U.S. Route 46 (US 46) is an east–west U.S. Highway completely within the state of New Jersey, and runs for 75.34 mi (121.25 km). The west end is at an interchange with Interstate 80 (I-80) and Route 94 in Columbia, Warren County, on the Delaware River. The east end is in the middle of the George Washington Bridge over the Hudson River in Fort Lee, Bergen County, while the route runs concurrently with I-95 and US 1/9. Throughout much of its length, US 46 is closely paralleled by I-80. US 46 is a major local and suburban route, with some sections built to or near freeway standards and many other sections arterials with jughandles. The route runs through several communities in the northern part of New Jersey, including Hackettstown, Netcong, Dover, Parsippany–Troy Hills, Wayne, Clifton, Ridgefield Park, Palisades Park, and Fort Lee. It crosses over the Upper Passaic River at several points. The road has been ceremonially named the United Spanish–American War Veterans Memorial Highway.
What is now US 46 was originally designated as three separate routes. Pre-1927 Route 5 was created in 1916 to follow the road from Delaware to Denville, pre-1927 Route 12 in 1917 to follow the route between Hackettstown and Paterson, and pre-1927 Route 10 in 1917 to run between Paterson and Edgewater. In 1927, Route 6 was legislated to run from Delaware east to the George Washington Bridge, replacing portions of Routes 5 and 12 and paralleling the former Route 10, which itself became Route 5 and Route 10N, the latter being shortly removed from the state highway system. In 1936, US 46 was designated to run from U.S. Route 611 in Portland, Pennsylvania, east to the George Washington Bridge. The route replaced Pennsylvania Route 987 (PA 987) to the Delaware Bridge over the Delaware River, and from there followed Route 6 across New Jersey. In 1953, the Route 6 designation was removed from US 46 in New Jersey, and later that year, the route was realigned to end at US 611 in Columbia, New Jersey, replacing a part of Route 94. US 611 had been brought into New Jersey by two new bridges over the Delaware River, following a freeway between them that became a part of I-80. In 1965, US 611 was aligned back into its original Pennsylvania route (which from 1953 until 1965 was US 611 Alternate), and US 46's western terminus remained as an interchange ramp with I-80 and Route 94. Its number is out of place since US 46 lies north of US 22, US 30 and US 40. US 46 is the shortest 2-digit US Highway.
