New Jersey Route 37 - Route Description

Route Description

Route 37 begins at the Lakehurst Circle intersection with Route 70 in Lakehurst, heading east on a four–lane divided highway. Soon after beginning, the route crosses into Manchester Township . It intersects Commonwealth Boulevard, which provides access to the Leisure Village West-Pine Lake Park community, before crossing into Toms River Township. Route 37 continues east with many intersections that feature jughandles and at the intersection with Industrial Way, the road widens to six lanes. Route 37 passes to the north of Holiday City - Silver Ridge Park, an age-restricted community which contributes to the large population of senior residents in the area. The route meets County Route 642 (Mule Road) and County Route 527 (Oak Ridge Parkway/Lakehurst Road). After the intersection with County Route 527, the route crosses over the North Branch of the Toms River.

Route 37 features a cloverleaf interchange with the Garden State Parkway/U.S. Route 9. Past the Garden State Parkway, the route crosses the former alignment of U.S. Route 9, Route 166. Past this intersection, Route 37 becomes a road lined with several businesses. The route intersects County Route 549 (Hooper Avenue) and County Route 38 (Clifton Avenue). County Route 627 (Vaughn Avenue/West End Avenue) intersects next and Route 37 runs along the border of Toms River and Island Heights, with Toms River to the north and Island Heights to the south. Route 37 meets the southern terminus of County Route 627 (Central Avenue) and fully enters Toms River Township again at the Gilford Avenue intersection. Further east, the route intersects County Route 549 Spur/County Route 571 (Fischer Boulevard).

Route 37 crosses the Barnegat Bay on the Thomas A. Mathis and J. Stanley Tunney Bridges with the eastbound bridge featuring a drawbridge that allows ships to pass through while the westbound bridge is a higher-level span. The route continues onto Pelican Island in the Barnegat Bay, crossing into a small piece of Berkeley Township. Route 37 crosses over a part of the Barnegat Bay and enters Seaside Heights on the Barnegat Peninsula, where the route comes to its eastern terminus at an interchange with Route 35.

Due to the area's vacationers, many of which come from New York and Northern New Jersey, Route 37 is routinely congested with seasonal traffic in the summer, especially on and around the Mathis and Tunney Bridges and at the Garden State Parkway interchange as heavy tourist traffic converges on the shore. Additionally, the road sees congestion due to the area's rapid growth in commercial development.