Roads and highways South entering Essex County , the county had a total of of roadways, of which are maintained by the local municipality, by Essex County and by the
New Jersey Department of Transportation and by the
New Jersey Turnpike Authority. Essex County is traversed by a number of highways. Three primary interstates and one auxiliary cross the county. This includes two long distance main interstates, one north–south
Interstate 95 (concurrent with the
New Jersey Turnpike toll road) and one east–west
Interstate 80. East-West
Interstate 78 also crosses the county. All of these only have interchanges in one municipality in the county,
Newark for I-95 and I-78 and
Fairfield for I-80.
Interstate 280 passes through the county in a northeast–southwest direction and has exits in
Roseland,
Livingston,
West Orange,
Orange,
East Orange and Newark, making it one of the most important roads for intracounty travel. Essex County also has four U.S. Routes that cross it.
Route 1/9 are
concurrent and a freeway throughout their length in the county. They pass through Newark from
Elizabeth in
Union County to
Kearny in
Hudson County. It crosses over the
Passaic River on the
Pulaski Skyway, which bans trucks, so just before it leaves the county in the north
Truck 1/9 splits for the traffic that is not allowed on the bridge.
Truck 1/9 is also a freeway its entire length in the county.
U.S. Route 22 eastern terminus is in Newark the only municipality it crosses in the county. It is a freeway along it route in Essex County. It connects Newark with points to the east. The last U.S. Route in the county is
U.S. Route 46, which passes through
Fairfield, where it is a major commercial road that parallels
Interstate 80. The most important state road in the county is the
Garden State Parkway which passes north–south through the county, connecting
Union Township in the south in
Union County to
Clifton in the north in
Passaic County. It is a toll road, a freeway, and bans trucks of more than 7,000 pounds during its entire length in the county. It has one interchange in
Irvington, one in
Newark, two in
East Orange, and four in
Bloomfield. Outside the county, it is the longest road of any kind in the state.
New Jersey Route 7 is a major arterial road in
Nutley and
Belleville. It has two discontinuous sections. The southern section starts at an overpass for
Route 21 and passes over the
Belleville Turnpike Bridge into border between
Hudson and
Bergen counties. The northern section starts at the
Newark/
Belleville border passes through
Belleville and
Nutley until in crosses into
Clifton. Other highways in the county include: •
Route 10 •
Route 21 •
Route 23 •
Route 24 (Only in
Millburn) •
Route 27 (only in
Newark) •
Route 124 •
Route 159 (Only in
Fairfield) •
Eisenhower Parkway Buses There are many buses that operate around the county, with
NJ Transit (NJT) headquarters located just behind
Newark Penn Station, a transit hub in the eastern part of the county. There are two major bus terminals in the county, Newark Penn Station and the
Irvington Bus Terminal.
Community Coach, and
OurBus operate buses from Essex County to the
Port Authority Bus Terminal in
New York City. Some of the
NJ Transit bus lines follow former
streetcar lines.
Rail Essex County has a large rail network, but most train service is geared toward the heavily utilized Newark/New York City commute. All of the passenger rail lines in the county are electrified, although many trains that continue on to non-electrified lines use dual-mode or diesel push-pull locomotives.
Commuter rail NJ Transit has five lines that make stops in the county. All of them stop at either Newark Penn Station or
Newark Broad Street station. The
Northeast Corridor Line from
Trenton with connections from
Philadelphia's
30th Street Station,
Camden, and
Princeton has stops at
Newark Airport and Newark Penn Stations before continuing to
Secaucus Junction and
New York Penn Station. The
North Jersey Coast Line from
Bay Head or
Long Branch also stops at Newark Airport and Newark Penn Stations before continuing to Secaucus Junction and New York Penn Station or
Hoboken Terminal. The
Raritan Valley Line from
High Bridge usually terminates in Newark Penn Station, but mid-day trains continue to New York and one eastbound morning train terminates at
Hoboken Terminal. The
Montclair-Boonton Line from
Hackettstown or
Little Falls has six stations in
Montclair, one in
Glen Ridge, and two in
Bloomfield before reaching
Newark Broad Street Station and continuing to
Secaucus Junction and
New York Penn Station or
Hoboken Terminal. The
Morris and Essex Lines from
Hackettstown and
Peapack-Gladstone has two stops in
Millburn, one in
Maplewood, and two each in
South Orange,
Orange and
East Orange before reaching
Newark Broad Street and continuing to
Secaucus Junction and
New York Penn Station or
Hoboken Terminal.
