][8][9] U.S. Route 9 was also designated along Route 4 between Absecon and Lakewood and from South Amboy to Rahway. By the 1940s, U.S. Route 9 was realigned to follow Route 4 between Lakewood and South Amboy, having followed portions of today’s Route 88, Route 35, and Route 71 and was extended south along Route 4 to Cape May.^[10][11] The section of present-day Route 4 was built between 1930 and 1933 to connect Paterson and the George Washington Bridge in Fort Lee. There were plans made in 1936 to make this portion of Route 4 a limited-access road; however, World War II delayed plans for the expressway.^[12]

Route 4 had several former spur routes that existed prior to the 1953 New Jersey state highway renumbering. Route 4N was designated in 1939 from the portion of pre-1927 Route 4 between Brielle and Eatontown; it is now Route 71.^[13][14] Route S4 was defined in 1927 to run to the Outerbridge Crossing in Perth Amboy from present-day Route 35; it was eventually extended to the Garden State Parkway and this route is now Routes 440 and 184. Route S4A was planned in 1927 to run from Atlantic City across swamps to Tuckerton; only a small portion of this route was built and it is now Route 87.^[4][14] Route S4B was planned in 1929 to run Route 4 near Paterson northwest to the New York border, replacing a portion of what was legislated as Route 3 in 1927. The portion of this route that was built between Fair Lawn and Oakland is now Route 208.^[14][15] Route S4D was a never built spur in Teaneck proposed in 1938; the proposal was renumbered Route 303.^[14][16] Route 4A was created by the 1940s following a realignment of Route 4 (and U.S. Route 9) between Freehold and Cheesequake; it became Route 79 and a portion of Route 34 in 1953.^[11][14] Route 4 Parkway was planned in 1946 as a north–south parkway running from Cape May north to Route 6 (now U.S. Route 46) in Clifton, bridging the gap that existed along Route 4 between Rahway and Paterson; this proposal became Route 444 (Garden State Parkway).^[14][17] Route S4C was a planned route running from Route 4 in Bennett south to Cape May; the general alignment of this route is now Route 162 and Cape May County Route 626.^[4][14]

In the 1953 renumbering, Route 4 was defined to run along its current alignment between Route 20 in Paterson and the George Washington Bridge. Between Cape May and South Amboy, the Route 4 designation was dropped in favor of U.S. Route 9 while the portion of the route between South Amboy and Rahway became a part of Route 35.^[14] In the mid-1950s, plans resumed for an east–west limited-access road through Bergen County. Three alignments were proposed in 1956: one along Route 4, one along U.S. Route 46, and one in between the two routes.^[12] The alignment between the two routes was chosen due to the least disruption it would cause and it was built as Interstate 80.^[18] In the 1960s, recommendations were made to upgrade Route 4 to a full freeway but was cancelled due to feared disruption to residents.^[12]

Many improvements have been made to the existing Route 4 arterial. The Route 17 interchange in Paramus was rebuilt at a cost of $120 million in 1999, replacing the 1932 cloverleaf interchange by adding several flyover ramps. In 2002, construction was completed on a $32 million project that improved the interchange with Route 208 in Fair Lawn. This interchange saw improvements of the ramps and bridges, including the Route 208 bridge over Saddle River Road.^[12]

Major intersections

County	Location	Mile[1]	Destinations	Notes
Passaic	Paterson	0.00	Route 20 (McLean Boulevard)	Interchange, western terminus, continues as Broadway through Paterson
Bergen	Elmwood Park	0.17	CR 507 (River Drive) – Clifton, Passaic	Interchange, eastbound exit and entrance
	Fair Lawn	2.00	Route 208 north – Oakland	Interchange, westbound exit, eastbound entrance, Broadway ends at merge
		2.11	CR 79 (Saddle River Road)	Interchange
	Paramus	2.38	CR 62 (Paramus Road)	Interchange
		2.90	G.S. Pkwy. south – Saddle Brook	GSP exit 161. Westbound exit, eastbound entrance.
		3.05	Garden State Plaza / Ikea Drive to James F. Brown Jr. Drive	Dumbbell interchange
		3.34	Route 17 – Mahwah, Newark	Interchange
		3.89	Spring Valley Road	Interchange
		4.31	CR 59 (Forrest Avenue)	Interchange
	River Edge	5.25-5.30	CR 51 (Kinderkmack Road) – River Edge	Interchange
	Hackensack	5.67	CR 503 (Hackensack Avenue) – Hackensack, Shops at Riverside, River Edge	Interchange
	Teaneck	6.23	CR 41 (River Road) – Teaneck, Bogota, New Milford	Interchange
		7.14	Queen Anne Road – Ridgefield Park, Bergenfield	Interchange
		7.59	CR 39 (Teaneck Road) – Ridgefield Park, Bergenfield	Interchange
		8.08	Webster Avenue	Eastbound exit and entrance
	Englewood	9.04	Route 93 south / CR 501 (Grand Avenue) – Leonia, Englewood	Interchange
		9.62	Jones Road	Interchange
	Fort Lee	10.59-10.69	US 9W north / US 1-9 south / US 46 west – Fort Lee, Palisades Parkway	Interchange
		10.83	I-95 / US 1-9 north / US 46 east – George Washington Bridge, New York City	Interchange, eastern terminus
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

