Direct Connect Project Moves Lanes on Route 295 Friday Night

A major traffic pattern shift at the Al-Jo Curve on southbound Route 295, part of the $900 million Direct Connect project, is going into effect Friday night, New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT) officials announced.

There will be overnight lane closures as the two lanes of the highway that carry traffic under Route 76 get shifted to the outside portion of the ramp, turning what's now the shoulder of the ramp into a travel lane, starting Friday night, but work should be complete by Saturday morning, officials said.

That shift will be in place for about six months, officials said, as contractor PKF Mark III reconstructs the inside portion of the ramp. Portable message signs will alert travelers to the lane shifts, officials said.

Cars that break down inside the construction zone will be moved to safe zones by an emergency service, officials said, since the breakdown lane is becoming a regular travel lane.

The work is part of the first of four contracts, which runs through 2015 and includes work on Route 295 south of Essex Avenue in Bellmawr, along Route 76 near Market Street in Gloucester City and along two ramps on Route 42.

The entire federally funded project to remake the interchange, which carries around 250,000 vehicles every day, will take about eight years to finish.

Precise timing on the work at the Al-Jo Curve is dependent on weather and other factors, officials said, and real-time traffic information will be posted on nj511.org.