Atlantic City's $17.6M Atlantic Avenue Paving Project Begins

Atlantic City put shovels in the ground this spring on the $17.6 million paving and streetscape overhaul of Atlantic Avenue, the final leg of a corridor rebuild that’s been years in the making and carries a total price tag of $24.8 million when you count both phases.

Crews are already tearing up concrete along the Tennessee Avenue to Albany Avenue stretch. New light poles go in before the end of April. Once those are set, the milling and paving work kicks off, with that phase expected to get underway before summer hits. It’s not a small job.

The money comes from three places. The Federal Highway Administration is kicking in $10.3 million through a direct grant. The New Jersey Department of Transportation and the City of Atlantic City are splitting the remainder. Altogether, when you stack this phase on top of the 2023 work that already repaved Maine Avenue to Tennessee Avenue, the Atlantic Avenue Improvement Project from Maine to Albany adds up to a $24.8 million commitment to a road that cuts through the commercial and residential core of this city.

Mayor Marty Small Sr. didn’t hide his satisfaction. “The residents and visitors of the Great City of Atlantic City have long awaited the paving of Atlantic Avenue, and we are proud to say the finish line is now within reach,” he said. “This project is the result of a strong partnership between our city, state and federal partners, and I look forward to the moment in the near future when I get to announce Atlantic Avenue is fully completed.”

Getting to that finish line wasn’t quick. Bidding didn’t open until August 2025. Atlantic City’s City Council awarded the construction contract to South State, Inc. a month later. Then came months of coordination before crews could pull the first slab, because the city, the state and Atlantic City Electric had to work out a tariff agreement covering the new lighting system running the length of the corridor.

That agreement isn’t just paperwork. Under its terms, Atlantic City Electric takes over operations of the corridor lighting, which moves ongoing maintenance costs off the city’s balance sheet entirely. For Atlantic City taxpayers, that’s real money staying in their pockets over time.

What’s going into the ground during this phase goes well beyond blacktop. The project includes traffic signal synchronization along the corridor, surveillance camera installations and a full overhaul of pedestrian infrastructure. That means ADA-compliant ramps, high-visibility crosswalks and upgraded lighting throughout. Streetscape and beautification work rounds out the package, the kind of investment that city officials say supports economic development along one of the casino district’s most heavily traveled roads.

The first phase, wrapped up in 2023, covered Maine Avenue to Tennessee Avenue. That segment got fresh paving, restriping, lighting replacement and signal synchronization. It set the template for what’s now being extended through 2026 to Albany Avenue.

For initial reporting on the project’s launch, ROI-NJ covered the April announcement in detail. The 13 blocks from Tennessee to Albany represent the last gap in a corridor that’s been getting rebuilt block by block. When it’s done, 17 intersections along Atlantic Avenue will have been upgraded under the full project.

Atlantic City’s dealt with plenty of broken promises over the years. This one’s got federal dollars signed and a contractor already on site. The concrete’s coming up. The poles go in this month.