Bridgeton warns of Route 49 and Buckshutem Road closure June 22 to July 31

Drivers who use Route 49 through Bridgeton are being told to plan around a long shutdown at one of the city’s most important intersections. The city posted a driver alert on June 16 warning that the Route 49 and Buckshutem Road crossing will be closed from June 22 through July 31, a span that could disrupt commutes, school drop-offs, deliveries and access to nearby neighborhoods and businesses.

The alert appeared as an all-day event in Bridgeton, 08302, signaling that city officials wanted the warning in front of residents before the closure begins. For anyone who travels Buckshutem Road, East Commerce Street, North Elm or South Elm, the impact could be immediate once the work starts, especially because Route 49 carries steady traffic through this part of Cumberland County.

The closure is tied to a much larger Route 49 and Buckshutem Road intersection-improvement project that NJDOT says runs from mileposts 25.95 to 26.70 in Bridgeton. The transportation department has programmed $11,898,000 for the work, which is meant to address safety and operational problems at what state documents describe as a complex, six-legged, non-signalized intersection with high accident rates, congestion and poor drainage.

Earlier planning documents said possible fixes included traffic signals, improved signing and drainage work. Later design summaries moved toward a new four-legged configuration with realigned local roads and a traffic circle, showing that the project has evolved well beyond a routine resurfacing or patch job. In April 2023, Bridgeton also moved to authorize the sale of city-owned property to the State of New Jersey Department of Transportation for the proposed road improvements and redesign of the Route 49 and Buckshutem Road interchange.

The closure notice also arrives as NJDOT pushes related work just north and south of the intersection. On June 18, the department announced daytime shoulder closures in both directions on Route 49 beginning Monday and continuing for several weeks between Pine Street and Ramblewood Drive, with lane closures possible during construction. Together, the city and state notices show that the June 22 shutdown is part of a longer reconstruction effort aimed at reworking a corridor that has long posed safety and traffic problems for Bridgeton and the surrounding county.