See also

• U.S. Roads portal
• New Jersey portal

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p} "Route 4 straight line diagram". New Jersey Department of Transportation. http://www.state.nj.us/transportation/refdata/sldiag/00000004__-.pdf. Retrieved 2007-04-08. 
2. ^ ^{a b c d e f g h i} Google, Inc. Google Maps – overview of New Jersey Route 4 (Map). Cartography by Google, Inc. http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&source=s_d&saddr=E+43rd+Street+and+Broadway+Paterson,+New+Jersey&daddr=Fletcher+Avenue+and+Kelby+Street+Fort+Lee,+New+Jersey&hl=en&geocode=&mra=ls&sll=40.91832,-74.131794&sspn=0.003608,0.006866&ie=UTF8&ll=40.897425,-74.056091&spn=0.115483,0.219727&t=h&z=12. Retrieved 2009-02-18. 
3. ^ Keegan, Matthew C.. "Paramus, NJ: Retailing Mecca!". The Article Writer. http://www.thearticlewriter.com/paramus.htm. Retrieved 2008-12-31. 
4. ^ ^{a b c} State of New Jersey, Laws of 1927, Chapter 319.
5. ^ Williams, Jimmy and Sharon. "1927 New Jersey Road Map". 1920s New Jersey Highways. http://www.jimmyandsharonwilliams.com/njroads/1920s/images/1927_routes.gif. Retrieved 2008-10-08. 
6. ^ Williams, Jimmy and Sharon. "NJ 1920s Route 14". 1920s New Jersey Highways. http://www.jimmyandsharonwilliams.com/njroads/1920s/route14.htm. Retrieved 2009-02-18. 
7. ^ Williams, Jimmy and Sharon. "NJ 1920s Route 19-". 1920s New Jersey Highways. http://www.jimmyandsharonwilliams.com/njroads/1920s/route19-.htm. Retrieved 2009-02-18. 
8. ^ Williams, Jimmy and Sharon. "NJ 1920s Route 4". 1920s New Jersey Highways. http://www.jimmyandsharonwilliams.com/njroads/1920s/route04.htm. Retrieved 2009-02-18. 
9. ^ Williams, Jimmy and Sharon. "NJ 1920s Route 7". 1920s New Jersey Highways. http://www.jimmyandsharonwilliams.com/njroads/1920s/route07.htm. Retrieved 2009-02-18. 
10. ^ Williams, Jimmy and Sharon. "1927 Tydol Trails Map - South". 1920s New Jersey Highways. http://www.jimmyandsharonwilliams.com/njroads/1920s/maps/1927tt2.jpg. Retrieved 2009-03-30. 
11. ^ ^{a b} Mid-West Map Co. (1941). Map of Pennsylvania and New Jersey (Map). Cartography by H.M. Gousha. http://www.mapsofpa.com/roadcart/1941_1467m.jpg. Retrieved 2009-03-29. 
12. ^ ^{a b c d} Anderson, Steve. "NJ 4 Freeway (unbuilt)". Eastern Roads. http://www.nycroads.com/roads/NJ-4/. Retrieved 2009-02-18. 
13. ^ State of New Jersey, Laws of 1939, complied.
14. ^ ^{a b c d e f g h} 1953 renumbering. New Jersey Department of Highways. http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/1953_New_Jersey_state_highway_renumbering. Retrieved July 31, 2009. 
15. ^ State of New Jersey, Laws of 1929, Chapter 126.
16. ^ State of New Jersey, Laws of 1938, Chapter 134.
17. ^ State of New Jersey, Laws of 1946, Chapter 117.
18. ^ Anderson, Steve. "Interstate 80 (New Jersey)". Eastern Roads. http://nycroads.com/roads/I-80_NJ/. Retrieved 2009-02-18. 

External links

• An enlarged view of road jurisdiction at the Fort Lee approaches to the George Washington Bridge
• New Jersey Roads: Route 4
• New Jersey Highway Ends: 4
• Speed Limits for State Roads
• Police Scanner Frequencies for Route 4