U.S. Route 22 in New Jersey

US 22 westbound at Main Street in Phillipsburg

US 22 enters New Jersey from Easton, Pennsylvania, on the Easton–Phillipsburg Toll Bridge over the Delaware River and Norfolk Southern Railway's Portland Secondary line.[2] It heads into Phillipsburg, Warren County, as a four-lane undivided road maintained by the Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission (DRJTBC), eventually becoming a divided highway.[1][2] East of the bridge, the westbound lanes pass through the bridge toll plaza, and the route has an eastbound exit and westbound entrance for Broad and Main streets.[1] From the previous exit, US 22 runs eastward as a four-lane undivided road maintained by the New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT) that ends in an interchange with Morris Street and Hillcrest Boulevard.[1] At this point, the route becomes at-grade Memorial Boulevard; a commercial four to six-lane divided thoroughfare with a wide median consisting of U-turn ramps and jughandles. The median narrows as the road forms the border between Lopatcong Township to the north and Phillipsburg to the south.[1][2] The route fully enters Lopatcong Township and comes to an interchange with Route 57, with an eastbound exit and a westbound entrance.[1] After passing the Route 57 junction, US 22 takes a southeasterly turn and passes over the Washington Secondary line that is owned by Norfolk Southern Railway and operated by the Dover and Delaware River Railroad before entering an agricultural area. The route forms the border between Pohatcong Township to the west and Greenwich Township to the east as it passes to the east of former Phillipsburg Mall. A short distance later, US 22 intersects County Route 519 (CR 519) before heading back into a business district and meeting CR 638. East of Alpha, the route intersects Route 122, which is the final junction of the at-grade section of US 22.[1][2]

I-78/US 22 westbound past Route 31 interchange in Clinton

Past the Route 122 intersection, US 22 has an interchange with exit 3 of I-78 and the western endpoint of Route 173. From there, US 22 is concurrent with I-78 through a mountainous and rural area of western New Jersey.[1][2] I-78/US 22 follow a six-lane freeway east through Greenwich Township, coming to a westbound exit and eastbound entrance with CR 637. The road turns southeast and has an eastbound exit and westbound entrance with CR 632 in Franklin Township.[1] Within the ramps for this interchange, there are weigh stations in both directions.[2] A short distance after this interchange, I-78/US 22 crosses the Musconetcong River into Bloomsbury, Hunterdon County. In Bloomsbury, the road has an interchange with Route 173.[1] After this interchange, the freeway enters Bethlehem Township, with Route 173 closely running to the north of I-78/US 22.[1][2] The road comes to a bridge over Norfolk Southern Railway's Central Running Track line and has rest areas in both directions before it passes over Norfolk Southern Railway's Lehigh Line and turns southeast to cross Musconetcong Mountain.[2]

The freeway turns east again and enters Union Township, coming to an interchange with CR 614 and Route 173.[1] From here, I-78/US 22 continue east directly to the south of Route 173, coming to another interchange with that route as well as CR 625. Entering more commercial areas, Route 173 merges onto I-78/US 22 at exit 13.[1][2] At exit 15, the highway meets an interchange with CR 513, and Route 173 splits from I-78/US 22 by heading north on CR 513. At this point, the freeway runs along the border of Franklin Township to the south and Clinton to the north before entirely entering Clinton and crossing the South Branch Raritan River.[1] I-78/US 22 turns northeast and leaves Clinton for Clinton Township, where it has an eastbound exit and westbound entrance for Route 173 that also provides access to Route 31.[1][2] Immediately after is the interchange with Route 31.[1] At the next interchange near the community of Annandale, US 22 splits from I-78, heading closely to the south of that route.[1][2]

US 22 eastbound in Bridgewater Township

View east along US 22 in Branchburg Township

Upon splitting from I-78, US 22 becomes a four-lane at-grade divided highway that runs through rural areas with some development and crosses NJ Transit's Raritan Valley Line. It enters Lebanon, passing to the north of the town center. Upon leaving Lebanon, the route heads back into Clinton Township. In the community of Potterstown, US 22 enters Readington Township and takes a southeasterly turn away from I-78. Here, the road passes to the southwest of the Merck Headquarters Building before reaching the community of Whitehouse Station, where it has a short concurrency with CR 523.[1][2] Past Whitehouse Station, US 22 continues through a mix of residential and commercial areas.[2]

