New Jersey Route 27
North end | Route 21 in Newark | |
---|---|---|
Location | ||
Country | United States | |
State | New Jersey | |
Counties | Mercer, Somerset, Middlesex, Union, Essex | |
Highway system | ||
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Route 27 is a state highway in New Jersey, United States. It runs 38.53 mi (62.01 km) from U.S. Route 206 (US 206) in Princeton, Mercer County northeast to an interchange with Route 21 (McCarter Highway) and Broad Street in Newark, Essex County. The route passes through many communities along the way, including New Brunswick, Highland Park, Edison, Metuchen, Rahway, and Elizabeth. Route 27 is a two- to four-lane undivided highway for most of its length, passing through a variety of urban and suburban environments. It intersects many roads along the way, including Route 18 in New Brunswick, Interstate 287 (I-287) in Edison, the Garden State Parkway in Woodbridge Township, Route 35 in Rahway, Route 28 in Elizabeth, and U.S. Route 22 in Newark. Route 27 crosses the Raritan River on the Albany Street Bridge, which connects Highland Park on the east with New Brunswick on the west.
Route 27 was part of the alignment through New Jersey of the
and New Brunswick in 1917. In 1927, the Lincoln Highway was renumbered as Route 27 between Trenton and Newark. U.S. Route 1 was designated on this portion of the road until it was relocated by the 1940s. U.S. Route 206 followed the route from Trenton to Princeton until 1953, when the southern terminus of Route 27 was cut back to Princeton to avoid the concurrency with U.S. Route 206.Route description
Mercer County
Route 27 begins at a traffic light with U.S. Route 206 and County Route 533 in downtown Princeton, Mercer County. The route heads northeast along Nassau Street, the main street of Princeton that runs along the northern edge of Princeton University and is lined with numerous shops and restaurants.[2] This portion of Route 27 sees between 10,000 and 20,000 cars a day.[1] Just past the beginning of Route 27, County Route 583 heads to the southwest on Mercer Street. Route 27 moves through downtown Princeton, passing by the main gates to Princeton University near Nassau Hall, and intersecting County Route 571 (Washington Road, also signed as County Route 526). After leaving the downtown area, Route 27 continues through residential areas and the route becomes Princeton-Kingston Road. Route 27 runs parallel to Carnegie Lake, then crosses over the Millstone River just north of the historic Kingston Bridge.[1][2] The portion of the road from Princeton to Kingston is part of the King's Highway Historic District.[2]
Middlesex/Somerset County border
Upon crossing the Millstone River, Route 27 runs along the border of
Middlesex County
The route splits from
Upon entering Highland Park, Route 27 becomes two-lane Raritan Avenue, intersecting
Route 27 intersects County Route 531 (Main Street) after 0.2 mi (0.32 km) and continues northeast on Middlesex Avenue, passing through a residential environment where the route carries about 22,414 vehicles daily.[1][2] The road comes to a bridge over Conrail Shared Assets Operations' (CSAO) Port Reading Secondary line. The route crosses back into Edison Township and becomes the Lincoln Highway again, passing over the Rahway River.[1] It heads through business areas and passes near the Thomas Alva Edison Memorial Tower and Museum, which is located on the site of Thomas Edison's Menlo Park laboratory.[2] The route closely parallels the Northeast Corridor rail line and crosses into Woodbridge Township, widening to four lanes at this point. Route 27 passes by the Metropark station serving Amtrak and NJ Transit trains and interchanges with the Garden State Parkway near Iselin, where approximately 19,780 vehicles travel on Route 27 on a daily basis.[1] Past the Garden State Parkway, Route 27 narrows back to two lanes and continues northeast alongside the Northeast Corridor, passing through a mix of residential and commercial development as a three-lane road with two northbound lanes and one southbound lane.[2]
Union and Essex counties
Route 27 crosses into Rahway, Union County and intersects the northern terminus of Route 35. Route 27 continues north using four-lane St. Georges Avenue.[1] The route passes through Rahway, passing by residences and businesses.[2] In Rahway, the route sees about 25,022 cars a day. It continues northeast, intersecting multiple county routes, such as County Route 602 (West Inman Avenue), County Route 621 (Hazelwood Avenue), County Route 608 (Milton Street), and County Route 613 (Westfield Avenue/West Grand Avenue). The route crosses into Linden when passing Stuart Place, where the route heads through a more commercial setting with businesses lining both sides of the road. In Linden, the road intersects County Route 615 (North Stiles Street). At the intersection with County Route 617 (Wood Avenue), Route 27 forms the border of Roselle to the west and Linden to the east, with about 23,081 vehicles using the road on a daily basis The route crosses the inactive Rahway Valley Railroad line that is owned by the Staten Island Railway. It passes by Warinaco Park and forms the border between Elizabeth to the west and Linden to the east before entirely entering Elizabeth at the Richford Terrace intersection.[1][2]