Light rail The
Newark Light Rail is completely contained within the county. It has 17 stations in
Newark,
Belleville, and
Bloomfield and also operates out of
Newark Penn Station. It is composed of two lines: the
Newark City Subway and the Broad Street Extension. The Newark City Subway is the only survivor of the many
street car lines that once crossed New Jersey, although it no longer uses street cars. It survived in part because it does not include
street running, instead following the abandoned
Morris Canal right of way before going underground. It has one station in Bloomfield and one in Belleville on the old Orange Branch of the
New York & Greenwood Lake Service of the Erie Railroad before entering Newark and turning onto the Morris Canal right of way. From there it follows Branch Brook Park before turning into downtown Newark as a subway. It has nine stops in Newark before terminating in Newark Penn Station. The Broad Street Extension was built to provide connections between Newark Penn Station and Newark Broad Street Station and service to the waterfront of Newark. Leaving Penn Station, the line comes up from the subway and runs on streets or at grade for most of its length. It stops at
NJPAC/Center Street,
Atlantic Street, and
Riverfront Stadium before reaching Broad Street Station. From Broad Street it takes a different route stopping at
Washington Park and NJPAC/Center Street before arriving at Penn Station.
Rapid transit The
PATH also operates out of
New York Penn Station. It has direct service to
Harrison,
Jersey City, and
Lower Manhattan. With a free transfer, the
PATH also provides service to
Hoboken, as well as
Greenwich Village,
Chelsea, and
Midtown Manhattan.
Intercity rail Amtrak has two stations in the county,
Newark Penn Station and
Newark Airport, both on the
Northeast Corridor. Newark Penn Station has service on the only
high speed train in the
Western Hemisphere, the
Acela Express, to
Boston,
Philadelphia,
Baltimore, and
Washington, D.C. Newark Penn Station also offers services on the
Cardinal to
Chicago;
Carolinian to
Charlotte;
Crescent to
New Orleans;
Keystone Service to
Harrisburg;
Palmetto to
Charleston;
Pennsylvanian to
Pittsburgh;
Northeast Regional to
Newport News,
Norfolk, and
Lynchburg;
Silver Star and
Silver Meteor to
Miami; and
Vermonter to
St. Albans all with intermediate stops.
Newark Airport is served by Northeast Regional and Keystone Service trains.
Monorail Newark Liberty International Airport has a monorail called
AirTrain Newark that connects the terminals, four parking areas, and the
Newark Liberty International Airport Station on the Northeast Corridor. The monorail is free except for service to and from the train station.
Airports Newark Liberty International Airport is a major commercial airport located in the southeast section of the county in Newark and
Elizabeth in Union County. It is one of the New York Metropolitan airports operated by
Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. It is a hub for
United Airlines. It is also a leading cargo airport and is a hub for
FedEx Express and
Kalitta Air. The
Essex County Airport in
Fairfield is a
general aviation airport.
Ports Port Newark-Elizabeth Marine Terminal is a major component of the
Port of New York and New Jersey. Located on the Newark Bay it serves as the principal container ship facility for goods entering and leaving New York-Newark metropolitan area, and the northeastern quadrant of North America. It consists of two components – Port Newark and the Elizabeth Marine Terminal (sometimes called "Port Elizabeth") – which exist side by side and are run conjointly by the
Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. The facility is located within the boundaries of the two cities of
Newark and
Elizabeth, just east of the
New Jersey Turnpike and
Newark Liberty International Airport.
Bridges Several important or noteworthy bridges currently or historically exist at least partially in the county. Most of them cross
Newark Bay or the
Passaic River into
Hudson or
Bergen counties. The
Newark Bay Bridge carries
Interstate 78 over Newark Bay from Newark to
Bayonne and is currently the most southern bridge crossing the bay. The
Upper Bay Bridge, a
vertical-lift bridge located just north of the
Newark Bay Bridge, carries a freight train line over the bay from
Newark to
Bayonne. The
PD Draw is an abandoned and partially dismantled railroad bridge across the Passaic River from Newark to
Kearny. The
Lincoln Highway Passaic River Bridge carries
Truck 1/9 across the Passaic River and is currently the southernmost crossing of the river before it reaches the bay. It is a vertical-lift bridge and was the route that the
Lincoln Highway used to cross the river. The
Pulaski Skyway, the most famous bridge entirely in New Jersey, carries
Route 1/9 across the
Passaic River,
Kearny Point, and the
Hackensack River from Newark through
Kearny to
Jersey City. The
Point-No-Point Bridge is a railroad
swing bridge that carries a freight line across the Passaic River between Newark and Kearny. The
Jackson Street Bridge is a historic vehicular swing bridge across the Passaic from Newark to
Harrison. The
Dock Bridge, listed on the
National Register of Historic Places carries four tracks of the Northeast Corridor rail line and two tracks of the PATH on two vertical lift spans from Newark Penn Station to Harrison. The
Center Street Bridge is a former railroad, rapid transit, and road bridge connecting Newark and Harrison. The
Bridge Street Bridge is another vehicular swing bridge across the Passaic from Newark to Harrison, as is the
Clay Street Bridge, a swing bridge that connects Newark and
East Newark. ==Park and recreation==