Route-17 in Bergen County is known for one thing, traffic. The increased congestion has caused a string of problems for residents and business owners, from accidents to time lost, pollution, and more. The proposal for improving Route-17 is available to the public until February 2nd. Paramus, Maywood, and Rochelle Park residents and business owners are encouraged to take initiative on the proposal, as this affects them the most.
The study was performed by the Bergen County Department of Planning and Engineering, and the public has the opportunity to leave comments.
The area in discussion is from Essex Street to Fairview Avenue on Route 17. This area has higher than state average crash rates, constant traffic, and road defects. The county is looking to increase the lane size from four to six.
The improvements proposed in this study are as follows:
Additional third travel lane, 12-foot outside shoulder and 3-foot minimum inside shoulder in both directions
Replacement of six bridges with four new bridges and over one mile of retaining walls
New Route 17 Southbound exit ramp to Central Avenue
Modified Route 17 Northbound exit and entrance ramps at Mildred Avenue
New signalized intersection at Farview Avenue and the Route 17 southbound exit and entrance ramps
New signalized intersection at Passaic Street and the Route 17 Northbound exit ramp
Complex utility relocations including gas, electric and communications
New stormwater management basins
Local street connectivity improvements
Access to the Bottleneck Study can be obtained here.