New Jersey Intersection Tops List of Truck Bottlenecks

A Garden State intersection was ranked the country’s worst trucking bottleneck for the fifth year in a row, according to a report.  

The American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI) released its 12th annual list on Feb. 8, which analyzed GPS data to produce a top-100 rankings of bottleneck locations. It conferred the dubious honor of worst trucking intersection on Interstate 95 and Route 4 in Fort Lee, New Jersey. 

The rest of the worst, in order, were: 

• I-294 and I-290/I-88 in Chicago 

• I-45 and I-69/U.S. 59 in Houston 

• I-285 and I-85 North in Atlanta 

• I-20 and I-285 West in Atlanta 

• I-290 and I-90/I-94 in Chicago 

• Route 60 and Route 57 in Los Angeles 

• I-710 and I-105 in Los Angeles 

• I-24/I-40 and I-440 East in Nashville 

• I-10 and I-15 in San Bernardino 

The report noted that traffic conditions have deteriorated in recent years, and that among those locations, the average truck speed at rush hour was under 30 mph. 

Overall, the average truck speed at rush hour dropped 6 percent from 2021, falling to 36.3 mph. 

“The past year-plus has shone a spotlight on our supply chains, and how congestion and other pressures can hurt the American economy and consumers,” stated Chris Spear, American Trucking Associations President and CEO. “ATRI’s bottleneck report highlights the areas of our transportation network in need of investment so we can get goods and people moving. The cost of doing nothing is felt in needless delays, wasted fuel and time.”