Concerns over I-80 rockfall project brings N.J., Pennsylvania leaders to vital river crossing

© Chris Krusberg | For/nj.com/TNS Tara Mezzanotte, Founding member of I80 DWG Coalition, and (NJ) Congressman Tom Kean Jr shake hands at I80 WB DWG parking lot in Columbia, New Jersey on Wednesday, March 15, 2023.

Almost on cue, the east bound traffic on I-80 loafed through a two-lane section of the expressway pinched to one lane in the Delaware Water Gap on Wednesday, where emergency work is being done to repair sections of a 70-year-old retaining wall along the riverfront.

This and a larger project scheduled to start in 2026 were the topics addressed on a tour of a scenic section of highway that hugs a mountain on the westbound side and the Delaware River on the eastbound side.

Officials, from U.S. Rep. Tom Kean Jr., R-7th Dist., to aides from those representing Pennsylvania in Congress, and leaders from Warren County, saw the conditions firsthand and heard about issues that a citizens group and elected officials raised about a proposed project to prevent rocks from falling on the highway, and that project’s effects on the environment and traffic.

© Chris Krusberg | For/nj.com/TNS Tara Mezzanotte, Founding member of I80 DWG Coalition, briefs congressional representatives on the dangers of NJDOT at I80 WB DWG parking lot in Columbia, New Jersey on Wednesday, March 15, 2023.

The most pressing immediate issue is emergency repair of a mid-1950s vintage retaining wall on a twisting S-curve on I-80. Back in 2020, Citizen activist Tara Mezzanotte, founding member of I-80 Delaware Water Gap Coalition, documented gaping cracks and holes a person could fit their body into.

Last spring, the New Jersey Department of Transportation said the retaining wall was getting a $56 million rehabilitation, but some of that work was pushed up further when the DOT said in January that four concrete panels need immediate work, which is starting now.

© Chris Krusberg | For/nj.com/TNS Tara Mezzanotte, Founding member of I80 DWG Coalition, and (NJ) Congressman Tom Kean Jr touring the Portland-Columbia Pedestrian Bridge in Columbia, New Jersey on Wednesday, March 15, 2023.

Lanes on the eastbound side of the expressway will be narrowed. One lane was closed on Wednesday. There are concerns about traffic because of the closure of nearby Route 611 across the Delaware Water Gap in Monroe County, Pennsylvania, due to rock slides. In January, PennDOT announced Route 611 will be closed in both directions into August.

“Route 80 shuts down, (Route) 611 shuts down, the region becomes crippled as far as transportation services go,” David Dech, Warren County planning director, said after the tour. “We need to find a long-term solution to address the issue through this regional corridor.”

Of a greater concern about a $65 million rockfall mitigation project that calls for construction of an up to 60-foot-high wall on a half mile stretch of I-80 west in Knowlton and Hardwick Townships. NJ DOT also has proposed excavating and installing sections of wire mesh and fence on the cliffs along I-80 where it winds through the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area.

NJ DOT is hoping to use federal funds for the project. A schedule calls for construction to start in March 2026 and be competed in March 2030. An environmental assessment for the project is under review by the Federal Highway Administration and action by the agency is expected this August, according to a project dashboard.

© Chris Krusberg | For/nj.com/TNS From left, (PA) Congresswoman Wild's representative Selina Winchester, (NJ) Congressman Tom Kean Jr, Tara Mezzanotte, Founding member of I80 DWG Coalition, (PA) State Rep Ann Flood, (NJ) Deborah A. Pasquarelli, (NJ) Nicole Meuse and Hardwick Dept. Mayor Chris Jacksic, (PA) Portland Borough Mayor Heather Fischer, and Council President Stephanie Steele posed on tour of the Portland-Columbia Pedestrian Bridge in Columbia, New Jersey on Wednesday, March 15, 2023.

The NJ DOT labeled the section of I-80 the “number 1 rockfall hazard location in the state.” A 2011 NJ DOT report listed two rockfall related incidents between February 2003 and March 2008 that resulted in lane closures on that section of I-80 and two crashes on Oct. 7, 2010, when State Police reported a semitrailer hit a large rock in the road and a passenger car hit a boulder in the road.

© Chris Krusberg | For/nj.com/TNS Tara Mezzanotte, Founding member of I80 DWG Coalition, briefs (NJ) Congressman Tom Kean Jr on the dangers of I80 while on bus tour in Columbia, New Jersey on Wednesday, March 15, 2023.