In Elizabeth, Route 27 narrows to two lanes and becomes Rahway Avenue, crossing Route 439 and continuing to the northeast through residential and commercial areas. Route 27 splits into a one-way pair with northbound Route 27 following Rahway Avenue east and turning north onto Cherry Street and southbound Route 27 following Westfield Avenue west and turning south onto Chilton Avenue.[1][2] The southbound direction of Route 27 intersects the eastern terminus of Route 28, where that route continues west on Westfield Avenue.[3] Past the one-way pair, Route 27 resumes east on four-lane Westfield Avenue, turning north onto Broad Street. The route heads into a more urbanized setting and continues northeast onto Newark Avenue, intersecting the northern terminus of Route 439. Through Elizabeth, about 10,000 to 20,000 vehicles travel on Route 27 every day.[1]
Route 27 crosses into
History
The southern part of Route 27 follows the Lenape Assunpink Trail that during the colonial era was known as the Old Dutch Trail, and later became the Kings Highway.[4] North of Rahway, the road was created as Queen Anne's Road, running from Perth Amboy to Elizabethtown Point, with later extensions to Newark and Jersey City. This road would have several names over the following years: it was renamed the King's Highway when it was extended by King George to Jersey City, then to the Post Road during the Revolutionary War, then the Old Country Road after, then finally St. George's Avenue when Rahway was incorporated as a city.[5]
Route 27 follows portions of several 19th-century
In 1916, the Lincoln Highway was legislated as part of
Major intersections
County | Location | mi[1] | km | Destinations | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Southern terminus | |||||
0.04 | 0.064 | CR 583 south (Mercer Street) | Northern terminus of CR 583 | ||
0.40 | 0.64 | CR 526 east / CR 571 south (Washington Road) to N.J. Turnpike | Western terminus of CR 526; northern terminus of CR 571 | ||
South Brunswick–Franklin township line | 6.90 | 11.10 | CR 518 west (Gateway Boulevard) – Rocky Hill | Eastern terminus of CR 518 | |
Middlesex | New Brunswick | 16.22 | 26.10 | CR 527 north (Easton Avenue) | South end of CR 527 overlap |
16.32 | 26.26 | Route 171 south / CR 527 south (George Street) | North end of CR 527 overlap; northern terminus of Route 171 | ||
16.51 | 26.57 | CR 514 west (Johnson Drive) | South end of CR 514 overlap; no access from Route 27 north to CR 514 west. | ||
16.55 | 26.63 | Route 18 south (Memorial Parkway) to N.J. Turnpike | Interchange; no access to Route 18 north / from Route 18 south | ||
Raritan River | 16.65 | 26.80 | Albany Street Bridge | ||
Highland Park | 17.48 | 28.13 | CR 514 east (Woodbridge Avenue) | North end of CR 514 overlap | |
New Market, Dunellen | |||||
20.82– 20.84 | 33.51– 33.54 | I-287 south to N.J. Turnpike / G.S. Parkway | Exits 2A–B (I-287); no access I-287 north / from I-287 south | ||
Metuchen | 21.62 | 34.79 | CR 501 east (Amboy Avenue) | South end of CR 501 overlap | |
21.86 | 35.18 | I-287 north | North end of CR 501 overlap | ||
22.07 | 35.52 | CR 531 (Main Street) – Plainfield, Metuchen Business District | |||
Woodbridge | 24.69 | 39.73 | G.S. Parkway | Exit 132 (Garden State Parkway), was exit 131 until March 2015 | |
Union | Rahway | 27.29 | 43.92 | Route 35 south (St. Georges Avenue) to N.J. Turnpike | Northern terminus of Route 35 |
Elizabeth | 32.98 | 53.08 | Route 439 (South Elmora Avenue) | ||
34.00 | 54.72 | Route 28 west (Westfield Avenue) | Eastern terminus of Route 28 | ||
35.29 | 56.79 | Route 439 south (North Avenue) – North Elizabeth station | Northern terminus of Route 439 | ||
Essex | Newark | 37.31 | 60.04 | US 22 to N.J. Turnpike | Interchange; entrance to US 22 west via Empire Street; exit from US 22 east via Victoria Street |
38.39– 38.53 | 61.78– 62.01 | Route 21 (McCarter Highway) / Broad Street | Interchange; northern terminus; direct access to Route 21 north only | ||
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi
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See also
- U.S. Roads portal
- New Jersey portal
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w "Route 27 straight line diagram" (PDF). New Jersey Department of Transportation. Retrieved March 17, 2020.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Google (2008-12-14). "overview of New Jersey Route 27" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved 2008-12-14.
- ^ "Route 27 Z straight line diagram" (PDF). New Jersey Department of Transportation. Retrieved 2008-12-15.
- ISBN 978-0-7627-1119-2
- ISBN 978-0-7385-2365-1.
- ^ Murphy, John L. (1877). Index of Colonial and State Laws Between the Years 1663 and 1877 Inclusive. Retrieved 2009-01-13.
- ^ Weingroff, Richard F. "The Lincoln Highway". Federal Highway Administration. Retrieved 2008-12-15.
- ^ Annual Report. New Jersey State Highway Department. 1916.
- ^ Annual Report. New Jersey State Highway Department. 1917.
- ^ State of New Jersey, Laws of 1927, Chapter 319.
- ^ 1927 New Jersey Road Map (Map). State of New Jersey. Archived from the original on 2007-10-31. Retrieved 2008-10-08 – via Jimmy and Sharon Williams.
- ^ Map of New Jersey (Map). Tydol Trails. 1927. Archived from the original on May 14, 2011. Retrieved February 9, 2011 – via Jimmy and Sharon Williams.
- ^ H.M. Gousha. Mid-West Map Co. 1941. Retrieved 2009-03-29 – via Historical Maps of Pennsylvania.
- ^ "1953 New Jersey state highway renumbering". Wikisource. New Jersey Department of Highways. Archived from the original on June 28, 2011. Retrieved July 31, 2009.
External links
- Di Ionno, Mark (December 4, 2011). "On N.J. road, the world's dreams unfold". The Star-Ledger. Retrieved 2013-07-30.
- New Jersey Roads: Route 27
- New Jersey Highway Ends: Route 27
- Speed Limits for Route 27