New Jersey is home to the nation’s worst traffic jam (again)

Every year, the American Transportation Research Institute identifies the worst bottlenecks in the country, and, once again, New Jersey is home to the worst.

The nation’s worst bottleneck, then, is at the intersection of Rte. 4 and I-95 at the foot of the George Washington Bridge.

How do they reach their conclusions; here is the methodology, but it’s kind of a slog for non-transportation engineers:

ATRI’s bottleneck analysis incorporates and synthesizes several unique components, including a massive database of truck GPS data at freight-significant locations throughout the U.S. and an algorithm that quantifies the impact of congestion on truck-based freight. In addition, the annual reports provide a chronological repository of mobility profiles, allowing congestion changes to be assessed over time.

And the bad news is, it’s getting worse; the average speed was 20.2 miles per hour in 2022, down 10% from 22.4 mph in 2021. The average speed overall was 26.8 mph, an 11% decline from 30.1 mph a year earlier.

The president of the institute, Rebecca Brewster, told NJ.com,

It’s not an easy infrastructure fix. It’s not an easy rebuild, it’s an entrance to a toll bridge, it’s a location where a number of roads come together, and you’re landlocked in terms of what’s all around there.

It is hoped that the recent switch to cashless tolling and the expected removal of the toll booths will help reduce the congestion leading onto the bridge.

The intersection of I-76 and I-676 in Camden also made the top 100 worst bottlenecks list.

The second worst jam is in Cincinnati where I-71 and I-75 meet, followed by Houston (I-46 and I-69). The top 100 can be found here.

Opinions expressed in the post above are those of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Bill Doyle only.

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