Editing New Jersey Route 59

{{Short description|State highway in Union County, New Jersey, US}}
{{redirect|New Jersey Route 22|the current highway called Route 22|U.S. Route 22 in New Jersey}}
{{Use American English|date=April 2025}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2025}}
{{Infobox road
|state=NJ
|type=NJ
|route=59
|alternate_name=Lincoln Avenue
|map={{maplink-road|zoom=12}}
|map_custom=yes
|map_notes=Alignment of Route 59 in red
|length_mi=0.15
|length_ref=<ref name="sld">{{cite web|url=http://www.state.nj.us/transportation/refdata/sldiag/pdf/00000059__-.pdf|title=Route 59 Straight Line Diagram|year=2009|publisher=New Jersey Department of Transportation|pages=1|access-date=March 17, 2020}}</ref>

|direction_a=South
|direction_b=North
|terminus_a={{jct|state=NJ|CR|610|county1=Union}} in [[Cranford, New Jersey|Cranford]]
|terminus_b={{jct|state=NJ|NJ|28}} on Cranford–[[Garwood, New Jersey|Garwood]] line
|established=1953
|counties=[[Union County, New Jersey|Union]]
|previous_type=NJ
|previous_route=58
|next_type=NJ
|next_route=60
|browse={{nj browse
|previous_type=US
|previous_route=22
|route=Route 22
|next_type=NJ
|next_route=23
}}
}}

'''Route 59''' is the shortest [[state highway]] in [[New Jersey]], [[United States]], at {{convert|0.15|mi|km|adj=on}} long.<ref>Roberts, Russell. [https://books.google.com/books?id=00PHkUlnXJcC&pg=PT3 ''New Jersey's Atlantic Shore: From Sandy Hook to Atlantic City & on to Cape May''], p. 3. Hunter Publishing, 2011. {{ISBN|9781588439796}}. Accessed October 27, 2019. "The shortest highway in America is in New Jersey. Route 59, clocking in at a whopping 792 feet, is located on the border of Cranford and Garwood. It was originally built in 1931 to be part of Route 22, but plans changed."</ref> The route consists entirely of a short block of Lincoln Avenue from [[County Route 610 (Union County, New Jersey)|Union County Route 610]] (known locally as South Avenue) in [[Cranford, New Jersey|Cranford]] to [[New Jersey Route 28]] (known locally as North Avenue) along the Cranford–[[Garwood, New Jersey|Garwood]] border. The route functions as an underpass under the [[Raritan Valley Line]] of [[NJ Transit]], under which it crosses about halfway down the block, along the municipal border. Route 59 was originally a proposed alignment of '''Route 22''', which was supposed to head from an intersection with current day [[New Jersey Route 159]] in [[Morris County, New Jersey|Morris County]] at the Pine Brook Bridge before heading through several counties, terminating at an intersection with [[New Jersey Route 27]] in [[Rahway, New Jersey|Rahway]]. Most of the route was not constructed, and a portion in Garwood and Cranford was re-designated Route 59 in the [[1953 New Jersey state highway renumbering]] on January 1, 1953.

==Route description==
[[File:2021-09-20 09 51 45 View south along New Jersey Route 59 (Lincoln Avenue) from the overpass for the rail line between County Route 610 (South Avenue) and New Jersey Route 28 (North Avenue) in Cranford Township, Union County, New Jersey.jpg|left|thumb|Route&nbsp;59 southbound as seen from the Raritan Valley Line. The intersection with CR&nbsp;610 is visible ahead]]
Route&nbsp;59 begins at a four-way intersection with Union County Route&nbsp;610 (CR&nbsp;610; South Avenue) in the community of Cranford. Route&nbsp;59 heads northwestward, passing a couple of businesses in both directions. The route crosses under the NJ Transit-owned Raritan Valley Line at which point the border of Cranford and Garwood runs along the center of the road. The route continues to the northwest, passing businesses before ending at a signalized T-intersection with Route&nbsp;28 (North Avenue). The pavement ends at the intersection through a state-constructed bridge carrying the intersection over a small creek is angled such that a road could continue northwest. Throughout the entire length of the route, it is four lanes wide (two in each direction).<ref name=GM>{{google maps |url=https://www.google.com/maps/dir/40.6535858,-74.3114964/40.6548962,-74.313374/@40.6540443,-74.3148423,17z/data=!3m1!4b1 |access-date=September 30, 2015}}</ref>