US 22 continues into Branchburg, Somerset County, where development near the road increases but remains mostly rural. CR 614 parallels US 22 to the north to pass through the community of North Branch before US 22 intersects CR 637 and crosses the North Branch Raritan River into Bridgewater Township.[1][2] In Bridgewater Township, the route comes to an interchange with the eastern terminus of CR 614 and the western terminus of Route 28.[1] Past this interchange, US 22 passes business parks and the Raritan Valley Country Club, widening to six lanes in the process. Afterward, it comes to an interchange with US 202 and US 206. Past this interchange, US 22 quickly transitions from a rural to a more suburban setting and heads east along the border of Somerville to the south and Bridgewater Township to the north, passing south of the Bridgewater Commons shopping mall. The median of the route widens as it runs immediately to the south of I-287, fully entering Bridgewater Township again as it comes to an interchange with I-287 at exits 14A and 14B.[1][2]

View east along US 22 at Cramer Avenue in Green Brook

East of I-287, US 22 continues east as a four-lane divided highway passing to the south of the Watchung Mountains.[2] The road comes to an interchange with CR 675, where it also passes under Norfolk Southern Railway's Middle Brook Industrial Track line. The route then has an interchange with CR 525, where the wide grassy median narrows to a Jersey barrier. The road continues through wooded surroundings and passes through a portion of Bound Brook, widening back to six lanes before meeting CR 527 at an interchange.[1][2] From here, the route takes a northeasterly course, entering Bridgewater Township again and narrowing to four lanes before crossing into Green Brook Township while designated a short distance north of the Middlesex–Somerset county border.[1] US 22 continues through business areas as a highway with jughandles, crossing CR 529.[1][2] In North Plainfield, the route widens to six lanes and has an interchange with CR 531. Past this interchange, the road continues along the border of Watchung to the west and North Plainfield to the southeast before crossing Green Brook.[1]

US 22 eastbound at a U-turn ramp in Union

At this crossing, US 22 heads north-northeast into Scotch Plains, Union County, coming to an interchange with CR 655.[1] The route continues northeast as a four- to five-lane highway, passing near former Bowcraft Amusement Park.[2] The road continues east through Mountainside, turning northeast before entering Springfield, where it has an interchange with CR 577.[1][2] Past this interchange, for 1.8 miles (2.9 km), US 22 has a wide median that contains commercial businesses and numerous U-turn ramps. In this area, the road comes to a level crossing with the abandoned Rahway Valley Railroad.[2] It crosses the Rahway River into Union, where the wide median continues. The route briefly forms the northern border of Kenilworth before the median narrows back into a Jersey barrier. US 22 splits into two carriageways at the intersection with exits 140 and 140A of the Garden State Parkway and Route 82, site of the Union Watersphere.[1][2]

Past this interchange, the route comes to an exit for CR 630 before crossing the Elizabeth River into Hillside, where it heads east through more urban areas.[1][2] The road has an interchange at Bloy Street before passing over CR 509 and Conrail Shared Assets Operations (CSAO)'s Irvington Industrial Track line. After an interchange with Broad Street, US 22 turns northeast as a limited-access roadway.[1] It heads into Newark in Essex County, where the highway crosses under CSAO's Lehigh Line, which also carries NJ Transit's Raritan Valley Line, and passes through wooded Weequahic Park parallel to the railroad tracks. Past the park, US 22 turns to the east into urban areas and closely runs to the south of I-78, where it comes to an eastbound exit and westbound entrance for Empire Street, which provides access to Route 27.[1][2] A short distance later, the freeway has a direct westbound exit and eastbound entrance with Route 27.[1] Past this interchange, US 22 continues parallel to I-78, passing over Amtrak's Northeast Corridor before reaching the Newark Airport Interchange; south of Downtown Newark and northwest of Newark Liberty International Airport.[1][2] US 22 eastbound merges with US 1/9, with one southbound ramp and two northbound ramps (one for local and another for express lanes). The main line follows the US 1/9 local northbound ramp for another 0.4 miles (0.64 km), with an intermediate exit for Route 21. The official eastern terminus of US 22 is at the ramp split for I-78 and northbound US 1/9.[2][3]

US 22 eastbound at CR 577 interchange in Springfield Township