Previously, I-95 ran from Philadelphia north across the Delaware River at the Scudder Falls Bridge into New Jersey, just north of Trenton, and terminated at the Route 1 interchange in Lawrence, NJ, where it became I-295 south. I-95 then picked up again as part of the New Jersey Turnpike at Interchange 7A in Robbinsville, New Jersey.
To address the gap and make I-95 continuous along the entire East Coast of the United States, Congress passed the 1982 Surface Transportation Assistance Act (STAA), which mandated the completion of I-95 using the existing Pennsylvania and New Jersey turnpikes via an interchange between I-95 and the Pennsylvania Turnpike, a portion of which was recently completed.
Pennsylvania, New Jersey, the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), and various affected transportation agencies worked together to revise the route descriptions for I‐95. The redesignation of the affected interstates was presented to the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) Special Committee on U.S. Route Numbering and was approved in May 2015.
The approved redesignation included the conversion of about 20 miles of what was originally signed as I‐95, north of the PA Turnpike, over the Scudder Falls Bridge into New Jersey, to the former terminus at U.S. 1 / I‐295. In Pennsylvania, this required 10.4 miles of I-95, from the PA Turnpike to the Scudder Falls Bridge, to be redesignated as I-295 East (toward New Jersey) / West (toward Philadelphia). In New Jersey, this conversion served as an extension of I-295, for 9.2 miles of I-95 from U.S. 1 to the Scudder Falls Bridge, which has been redesignated as I-295 North (toward Pennsylvania) / South (toward Princeton). Exit numbers along the affected roadway segment have been changed as a result of this conversion process. The installation of signing involved with this redesignation began in January 2018 and gradually progressed through Pennsylvania, ultimately concluding on the PA side of the Scudder Falls Bridge in the vicinity of the PA Turnpike.
The approved redesignation also included the conversion of 1.7 miles of the PA Turnpike (I‐276) as I‐95 North (toward New York) / South (toward Philadelphia) from the newly constructed interchange to the Delaware River Bridge midspan. I‐95 continues along the NJ Turnpike North (toward New York) / South (toward Philadelphia) for approximately 15 miles to New Jersey Turnpike Exit 7A, where I‐95 was previously established.
In Fall 2018, the PA Turnpike / I‐95 Interchange flyovers were officially opened to traffic. Any exit numbers that have changed were supplemented with an “Old Exit” sign to mitigate any confusion during the transition period.