==History==
{{infobox road small
|state=NJ
|type=NJ 1926
|county=
|route=22
|location= [[Cranford, New Jersey|Cranford]]&ndash;[[Garwood, New Jersey|Garwood]]
|length_mi=
|length_round=
|length_ref=
|formed=1927<ref name="law" />
|deleted=1953<ref name="nj1953" />
}}
[[File:2018-06-20 15 24 53 View south along New Jersey State Route 59 (Lincoln Avenue) at New Jersey State Route 28 (North Avenue) along the border of Garwood and Cranford Township in Union County, New Jersey.jpg|thumb|The intersection of Route 28 and Route 59 on the border of Garwood and Cranford, with overhead signage indicating Route 59's presence on Lincoln Avenue]]
The alignment of Route 59 was designated as part of the proposed State Highway Route 22 in the 1927 renumbering, which was proposed to run from the [[Pine Brook Bridge]] over the [[Passaic River]] at State Highway Route 6 in [[Fairfield Township, Essex County, New Jersey|Fairfield Township]].<ref name=nj1927>State of New Jersey, Laws of 1927, Chapter 319.</ref>  (This intersection is where [[New Jersey Route 159]] currently crosses the bridge.) The route was to continue through parts of [[Morris County, New Jersey|Morris]], [[Essex County, New Jersey|Essex]] and Union counties, including intersections with [[New Jersey Route 10|State Highway Route 10]] at [[Livingston, New Jersey|Livingston]], [[U.S. Route 22]] (also State Highway Route 29) at [[Mountainside, New Jersey|Mountainside]], State Highway Route 28 at Garwood (where Routes 28 and 59 currently meet), and terminate in the community of [[Rahway, New Jersey|Rahway]] at [[New Jersey Route 27|State Highway Route 27]].<ref name="law">{{Cite journal|title=ROUTE NO. 22. PINE BROOK BRIDGE TO RAHWAY, by way of West Caldwell, Livingston, Millburn, Springfield, in the vicinity of Garwood and to Route No. 27 in Rahway.|year=1927|publisher=New Jersey General Assembly|pages=chapter 319}}</ref><ref name="1927map">{{cite map|title=Map of State Highway Route 22|publisher=New Jersey State Highway Department|year=1927|url=http://www.alpsroads.net/roads/nj/log/1927_22.png|access-date=August 24, 2009}}</ref> Most of this route was not constructed, except a portion from State Highway Route 28 (North Avenue) in Cranford to South Avenue in Garwood. This portion was renumbered as Route 59 in the 1953 New Jersey state highway renumbering on January 1, 1953 so as not to duplicate U.S. Route 22.<ref name="nj1953">{{Cite journal|title=1953 renumbering|url=http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/1953_New_Jersey_state_highway_renumbering|publisher=New Jersey Department of Highways|access-date=July 31, 2009|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110628183145/http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/1953_New_Jersey_state_highway_renumbering|archive-date=June 28, 2011}}</ref>

==Major intersections==
{{Jcttop|length_ref=<ref name="sld"/>|state=NJ|county=Union}}
{{NJint
|location=Cranford
|mile=0.00
|road={{jct|state=NJ|CR|610|county1=Union|name1=South Avenue|road|Lincoln Avenue}}
}}
{{NJint
|location1=Cranford
|location2=Garwood
|location_group=municipal
|mile=0.15
|road={{jct|state=NJ|NJ|28|name1=North Avenue|city1=Westfield|city2=Somerville|city3=Cranford|city4=Elizabeth}}
}}
{{Jctbtm}}

==See also==
*{{Portal-inline|U.S. Roads}}
*{{Portal-inline|New Jersey}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{commons category|New Jersey Route 59}}
{{Attached KML|display=inline,title}}

{{good article}}

[[Category:State highways in New Jersey|059]]
[[Category:Transportation in Union County, New Jersey]]
[[Category:State highways in the United States shorter than one mile]]