Concert, road work could cause weekend delays

Drivers around New Jersey will likely encounter some traffic issues around the state this weekend as crowds flock to the Jersey Shore for a concert and road construction continues in other parts of the state.

The Gentlemen of the Road Stopover stage in Seaside Heights on Friday night (Borough of Seaside Heights)

The "Gentlemen of the Summer" music festival featuring Mumford and Sons and Alabama Shakes starts on Friday and runs through Saturday in Seaside Heights and is expected to draw 35,000.

Many concertgoers will be camping on the beach all weekend and will park at Toms River Intermediate North and take shuttle buses to the beach for the shows. However, concert goers could cause delays on Route 37 and the Tony Mathais Bridge heading into Seaside Heights on Saturday. Gates open at 1 p.m. on Saturday for the first show, scheduled for 2 p.m.

The beach in Seaside Heights is closed for the weekend but all roads in-and-out of the beach town are open as usual.

"Think of this weekend as an extra 4th of July weekend for Seaside Heights," reads an announcement on the borough's website, "while surrounding municipalities will be having their usual first weekend of June."

The borough suggests visiting beaches in Seaside Park or Lavallette for those who need their fix of sand and surf but are not attending the festival.

Further to the north, work continues for a second weekend on the Route 1/Route 18 interchange in New Brunswick. The ramp from Route 1 south to Route 18 south, the ramp from Route 18 north to Route 1 south and the ramp from Route 1 north to Route 18 north will all be be closed and detoured starting Friday at 8 p.m. until 5 a.m. on Monday morning.

Construction of the south abutment columns continues on the Route 139
lower roadway, between Central Avenue and Summit Avenue (NJ DOT)

The work by the New Jersey Department of Transportation will also reduce Route 18 to two lanes in each directions. Crews will also stop all traffic at times to remove sections of the bridge.

The eastbound New Jersey Turnpike Hudson extension will have only one lane available between #14 in Newark and #14A in Jersey City starting at 10 p.m. Friday night and last until 5 a.m. on Monday morning

The Pulaski Skyway south will be closed for westbound Route 139 drivers from Friday at 9 p.m. until Monday at 5 a.m. as part of the ongoing rehabilitation project. In addition Route 1&9T north to the Tonelle Circle will be detoured.

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