New Jersey Route 324

File:2018-08-26 12 21 47 View west along New Jersey State Route 324 (Ferry Road) just west of Buttonwood Lane in Logan Township, Gloucester County, New Jersey.jpg

Route 324 begins at a dead-end along the shoreline of the Delaware River and the wreckage of the old ferry dock in Logan Township. Route 324 heads eastward along Old Ferry Road, a two-lane concrete roadway surrounded by trees and fields. The two-lane concrete highway remains such for a distance, paralleling US 322 to the south, passing an access road to a business. The route heads to the east, crossing south of a pond and intersecting with Springers Lane and a dirt road in Logan Township. The entire section west of Springers Lane is marked with a "Road Closed" sign, with minimal maintenance, multiple large potholes, and overgrown vegetation crowding the roadway.{{bing maps |title= Overview map of New Jersey Route 324 |url= http://www.maps.bing.com/maps/default.aspx?v=2&FORM=LMLTCP&cp=qn2s7b8qk2qz&style=b&lvl=1&tilt=-90&dir=0&alt=-1000&phx=0&phy=0&phscl=1&scene=39921883&rtp=pos.39.8047998547554_-75.3509491682053_near%20Old%20Ferry%20Rd%2C%20Bridgeport%2C%20New%20Jersey%2008014%2C%20United%20States__~pos.39.8182994127274_-75.3727501630783_near%20Old%20Ferry%20Rd%2C%20Bridgeport%2C%20New%20Jersey%2008014%2C%20United%20States__&rtop=0~0~0&encType=1 |access-date= October 17, 2009}}

At Springers Lane, which is a former alignment of Route 44, the regularly maintained section of Route 324 begins. The road is now in an open area, crossing under power lines and intersecting with former alignments of roadway, overgrown with grass. A short distance from Springers Lane, the highway continues to the only other intersection along the route, which is for Island Road, a connector to US 130. The highway, however, continues through the desolate portions of Logan Township along a power line. A short distance later, the route passes to the south of the only development along the highway, a boat marina and two homes. Route 324 continues as a two-lane concrete road eastward until reaching a cul-de-sac just short of the US 130/US 322 interchange in Logan Township, where the designation ends.

{{infobox road small

|state=NJ

|type=NJ 1926

|county=

|route=S44

|location= Bridgeport

|length_mi=

|length_round=

|length_ref=

|formed=1939

|deleted=1953

}}File:Chester-Bridgeport Ferry site.jpg

The ferry route that Route 324 serviced first made its crossings of the Delaware River on July 1, 1930, from Chester, Pennsylvania, to Bridgeport, New Jersey. The ferry service was run with two boats, Chester, a large boat with a capacity of 60 motor vehicles, and Bridgeport, a smaller boat with a capacity of 48. The ferry system was seen as an advantage across the Delaware, providing drivers a backup from the few bridges that existed along the river.{{cite web|url=http://www.oldchesterpa.com/chester_bridgeport_ferry.htm|title=Chester–Bridgeport Ferry|year=2009|publisher=Chester, Pennsylvania|access-date=October 17, 2009}} In 1936, the Bridgeport–Chester Ferry was granted the alignment for the extension of U.S. Route 322 from Pennsylvania and into New Jersey.{{cite web|url=http://www.state.nj.us/transportation/refdata/sldiag/00000322__-.pdf |format=PDF|title=US 322 Straight Line Diagram|publisher=New Jersey Department of Transportation|year=2004|access-date=June 14, 2007 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20040724135549/http://www.state.nj.us/transportation/refdata/sldiag/00000322__-.pdf |archive-date = July 24, 2004}}{{cite map|publisher=Mid-West Map Co.|title= Map of Pennsylvania and New Jersey |year=1941|cartography=H.M. Gousha|url=http://www.mapsofpa.com/roadcart/1941_1467m.jpg|access-date=March 29, 2009}} Along with the U.S. Route 322 designation, the New Jersey State Highway Department designated the alignment of Route 322 from the ferry to U.S. Route 130, then designated as State Highway Route 44, as State Highway Route S-44.State of New Jersey, Laws of 1939, compiled.

{{see also|Commodore Barry Bridge}}

Route 322 survived the state highway renumbering because it was a U.S. Route. However, the co-designation on the ferry stretch, State Highway Route S-44 was decommissioned in favor of just one designation.Wikisource:1953 New Jersey state highway renumbering{{cite news|access-date=July 20, 2009|title=New Road Signs Ready in New Jersey|work=The New York Times|date=December 16, 1952|url=http://img123.imageshack.us/img123/6933/19521216newroadsignsreaiu6.jpg|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110721112422/http://img123.imageshack.us/img123/6933/19521216newroadsignsreaiu6.jpg|url-status=dead|archive-date=July 21, 2011}} U.S. Route 322 remained on the ferry route for several years, and plans arose during the 1960s to construct a new bridge between the Delaware Memorial and Walt Whitman bridges.{{cite news|title=Bridge Promises Brighter Life for Poor of Chester|last=Reilly|first=Robert A. |date=May 24, 1970|newspaper=The Philadelphia Inquirer}} Construction began that year, and on February 1, 1974, the newly named Commodore Barry Bridge opened for traffic. At 8 p.m. that evening, the Bridgeport–Chester Ferry ran its final {{convert|1|mi|km|adj=on}} boat ride across the Delaware, and the service was closed down for good.{{cite news|title=Bridgeport-Chester Bridge Opens, Replacing Ferry|date=February 2, 1974|newspaper=The New York Times}} The alignment of U.S. Route 322 was moved onto the Commodore Barry Bridge,{{cite map|publisher=Chevron Oil Company|title= Map of New Jersey |year=1969|cartography=H.M. Gousha}} while the former alignment was redesignated Route 324. The route received mileposts in 2017.

In 2018, the portion of Route 324 from its western terminus to Springer Lane was downloaded to Logan Township.{{cite web|title=Bill S3556 SaSa (2R) Session 2016 - 2017|publisher=New Jersey Legislature|url=https://www.njleg.state.nj.us/bill-search/2016/S3556|access-date=July 29, 2023}} The following year, the same portion was vacated by Logan Township.{{cite web|title=Ordinance No. 12 - 2019 – An Ordinance Of The Mayor And Council Of The Township Of Logan Vacating Ferry Road (AKA State Highway Route 324) In The Township Of Logan, County Of Gloucester, State Of New Jersey|publisher=Logan Township, New Jersey|url=https://ecode360.com/LO0702/laws/LF1132426.pdf|access-date=July 29, 2023}}

{{Jcttop|length_ref=|county=Gloucester|location=Logan Township|state=NJ}}

{{NJint

|mile=0.00

|road=Delaware River

|notes=Western terminus }}

{{NJint

|mile=0.95

|road={{jct|state=NJ|to1=to|US|322}}

|notes=Access via Springers Lane}}

{{NJint

|mile=1.51

|road=Cul-de-sac

|notes=Eastern terminus}}

{{Jctbtm}}

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• [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xivx3I5dejo Eastbound] and [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sgaArVLGP1w westbound] video tours of Route 324
• [http://www.state.nj.us/transportation/refdata/traffic_orders/speed/rt324.shtm Speed Limits for State Roads: Route 324]

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Category:State highways in New Jersey

Category:Transportation in Gloucester County, New Jersey

New Jersey Route 324