Access To & From

• NJ Turnpike - 1 & 9 - 78 - Garden State Parkway
• Newark Liberty Airport - Port Newark
• 20 Minutes Drive to Manhattan
• 25 Minute Direct train to grand central NY Manhattan

A major component of the Jersey Gardens Mall, the IKEA Elizabeth Center at 13A, and other economic redevelopment projects in Elizabeth is transportation. Accordingly, access roads and intersections have been improved, new roads to alleviate traffic have been constructed, and additional modes of transportation are being developed.

These significant infrastructure improvements include:
 

• North Avenue East, widened to six lanes
• New "Flyover" Bridge, linking Exit 13A to both the Elizabeth Center and the Jersey Gardens Mall
• Improved intersection at North Avenue, Kapkowski Road and Center Drive
• New access roads for local residents
• A proposed Ferry between Elizabeth and Manhattan
• A Light Rail Link between Elizabeth and other NJ cities

"Flyover" Bridge

The "flyover" bridge linking Exit 13A of the NJ Turnpike to the Elizabeth Center and Jersey Gardens Mall was constructed to alleviate the excess traffic generated by the opening of the mall.

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To make it easier for Elizabeth's residents and visitors to access New York City, plans are being developed to establish a passenger ferry between Elizabeth and Manhattan. The ferry would leave from a location behind the Jersey Gardens Mall parking lot.

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After NJ Transit and Union County officials closed a $4 million deal in July 2001, the passenger Light Rail Link between downtown Elizabeth and Newark International Airport is one step closer to reality. The agreement, which covers design, engineering work, property acquisition and other groundwork, is the first step in a process that will ultimately connect Elizabeth's renovated Midtown train station with Newark International Airport, and Newark's Broad Street and Penn Stations. 

The project, scheduled for completion in 2005, will run along tracks used by the now-defunct New Jersey Central Railroad and will make stops at the Jersey Gardens Mall, the new hotels under construction in the City, the IKEA Elizabeth Center at 13A, and the site of a proposed ferry between Elizabeth and Manhattan. Passengers would be able to transfer from NJ Transit's Northeast Corridor line to the Light Rail. Ultimately, the Link will be extended to connect other cities throughout Union County and the Hudson-Bergen Light Rail system.

"This rail line will energize businesses throughout the City and provide easy access to jobs and shopping," Mayor Chris Bollwage said. Mayor Bollwage also emphasized that the Light Rail system would reduce traffic congestion.

The trains will be identical to those used by the Hudson-Bergen Light Rail and the Newark subway systems: state-of-the-art, handicap accessible cars that are modeled after the European rail system and can provide a smooth, quiet and fast ride for up to 200 passengers at a time.

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