- New Jersey Route 7
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"NJ 7" redirects here. NJ 7 may also refer to New Jersey's 7th congressional district.
Route 7
Belleville Turnpike 
Route information Maintained by NJDOT, Township of Nutley, and Passaic County Length: 10.16 mi[1] (16.35 km) Existed: 1927 – present Southern section Length: 5.35 mi[1] (8.61 km) East end: 
US 1-9 Truck in Jersey CityMajor
junctions:
CR 508 in Kearny
Route 17 in North ArlingtonWest end: 
Route 21 in BellevilleNorthern section Length: 4.11 mi[1] (6.61 km) South end: Newark/Belleville border North end: Nutley/Clifton border Highway system New Jersey State Highway Routes
Interstate and US← 
Route 6Route 8 
→Route 7 is a state highway in the northern part of New Jersey in the United States. It has two sections, an east–west alignment running from U.S. Route 1/9 Truck in Jersey City to Route 21 in Belleville, and a north–south alignment running from the Newark/Belleville to the Nutley/Clifton border, and is one of two state highways in New Jersey to have an intentional discontinuity (New Jersey Route 440 is the other). The New Jersey Department of Transportation lists Route 7 as a single north–south highway with a small gap between the alignments. The entire highway has a combined length of 10.16 mi (16.35 km).
The southern section of Route 7, which runs from Jersey City to Belleville, passes through industrial areas, the New Jersey Meadowlands, Arlington Memorial Park, and some residential and business areas. West of the interchange with County Route 508 in Kearny, Route 7 is the Belleville Turnpike, a historic road created in 1759. The northern section of Route 7 runs north through residential and business areas of Belleville and Nutley into Clifton, where it turns west and crosses back into Nutley, briefly turning to the north to come to its northern terminus. A portion of the route in Nutley is municipally maintained while the portion within Clifton is maintained by Passaic County. The two separate sections of Route 7 are linked by County Route 506 (Rutgers Street) in Belleville, which is signed as Route 7 despite the fact it is not officially part of the route.
Route 7 was established in 1927 to run from Jersey City to Paterson, replacing Pre-1927 Route 11 between Belleville and Paterson. The routing was amended in 1929 to head to Route 3 in Wallington and was extended north to Route 6 (now U.S. Route 46) in East Paterson in 1949. In 1953, the route was modified to follow its current alignment.
Contents
Route description
Southern section
Route 7 at Truck US 1-9.
The first section of Route 7 begins at an intersection with U.S. Route 1-9 Truck and County Route 645 (Charlotte Avenue) in Jersey City, Hudson County, heading to the west on a four-lane highway that is signed east–west.[1] The route crosses the Hackensack River on the Wittpenn Bridge into Kearny. Route 7 interchanges with County Route 659 (Fish House Road) and widens to a six-lane divided highway. The route than passes by industrial areas and a railroad yard and then interchanges with County Route 508.[1][2] Past this interchange, Route 7 becomes the four-lane, divided Belleville Turnpike. The route narrows to a two-lane, undivided road and heads northwest into the New Jersey Meadowlands, passing under the mainline of the New Jersey Turnpike (Interstate 95) and the western spur of the New Jersey Turnpike a short distance later.[1][2]
Route 7 continues northwest, widens into a divided highway, and forms the border of Kearny to the south and North Arlington, Bergen County to the north, entering a more residential environment.[1][2] The route is signed north–south along the border of Kearny and North Arlington.[3] The road intersects Schuyler Avenue, which runs as County Route 507 to the south of Route 7 and County Route 130 to the north of Route 7. County Route 507 joins Route 7 at this intersection and the two routes continue west, meeting the southern terminus of Route 17 (Ridge Road) and the northern terminus of County Route 697 (Kearny Avenue). Past this intersection, County Route 507 splits from Route 7 by heading north on River Road, County Route 699 heads to the south on Passaic Avenue, and Route 7 continues west, crossing the Passaic River on a drawbridge into Belleville, Essex County, where the first section of Route 7 ends at an intersection with Route 21.[1]
Northern section
The second section of Route 7, designated a north–south road, heads north on Washington Avenue from the Second River crossing on the Newark/Belleville border, passing through a business district.[4] The route intersects County Route 506 (Belleville Avenue), and that route forms a concurrency with Route 7 that lasts one block to the intersection with Rutgers Street, where County Route 506 heads to the east.[1] Rutgers Street is used to connect the two sections of Route 7 and is named for Colonel Henry Rutgers, an American Revolutionary War hero and benefactor of what is now Rutgers University. It is signed as but not officially part of Route 7. Route 7 is not signed on Washington Avenue between the Second River and Rutgers Street except on overhead signs suspended from traffic signals.[4]
From Rutgers Street, Route 7 continues north, crossing into Nutley.[1] At the intersection with County Route 646 (Park Avenue), Route 7 turns into a municipally maintained road and enters a more residential area.[1][4] Upon intersecting County Route 606 (Kingsland Road), Route 7 crosses into Clifton, Passaic County and heads to the west on county-maintained Kingsland Street signed east–west.[1][4] It crosses back into Nutley, Essex County and regains state maintenance. At the intersection with County Route 644, Route 7 turns north onto Cathedral Avenue and comes to its terminus at the Nutley/Clifton border less than one-half mile from an interchange with Route 3.[1]
