NY protests make NJ traffic trouble: GWB backed up for hours

🌉 Columbia University reported the threat of a protest on the GWB

🌉 The right lane was closed in each direction on the upper and lower levels

🌉 The protest never materialized during the Wednesday morning commute

A potential protest closed down two lanes on the George Washington Bridge, causing massive delays during the Wednesday morning delay.

Columbia University Public Safety issued an advisory late Tuesday about "credible information" it had received about plans for a protest on the bridge "aimed at disrupting travel and commerce." The advisory did not disclose a reason for the protest, which never materialized during the commute.

Large Pro-Palestinian protests were held on the school's campus in the final weeks of the semester, leading to hundreds of arrests and the cancellation of the school's main commencement ceremony.

ALSO READ: Princeton tells NJ campus protesters to clear out - or else?

Bus station, northwalk also closed

Video showed the right lane of the upper level closed in both directions causing delays of up to two hours, starting in Hackensack on Route 80 and Route 4. Alternative routes produced long delays on Route 3 approaching the Lincoln Tunnel.

Long delays were reported on Route 95 heading out of Connecticut toward the Cross Bronx Expressway.

The northwalk of the bridge and the GWB bus station were closed because of the threat. The bus station reopened as of 10 a.m. with normal pick up and drop off.

“We are working with our law enforcement partners, including NYPD, to monitor potential protest actions designed to impact operations at the Hudson River crossings, and we have deployed safety and security measures to help ensure uninterrupted operations," a Port Authority spokesman told New Jersey 101.5 in an email. "The crossings are currently experiencing heavy commuter traffic volume."

Bob Williams contributed to this report

Report a correction 👈 | 👉 Contact our newsroom