What Happened
The Route 3 and Route 17 service road in Rutherford, New Jersey, closed in both directions on August 17, 2026, as crews began a drainage pipe replacement project near the Meadowlands, according to News 12 Long Island, which published the report at 12:23 p.m. that day.
The closure runs between Bergen Logistics and the Extended Stay hotel. It affects travel in both directions along the service road shared by the Route 3 and Route 17 corridors. Officials confirmed the closure is needed specifically to replace a drainage pipe in that section.
The shutdown is expected to remain in effect through October 2026, a stretch of roughly ten weeks from the August 17 start date. A detour around the Meadowlands is now active. News 12 reported that officials are advising drivers to plan for the detour and allow extra travel time while the work is completed. No specific alternate route was identified in the announcement.
No injuries or crashes were reported in connection with the closure. This is a scheduled construction shutdown, not the result of an incident.
Location & Road Context
The affected section sits along the Route 3 and Route 17 service road in Rutherford, Bergen County, New Jersey, adjacent to the Meadowlands sports and entertainment district. The corridor carries commuter and commercial traffic between northern New Jersey and the Lincoln Tunnel approach, and the section between Bergen Logistics and the Extended Stay hotel handles service-road access for businesses and hotels in that stretch.
For Long Island drivers using this corridor to reach Manhattan or points in northern New Jersey, the closure adds a detour leg before reaching the tunnel approach. Travelers heading to or from Long Island via the Long Island Expressway and through the Lincoln Tunnel should factor in the added time through at least October.
Broader Impact
The Route 3/Route 17 service road closure comes during late summer and early fall, a period when Meadowlands event traffic and NFL preseason and regular-season games at MetLife Stadium add volume to the surrounding road network. The drainage pipe replacement was not tied to any emergency failure in the News 12 report; the project appears to be a scheduled infrastructure repair. The next known milestone is the projected end of the closure sometime in October 2026, when officials say the service road is expected to reopen.