History
The Belleville Turnpike was created in 1759 as a turnpike made out of cedar logs and was chartered in 1808.[5][6] It served as a part of the Underground Railroad route for escaped slaves to get to Jersey City.[7] The northern segment of Route 7 was originally a part of Pre-1927 Route 11, which was legislated in 1917 to run from Newark to Paterson.[8] In the 1927 New Jersey state highway renumbering, Route 7 was designated to run from Jersey City to Paterson, replacing Pre-1927 Route 11 between Belleville and Paterson.[9][10]
Route 11NIn 1929, the routing was amended to run from Route 25 (now U.S. Route 1/9 Truck) in Jersey City to Route 3 in Wallington.[11] Route 7 was extended north in 1949 to continue to Route 6 (now U.S. Route 46) in East Paterson (now Elmwood Park).[12] In the 1953 New Jersey state highway renumbering, Route 7 was legislated onto its current alignment, with the northern terminus moved to the Nutley/Clifton border.[13] The route was also realigned to head south on Washington Avenue between the Newark border and Rutgers Street in Belleville on what was Route 11N, a remnant of Pre-1927 Route 11, making Route 7 discontinuous.[14] County Route 506 used to follow the southern portion of Route 7 but has been truncated to the intersection with Routes 7 and 21 in Belleville.[15]
Major intersections
County Location Mile[1] Road(s) Notes Hudson Jersey City 0.00 
US 1-9 Truck / CR 645 north (Charlotte Avenue)Eastern terminus 0.42 Wittpenn Bridge over Hackensack River Kearny 0.56 
CR 659 west (Fish House Road)Interchange 1.40 CR 508 west (Harrison Street)Interchange Hudson/Bergen Kearny/North Arlington 4.22 
CR 507 south / CR 130 north (Schuyler Avenue)South end of CR 507 overlap 4.74 
Route 17 north (Ridge Road) / CR 697 south (Kearny Avenue)5.22 
CR 507 north (River Road) / CR 699 south (Passaic Avenue)North end of CR 507 overlap Essex Belleville 5.35 Route 21Interchange; Northern terminus of first section 6.05 Newark/Belleville border Southern terminus of second section 6.40 
CR 506 west (Belleville Avenue)South end of CR 506 overlap 6.48 CR 506 east (Rutgers Street)North end of CR 506 overlap Nutley 10.16 Nutley/Clifton border Northern terminus 1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi See also
U.S. Roads portal
New Jersey portal
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n "Route 7 straight line diagram". New Jersey Department of Transportation. http://www.state.nj.us/transportation/refdata/sldiag/00000007__-.pdf. Retrieved 2008-11-10.
- ^ a b c Google, Inc. Google Maps – overview of New Jersey Route 7 southern section (Map). Cartography by Google, Inc. http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&source=s_d&saddr=route+7+and+wallis+avenue+jersey+city+nj&daddr=route+7+and+route+21+belleville+nj&geocode=&hl=en&mra=ls&sll=40.784148,-74.143724&sspn=0.015272,0.027466&ie=UTF8&t=h&z=13. Retrieved 2009-04-01.
- ^ Google, Inc. Google Maps – Belleville Turnpike and Schuyler Avenue, North Arlington, NJ (Map). Cartography by Google, Inc. http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Belleville+Turnpike+and+Schuyler+Avenue,+North+Arlington,+NJ&layer=c&cbll. Retrieved 2008-11-14.
- ^ a b c d Google, Inc. Google Maps – overview of New Jersey Route 7 northern section (Map). Cartography by Google, Inc. http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&source=s_d&saddr=washington+avenue+and+mill+street+belleville+nj&daddr=cathedral+avenue+and+princeton+street+clifton+nj&hl=en&geocode=&mra=ls&sll=40.781224,-74.153895&sspn=0.007637,0.013733&ie=UTF8&t=h&z=13. Retrieved 2009-04-01.
- ^ "Town of Kearny History". Town of Kearny. Archived from the original on May 4, 2008. http://web.archive.org/web/20080504172408/http://www.kearnynj.org/History.asp. Retrieved 2008-11-11.
- ^ Murphy, John L.. Index of Colonial and State Laws Between the Years 1663 and 1877 Inclusive. Stare of New Jersey. http://books.google.com/books?id=LVY4AAAAIAAJ. Retrieved 2008-11-11.
- ^ Wiggins, Genene P. (March 14, 1994). "Danger-filled path to freedom led slaves through Jersey City". Jersey Journal. http://www.cityofjerseycity.org/ur/hallowedground.shtml. Retrieved 2008-11-11.
- ^ Williams, Jimmy and Sharon. "NJ 1920s Route 11-". 1920s New Jersey Highways. http://www.jimmyandsharonwilliams.com/njroads/1920s/route11.htm. Retrieved 2008-11-11.
- ^ State of New Jersey, Laws of 1927, Chapter 319.
- ^ 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.
- ^ State of New Jersey, Laws of 1929, Chapter 126.
- ^ State of New Jersey, Laws of 1949, Chapter 175.
- ^ 1953 renumbering. New Jersey Department of Highways. http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/1953_New_Jersey_state_highway_renumbering. Retrieved July 31, 2009.
- ^ State of New Jersey, Laws of 1939, complied.
- ^ Rutgers University Cartography Services (1965). Hudson County Road Map – Sheet 2 (Map). http://mapmaker.rutgers.edu/HUDSON_COUNTY/HudsonCountyHighway_2_1965.gif. Retrieved 2008-11-12.
External links
Categories:- State highways in New Jersey
- Transportation in Bergen County, New Jersey
- Transportation in Essex County, New Jersey
- Transportation in Hudson County, New Jersey
- Transportation in Passaic County, New Jersey
- Clifton, New Jersey
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