The New Jersey Turnpike, maintained by the New Jersey Turnpike Authority (NJTA), runs about 117 miles north-south through New Jersey, forming a piece of the major east coast corridor (roughly Interstate 95 - but not exactly, more about that below). The Turnpike uses a ticket toll system, in which you get a ticket, telling you how much to all the exits, when you get on, and give your ticket and pay when you exit. It costs $5.50 to travel end to end by car. The first section, between exit 1 and exit 5, opened on November 5, 1951. The rest of the mainline was open by January 15, 1952. It is composed of the mainline, eastern spur, Newark Bay Extension, and Pennsylvania Extension. Below I will detail the Turnpike by exit number, since that is how everyone knows it. I give the original exit names, which have changed over the years in some instances.
Southern Terminus: The Turnpike, officially unsigned State Route 700 (south of the Pennsylvania Extension) begins at the US Route 130/State Route 49 overpass. To the south is Interstate 295/US Route 40, the Delaware Memorial Bridge approach, maintained by the Delaware River and Bay Authority (DRBA). Interstate 295 leaves the main corridor here and runs closer to the Delaware River; it is mainly used by traffic bypassing tolls and accessing local destinations. US Route 40 uses the Turnpike for a short bit to the north of here; this is the only free portion of the Turnpike. The only direct Turnpike access here is Interstate 295/US Route 40 to/from the bridge and a northbound onramp from US Route 130/State Route 49. However there is also an exit southbound after merging into Interstate 295 for State Route 49 east, the last exit before the toll bridge.
Just north of the beginning is the first full interchange, at US Route 40, which uses the Turnpike south of this interchange. Most maps show it as exit 1 but the real exit 1 is the toll booth. State Route 140 and County Route 540 are also accessed from this exit, as is US Route 130 from the southbound Turnpike.
Exit 1 (Delaware Memorial Bridge) is the southern toll booth, not the US Route 40 interchange as most maps show.
Exit 2 (Swedesboro-Chester) serves US Route 322.
Exit 3 (Woodbury-South Camden) directly serves State Route 168, which is the old alignment of State Route 42. There are indirect connections to State Route 42 and Interstate 76 (to the Atlantic City Expressway).
Exit 4 (Camden-Philadelphia) serves State Route 73, and is the primary route to Philadelphia from New York City.
Exit 5 (Mount Holly-Burlington) serves County Route 541.
Exit 6 (Pennsylvania Turnpike) is a toll plaza on the Pennsylvania Extension, which opened on May 25, 1956. It is signed on the mainline as Interstate 276 and US Route 130. In reality, Interstate 276 begins at the state line, and the Pennsylvania Extension is officially part of Interstate 95. However, it will not be signed that way until the interchange between the Pennsylvania Turnpike and existing Interstate 95 in Pennsylvania is completed. At the Pennsylvania Extension, Interstate 95 joins the Turnpike, and unsigned State Route 700 ends. Before it was part of Interstate 95, the Pennsylvania Extension was unsigned State Route 700P.
Exit 6A (Florence) serves US Route 130 on the Pennsylvania Extension. It was added between 1960 and 1965 as an eastbound exit and westbound entrance, with its own toll booths at the exit 6 toll plaza, because traffic entering would not have a ticket and traffic exiting would not need a ticket. In January 2000, the interchange was relocated to the east; it is now right at US Route 130. Tolls are only paid by traffic going to/from the west, since the interchange is west of the exit 6 toll plaza.
Exit 7 (Bordentown-Trenton) serves US Route 206. The interchange was slightly reconfigured in 1990 (the Turnpike side of it was relocated), and again in 2001 for a connector to Interstate 295.
Exit 7A (Trenton-Hamilton) serves Interstate 195; it opened in January 1974.
Exit 8 (Hightstown-Trenton) serves State Route 33, and State Route 133 indirectly.
Car/Truck Split: Just south of exit 8A, the Turnpike splits into four roadways (from two). The inner roadways are for cars only, while the outer roadways are open to all traffic, but are often called the truck lanes. In the future, this dual-dual configuration will be extended south. Until 1989, it ended just south of exit 8. The car/truck split setup was added in January 1974.
Exit 8A (Jamesburg-Cranbury) serves State Route 32 and County Route 612. It was probably built in 1966.
Exit 9 (New Brunswick) serves State Route 18, and US Route 1 indirectly.
Exit 10 (Metuchen-Perth Amboy) serves Interstate 287, State Route 440, and County Route 514, connecting to the Outerbridge Crossing to Staten Island. Originally, it was a northbound only exit to the Garden State Parkway northbound (and from the GSP southbound to the Turnpike southbound); the new interchange was built in 1969 (?). Until the 1980s, Interstate 95 was planned to exit/enter here on its trek to Trenton; only after that was canceled was Interstate 95 officially added to the Turnpike between exit 6 and exit 10.
Exit 11 (Woodbridge-The Amboys) serves the Garden State Parkway, and connects indirectly to US Route 9. The original interchange was directly at US Route 9; it was relocated by 1969 (?).
Exit 12 (Carteret) serves County Route 602. Originally it was a southbound only exit and northbound only entrance.
