The need to expand existing transportation is created by population and employment growth. In the project area, the dominant flow of traffic during rush hours is commutation from Pennsylvania to New Jersey in the morning and the reverse in the evening. Traffic volumes have increased significantly since 1970 on the Scudder Falls Bridge and on I-95 as a result of an increase in housing, particularly in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, and in jobs along the Route 1 Corridor in Mercer and Middlesex Counties in New Jersey. Land planning and development decisions are the responsibility of individual municipalities in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. This improvement project is responding to the congestion created by this growth and future growth that is already planned on both sides of the Delaware River.

Nevertheless, the Commission is committed to supporting the objectives of the smart growth programs in both states. During the preparation process for the project Environmental Assessment document, Commission representatives met with state representatives for smart growth to explain the project and to find out more about the programs. The smart growth offices urged the Commission to investigate the feasibility of incorporating transit, TDM and bicycle and pedestrian facilities into the project to maximize the use of the Bridge and to stretch acceptable Levels of Service beyond 2030.