County Route 549 (New Jersey)

County Route 549 (CR 549) is a county highway in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The highway extends 17.82 miles (28.68 km) from Main Street (Route 166) at County Route 527 in Toms River to County Route 547 at Monmouth CR 21 in Howell. The highway has the distinction of being the only 500-series route left with two separate spur routes.

The highway passes through Ocean and Monmouth counties and is maintained by its respective county, but there are several indications that the highway at one point may have been or was originally planned to be state maintained. There are a few mileposts left along the southern section of the highway that have a "NJDT" label on the bottom right corner. Also, the only "at grade" cloverleaf in New Jersey exists on CR 549, and on the bridges there exists a stamp in the concrete that reads "1975". No other county bridges have their dates stamped into them.

CR 549 mostly travels through Ocean County. The highway makes frequent turns onto separate roads. The route in its northern segment is a two-lane, rural road, but it becomes a four-lane arterial after crossing the Garden State Parkway all the way to Toms River Township. County Route 549 handles more traffic than any other county route in all of Ocean County; it is a major link between the townships of Toms River and Brick. As the route is plagued by chronic congestion, the county has invested millions of dollars into upgrading this corridor. The most recent improvement was from Cedar Bridge Avenue (CR 528) to Beaverson Boulevard. It included widening, signal modification, and the extension of Beaverson Boulevard to meet Old Hooper Avenue. Ongoing improvements are being made between Beaverson Boulevard and Church Road, where widening and reconstruction should help alleviate some congestion in that area.