Route 287 South shuts down: Sleepy driver crashes one truck into another

BRIDGEWATER — An overnight crash involving several tractor trailers and a sleepy driver impacted the morning commute on two major central New Jersey highways on Election Day.

The local lanes of Route 287 southbound between Routes 78 and 202/206 in Bridgewater remain  closed as of 6:30 a.m. for cleanup of a fire, diesel fuel spill and the offloading of a load of cement.

State Police spokesman Sgt. FC Gregory Williams said the driver of a 2003 Mack truck fell asleep and rear-ended a 2005 Peterbilt truck around 2 a.m. The Mack truck caught on fire while the Peterbilt wound up in the median between the inner and outer lanes according to Williams, who said both drivers were hospitalized for minor injuries.

New Jersey Fast Traffic’s Bob Williams said traffic coming off Route 78 onto 287 South is being diverted into the express lanes br driving across the median. The right lane of the express lanes is being blocked to allow those vehicles to safely merge into traffic.

“Route 22 is currently the best way to reach the Bridgewater area and points south on 287. Locally, it is best to stay south on 202/206, instead of 287,” Williams said.

Originally published here by NJ1015.com