NJ gets $1.1B to fix crumbling bridges

New Jersey is slated to get $1.14 billion of federal money that would go toward major upgrades to nearly all of its bridges in need of major repairs, and the maintenance of 4,500 others, the Biden and Murphy administrations announced on Jan. 14.

The funds come out of the landmark $1.2 trillion infrastructure package that President Joe Biden signed earlier this year, and will be spread out over five years, Gov. Phil Murphy’s office said.

“Modernizing America’s bridges will help improve safety, support economic growth, and make people’s lives better in every part of the country – across rural, suburban, urban, and tribal communities,” reads a prepared Friday statement from U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.

A joint statement from New Jersey’s two Democratic U.S senators said the funds would go toward all 502 bridges listed by the USDOT as being in “poor condition,” though a statement from Murphy’s office indicated that the funds would go toward just 480 of those bridges.

State officials, labor unions and New Jersey’s transportation industry have frequently praised the federal infrastructure bill, with Murphy in November calling the new law a “game-changer” for the Garden State given its high population density, and proximity to several major global shipping ports and New York City.

With @USDOT and @USDOTFHWA’s launch today of the largest investment ever in bridges under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, New Jersey is set to receive at least $1.1 billion over five years to fix bridges across our state.https://t.co/JYMCuhLN7D pic.twitter.com/Y0YD5F4YcP

— Governor Phil Murphy (@GovMurphy) January 14, 2022

“Our state’s structurally deficient bridges put millions of travelers at risk and threaten to slow down New Jersey’s economic growth, especially as we seek to recover from the impact that the COVID-19 pandemic has had on our economy,” reads a Friday statement from U.S Sen. Cory Booker, who is from Newark.

Murphy’s office on Friday called the infrastructure law a “once-in-a-generation investment … which will grow the economy, enhance U.S. competitiveness in the world, create good jobs, and make our transportation system more sustainable and equitable.”

In a separate tweet that same day, the governor characterized the $1.14 billion to the state as “the largest investment ever in bridges.”