State Highways of New Jersey


NJ 7 originates in Jersey City as the Belleville Turnpike, which splits off from the Newark Turnpike out in the meadows. Today’s NJ 7 begins at the Charlotte Circle interchange with US 1/9 TRUCK in Jersey City and heads west (although the road is inventoried south to north, it has a sizable westerly component and some of the cardinal markers read east and west). Once it reaches North Arlington, it climbs a short, steep, winding hill to get to Schuyler Avenue and then crosses “Arlington” (an area that encompasses the northern part of Kearny and the southern part of North Arlington) on a bee line until it reaches the Passaic River – where it stops.

That’s right, it stops. While signs continue to mark NJ 7 on Rutgers Street in Belleville, that section of road is not part of NJ 7; instead, it’s merely SR 506, which used to be co-signed with NJ 7 along the Belleville Pike but is no longer. The “other” part of NJ 7 runs along Washington Avenue in Belleville and Nutley, starting from the Second River on the Newark city line, and then turns left on Kingsland Road. That stretch of highway ends at the Passaic County line where Cathedral Avenue in Nutley becomes Passaic Street in Clifton – again, inexplicably short of NJ 3. Worse yet, Passaic Street is under municipal (not county) control until it reaches NJ 3.

I have not yet met anyone who can explain why NJ 7 is as crazy as it is. However, I can tell you that prior to the 1953 state highway renumbering, the Essex County portion of NJ 7 used to continue southward, down Broadway in Newark, to its intersection with Bloomfield Avenue, then part of NJ 23, now NJ S-506. And I have several maps that indicate a Passaic County continuation of NJ 7, up Passaic Street and then left on Main Avenue to old NJ S-6 (which ran through Paterson before the completion of today’s US 46).

In addition, prior to 1953 the Belleville Turnpike may – or may not – have been designated NJ 9. The number definitely applied to today’s SR 506 between NJ 6 in Pine Brook and NJ 7 in Belleville, and some (but not all) old maps show NJ 9 continuing across Arlington and through the meadows. The NJ 9 designation was discarded in the 1953 renumbering. It is entirely possible that, while legislated, NJ 9 never came under state control, thus leaving NJ 7’s “missing link” under county maintenance and never taken over by the state.

Mile Street Name Feature
  Road continues northward as Passaic St
10.16 Passaic St Clifton City, Passaic Co
Northern terminus of Section 2, Nutley Town, Essex Co
Cathedral Ave Nutley Town, Essex Co
10.05 NJ 7 SPURCR 644 SpurCathedral Ave    
10.01 NJ 7 CR 644Kingsland St    
9.85 Kingsland St CR 645Franklin Ave Signal Franklin Ave
9.66 Kingsland St Passaic Ave Signal Passaic Ave
9.40 NJ 7 Nutley Town, Essex Co
Clifton City, Passaic Co
9.39 Kingsland Rd Yantacaw Brook bridge Yantacaw Brook
9.26 Washington Ave   Signal Kingsland RdCR 606
9.25 Washington Ave Clifton City, Passaic Co
Nutley Town, Essex Co
8.61 Washington Ave Nutley Ave Signal Nutley Ave
8.44 Washington Ave Grant Ave Signal Grant Ave
8.26 Washington Ave Park Ave Signal Park AveCR 646
8.10 Washington Ave Erie Railroad at grade Erie Railroad
8.09 Washington Ave CR 648Centre St Signal
7.89 Washington Ave Hancox Ave Signal Hancox Ave
7.84 Washington Ave Nutley Town, Essex Co
Belleville Twp, Essex Co
7.48 Washington Ave Greylock Pkwy Signal Greylock Pkwy
7.33 Washington Ave Overlook Ave Signal Overlook Ave
7.21 Washington Ave Little St Signal Little St
7.09 Washington Ave Division Ave Signal Division Ave
6.95 Washington Ave Joralemon St Signal Joralemon St
6.74 Washington Ave Holmes St Signal Holmes St
6.48 Washington Ave Rutgers St Signal Rutgers StSR 506
6.40 Washington Ave SR 506Belleville Ave Signal Belleville Ave
6.32 Washington Ave William St Signal William St
6.07 Washington Ave CR 672Mill St Signal Mill StCR 672
6.05 Washington Ave Belleville Twp, Essex Co
Second River bridge Second River
Southern terminus of Section 2, Belleville Twp, Essex Co
Broadway Newark City, Essex Co
  Road continues southward as CR 667Broadway
Mile Street Name Feature
  Road continues westward as SR 506Rutgers St
5.35 Northern terminus of Section 1, Belleville Twp, Essex Co
5.35 Rutgers St NJ 21New Jersey Freeway underpass New Jersey FreewayNJ 21
5.31 NJ 7 Belleville Twp, Essex Co
Passaic River bridge Passaic River
Kearny Town, Hudson Co   North Arlington Boro, Bergen Co
5.22 Belleville Tpk CR 699Passaic Ave Signal River RdSR 507
4.74 Belleville Tpk CR 697Kearny Ave Signal Ridge RdNJ 17
4.35 Belleville Tpk Elm St Signal Elm St
4.22 Belleville Tpk SR 507Schuyler Ave Signal Schuyler AveCR 130
3.72 Belleville Tpk     North Arlington Boro, Bergen Co
Saw Mill Creek bridge Saw Mill Creek
    Kearny Town, Hudson Co
3.62 Belleville Tpk Lackawanna Railroad underpass Lackawanna Railroad
3.00 Belleville Tpk Erie Railroad overpass Erie Railroad
2.72 Belleville Tpk I-95New Jersey Turnpike underpass New Jersey TurnpikeI-95
2.51 Belleville Tpk Erie Railroad overpass Erie Railroad
2.20 Belleville Tpk I-95New Jersey Turnpike underpass New Jersey TurnpikeI-95
2.02 Belleville Tpk Branch Hackensack River bridge Branch Hackensack River
1.83 Belleville Tpk Pennsylvania Railroad overpass Pennsylvania Railroad
1.36 NJ 7 SR 508Newark Tpk merge  
1.24 NJ 7 Lackawanna Railroad overpass Lackawanna Railroad
1.15 NJ 7 Lackawanna Railroad overpass Lackawanna Railroad
0.56 Newark Tpk CR 659Fish House Rd bridge Fish House RdCR 659
0.42 Newark Tpk Kearny Town, Hudson Co
Hackensack River bridge Hackensack River
Jersey City, Hudson Co
0.00 NJ 7 US 1TRUCK Signal Charlotte AveCR 645
0.00 Southern terminus of Section 1, Jersey City, Hudson Co
  Road continues eastward as US 1TRUCK

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