Easy off/on I-78 or I-287 in NJ bathrooms

Parent Cafe
1

Where I live we have big gas stations with large convenience stores and bathrooms tiled nicer than mine. During the college search, we have frequently found ourselves looking for a bathroom driving East on I-78 in NJ and then north on I-287.

The last time we exited I-78 following signs for a Shell station, we found ourselves (at least a mile later) at a 2 pump gas station, reminiscent of the 1950s, and no bathroom.

Can anyone please recommend an easy off/on exit with a gas station or fast food nearby where you could use a bathroom?

Thanks so much!

2

Are you going only as far east on 78 as 287?

And how far up 287?

3

Yes

4

Would prefer an exit before the I-87 I-287 split. Thanks!

5

Try the Pilot Travel Center just east of Phillipsburg NJ. There is also a Cracker Barrel not that far off of 78 in Clinton NJ. Can’t think of anything off of 287, which is usually a nightmare to drive on.

6

Thanks! Yes, we had to detour around an accident on I-287 just a few weeks and still didn’t find a bathroom…

7

That area is a DISASTER!!! Not sure how often you travel it, but the ramp to 287 North from 78 East will be closed starting next week for repairs. I may quit my job and become a hermit!!!

Not much near the highway by 287. If you are coming from PA, the Cracker Barrel is right off exit 15. There are also a couple gas stations close to there, Walmart, ShopRite, Subway, a few others within a mile or 2. The Pilot Travel Center tends to be all tractor trailers and kind of tough to navigate through, depending on the time of day.

287 North goes by Morristown, which would have a lot stuff, but it’s not an “easy on/off” type of area.

8

Check to see what hospitals are off I 287. Sometimes you are able to run into an emergency room and use a restroom or one off the main lobby.

9

Longtime Morris County resident.
Yes, 287 is usually a nightmare, but I guess after 35 years, it’s OUR nightmare and we’ve learned to make peace with it.

Very easy off /on at Morristown- Madison Ave exit. Morristown Medical Center is on Madison ave, in sight on 287 ramps.
You would have to park in the front parking deck…but the first 30 minutes is FREE.
Clean rest rooms just past main lobby entrance.

10

Thank you everyone for your replies. I never considered a medical center before so I appreciate the idea.

11

All of the 78 recommendations are west of the split.

@musicmom has good bathroom advice. There is gas just off the highway north of 80. Can’t remember the exit but it’s visible. Just don’t use an exit for another major highway!

Google maps is helpful for this, btw.

Fwiw, if you are continuing north, I would wait until new York if you are on the west side of the Hudson or Connecticut if you are going over the Tappan zee. In both cases there are service plazas on the highway.

12

^yep. A service plaza on 287N in NY is just a few miles from NJ/NY line.

There is also a hotel right off the Mahwah exit on 287, but you need to go down a frontage road to get to it.

Iirc, there isn’t a service plaza going south on 287S in NY from NJ/NY line.

13

@gardenstategal - Unfortunately using googlemaps led us to the 2 pump Shell gas station.

We ended up at the first rest area off I-87 but that is 3 hours into a trip after morning coffee so was looking for somewhere closer to I-78.

Thanks for everyone’s suggestions!

14

Go 60 seconds past Morristown Medical Center on Morris Ave and there’s a Friendly’s. Easy to run in there as well, plus get your food/ice cream fix.

15

Yes to Friendlys!
Much easier than parking deck at hospital.

When I moved here 40+ years ago, the hospital had NO parking decks. Just convenient lots all around, open to all, no gates and no cost. They add another level every year or two or three to each deck.

Yes. Good idea to go three blocks down to Friendlys