Exit 13 (Elizabeth) serves Interstate 278 and State Route 439, connecting to the Goethals Bridge to Staten Island. The interchange used to connect to city streets a bit to the north. When the new interchange was built, ghost ramps were built for State Route 81, but eventually a new exit 13A was built for State Route 81.
Exit 13A (Newark Airport-Elizabeth Seaport) serves State Route 81, connecting indirectly to US Routes 1 and 9. It was built in June 1982.
Exit 14 (Newark Airport) serves Interstate 78, and just to the west are US Routes 1 and 9, which connect to US Route 22. Interstate 78 to the east is the Newark Bay Extension; officially exit 14 is the toll booth on Interstate 78 west of the mainline Turnpike. The Interstate 78/Turnpike (Interstate 95) interchange is officially exit 59 on Interstate 78, but is unnumbered on signage. Westbound on the Newark Bay Extension, a ramp exiting before the mainline Turnpike ramps and coming back onto the right before the exit 14 toll booth is signed as exit 14 for US Routes 1 and 9 and US Route 22; the continuation towards Interstate 78 (as well as the mainline Turnpike ramps) is unnumbered. The Newark Bay Extension opened in April 1956; before that ramps still served the exit 14 toll booth.
Exit 14A (Bayonne) serves State Route 440, which used to be State Route 169.
Exit 14B (Jersey City) serves Bayview Avenue.
Exit 14C (Holland Tunnel) is the toll booth on the Newark Bay Extension. East of the toll booth, The Extension continues with an eastbound offramp and westbound onramp at Grand St, and then combines with State Route 139 (former US Routes 1 and 9 Business) onto 12th Street and 14th Street towards the Holland Tunnel. The State Route 139 interchange is officially Interstate 78 exit 65, but this is not signed.
Eastern/Western Spur Split: Between exit 14 and exit 15E, the car/truck split ends and the Turnpike splits into two completely separate roadways. The eastern alignment is the original Turnpike, and the Western Spur was built later as a bypass in September 1970. Officially Interstate 95 uses the eastern alignment, and the Western Spur is Interstate 95W. But signage on the mainline Turnpike northbound takes Interstate 95 on the Western Spur. To spread traffic out, the eastern alignment is signed for US Route 46 and Interstate 80, although these exits occur after the two alignments rejoin. Southbound, the eastern alignment is signed only for exit 17. In addition, traffic coming from US Route 46 or Interstate 80 to Interstate 95 south is routed via the eastern alignment, with the Western Spur being signed for exit 16W only.
Exit 15E (Newark-Jersey City) serves US Routes 1 and 9 Truck, which connects indirectly to US Routes 1 and 9. Access is provided from the eastern alignment as well as the southbound Western Spur. After exit 14B opened in 1956, Jersey City was dropped from exit 15E.
Exit 15W (Newark-Harrison) serves Interstate 280 and County Route 508. Access is provided from the Western Spur as well as the southbound eastern alignment.
Exit 16E (Lincoln Tunnel) serves State Route 495 (former Interstate 495, really old State Route 3) and State Route 3. This is a northbound exit and southbound entrance only, accessible only on the eastern alignment.
Exit 16W (Sportsplex, East Rutherford) serves State Route 3 on the Western Spur.
Exit 17 (Secaucus) serves State Route 495 and State Route 3 on the eastern alignment. It is a northbound entrance and southbound exit only, and has its own toll booth, since its ramps intersect the eastern alignment north of the exit 18E toll plaza. Originally, it was a full 4 ramp interchange directly at State Route 3; it now directly connects to State Route 495.
Exit 18E (George Washington Bridge) is the northern mainline toll on the eastern alignment. It lies between the exit 16E and exit 17 ramps.
Exit 18W (George Washington Bridge) is the northern mainline toll on the Western Spur, a bit north of the exit 16W ramps. Just to the north is a 3-ramp interchange with Meadowlands Sportsplex; the missing ramp is from the Turnpike northbound (for which you can use exit 16W). This interchange is only open when there is an event at the sportsplex, and is toll-free to/from the north.
Eastern/Western Spur Merge: North of the exit 18s, the two alignments merge back together. North of this interchange, the Turnpike is again split into four roadways; two connect to Interstate 80 and two continue Interstate 95.
Northern Terminus: The Turnpike ends at the US Route 46 interchange, where Interstate 95 continues north. Around 1990, Interstate 95 from here north to the George Washington Bridge toll plaza (maintained by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PANYNJ)) was transferred from the New Jersey Department of Transportaton (NJDOT) to the NJTA. It will however not be tolled, just toll-supported. The US Route 46 interchange was originally the northern terminus of the freeway; George Washington Bridge traffic went east along US Route 46. US Route 46 is signed as exit 68 on Interstate 95 southbound, which would have been 68 miles from Pennsylvania had it been built to Trenton. The dual-dual roadway continues to the Interstate 80 interchange, where a local-express setup picks up from Interstate 80 and over the George Washington Bridge.
sources:
http://www.nycroads.com/roads/nj-turnpike/
http://web.mit.edu/spui/www/oldint/njtp.html