Mezzanotte and officials from Warren County and various municipalities along the Delaware River in both states questioned the statistics behind the hazard ranking and are concerned about the impact of the rockfall project, its cost and how necessary it is.

“Putting up a fence isn’t a solution for the highway,” said Robert Teel, vice chairman of the Upper Mount Bethel Township Board of Supervisors. “There have been argument on both sides. Some rocks came down 17 years ago, but that’s not fixing the road problem.”

© Chris Krusberg | For/nj.com/TNS Tara Mezzanotte, Founding member of I80 DWG Coalition briefs (NJ) Congressman Tom Kean Jr and several congressional representatives regarding future projects at I80 WB DWG parking lot in Columbia, New Jersey on Wednesday, March 15, 2023.

Crashes on the New Jersey side of the river cause traffic problems that spill over in small Pennsylvania towns that get tractor-trailers trying to detour on rural roads that are too small for them to travel on, he said. That problem is worse now that Route 611 is closed.

© Chris Krusberg | For/nj.com/TNS From left, (PA) Congresswoman Wild's representative Selina Winchester, (NJ) Congressman Tom Kean Jr, Tara Mezzanotte, Founding member of I80 DWG Coalition, (PA) State Rep Ann Flood, (NJ) Deborah A. Pasquarelli, (NJ) Nicole Meuse and Hardwick Dept. Mayor Chris Jacksic, (PA) Portland Borough Mayor Heather Fischer, and Council President Stephanie Steele posed on tour of the Portland-Columbia Pedestrian Bridge in Columbia, New Jersey on Wednesday, March 15, 2023.

“We can’t get anywhere without stopping the current (rockfall mitigation) project,” Mezzanotte said during Wednesday’s tour. “Do every emergency fix possible. Do everything they can to make it (the retaining wall) safe to buy time.”

Buying time would allow for further study and oversight that Warren County, Knowlton and Hardwick officials have called for and say is needed before proceeding with the $65 million rockfall mitigation project.

Critics of the rockfall plan, including Warren County, are calling for a third-party audit and project review of the rockfall issue, assigning a new lead agency to conduct a federal environmental review and conducting a bi-state I-80-Rt 611 corridor study. They also want a comprehensive environmental impact study.

© Chris Krusberg | For/nj.com/TNS Tara Mezzanotte, Founding member of I80 DWG Coalition, (NJ) Congressman Tom Kean Jr, and several congressional representatives touring the Portland-Columbia Pedestrian Bridge in Columbia, New Jersey on Wednesday, March 15, 2023.

During the tour, Mezzanotte pointed out existing stone walls that were built to stop rocks from landing on the highway and have worked as long as they were maintained. Warren County and multiple municipalities in New Jersey and in Pennsylvania have passed resolutions opposing the rockfall project.

Warren County wrote to Kean and U.S. Rep Susan Wild of Pennsylvania, D-7th Dist., last month asking for intervention by the Federal Highway Administration for “assistance resolving the long standing issues with the FHWA New Jersey office and NJDOT and their I-80 Delaware water gap projects.”

© Chris Krusberg | For/nj.com/TNS Tara Mezzanotte, Founding member of I80 DWG Coalition, briefs congressional representatives at I80 WB DWG parking lot in Columbia, New Jersey on Wednesday, March 15, 2023.

The county has passed resolutions in September 2021 calling for a redesign of the Rockfall mitigation project that consults with the public and local, county and state stakeholders in the project. The county also backed calls by Hardwick Township and Knowlton Township in Warren County for an environmental impact statement to be done in March 2020.

After the tour, Kean said a study is needed that brings in local, county and state officials, legislators and citizens.

© Larry Higgs/nj.com/TNS Traffic on I-80 east in Knowlton is reduced to one lane for emergency work on a 70-year-old retaining wall. The effect of this and a larger project scheduled to start in 2026 have New Jersey and Pennsylvania officials concerned about traffic jams.

“Number one, reaching out to Susan Wild is an important step, making sure it’s a Pennsylvania and a New Jersey focus,” Kean said. “This is a bi-state, federal issue as well. We need to find a solution that is rational and keeps people safe and is a quick solution. That’s why it was important to see this first hand.”

In addition to doing research, Kean said involvement of all parties is needed, from citizens including Mezzanotte, U.S. Rep Josh Gottheimer, D-5th Dist., and U.S. Sen. Cory Booker.

“Bring people in on federal level and state level. You’ve seen municipalities and counties on both sides of the river say this shouldn’t be going in this direction,” he said. “What’s the rational plan going forward to keep people safe?”

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Larry Higgs may be reached at lhiggs@njadvancemedia.com.

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