Passaic Avenue Construction Project Underway

Essex County Executive Joseph N. DiVincenzo, Jr. met with elected officials from West Caldwell and Fairfield on Thursday at the intersection of Passaic and Bloomfield avenues to the county has begun to repave Passaic Avenue from Roseland to Route 46 in Fairfield.

The work is part of a $10 million project funded through the Federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA).

"This repaving project is a massive undertaking that will dramatically improve and modernize a heavily used county road that provides access through Fairfield and West Caldwell, to our Essex County Airport and to Route 46," DiVincenzo said.

"This work will modernize our infrastructure and enhance traffic flow so it is easier to travel through our County. We apologize in advance to our motorists for any inconvenience and ask for their patience and understanding while the project is underway."

Work on Passaic Avenue began with handicap accessible ramps installed at all the crosswalks and curbs being repaired. Once that is completed, the roadway will be milled, repaved and restriped. Passaic Avenue from Harrison Avenue in West Caldwell to Route 46 in Fairfield will be upgraded.

Other roads that will be repaved as part of this project are the entire length of Bloomfield Avenue from Newark to West Caldwell and South Orange Avenue from Prospect Street in South Orange to JFK Parkway in Livingston. Work on all three roads is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2010.

Birdsall Engineering designed the improvements and English Paving from Clifton was awarded a competitively bid contract to perform the construction work.