Route 22 Bridge Construction Begins Next Week

Starting next week, the bridge on Route 22 connecting Easton and Phillipsburg will be under construction.

It's going to be a long project, which is why the Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission is continuing to urge Route 22 commuters to switch to Interstate 78.

The commission has in the past urged drivers tosign up for E-Z Pass to make traveling the interstate simpler. On Tuesdsay, it issued a mapshowing motorists how to avoid the Route 22 construction.

The commission writes on its website that it expects "severe traffic congestion and travel delays will arise next week when Route 22 is reduced to single lanes in each direction - instead of the normal two lanes in each direction - to allow for a nearly two-year rehabilitation project on the toll bridge and its corresponding approach roadway and support facilities."

The roughly $30 million project is expected to take until early 2015, and will involve Route 22 being reduced to one lane during part of that time -- six months this year and another nine months in 2014.

In addition to using the interstate, the commission also recommended drivers allow for extra time to get to their destinations, and alter their travel schedules.

Drivers on Route 22 eastbound should expect traffic to merge into a single lane starting around the 13th Street exit. On the westbound sound, the single lane will begin near the toll plaza.

The commission also says it's not recommending the free bridge as an alternative to Route 22, as it's already congested, and has a weight limit that doesn't allow trucks or buses.