A huge crack has formed in the asphalt along a stretch of road in New Jersey, and no one seems to know why.

The damage is impacting drivers along Smith Street between Highland Avenue and Convery Boulevard, near the border of Woodbridge and Perth Amboy.

Route 440/Smith Street closed as search for answers continues   

Chopper 2 flew over the scene Monday and captured images of the large crack that shut down Route 440/Smith Street.

Woodbridge Township Mayor John McCormac said the police department was first notified of the long crack last week, and the town has had crews on location since, trying to get to the bottom of what caused it. The road is closed until further notice.

McCormac said several agencies responded to the site and initiated the closure, pending a detailed engineering review of the highway and surrounding area.

"It's very serious. That road is going to take a long time to be replaced," McCormac said.

New Jersey's Department of Transportation said the damage is on a road maintained by Middlesex County, and directed questions to them about the cause and timeline of repairs. Meanwhile, NJDOT closed the Route 440 northbound ramp to Smith Street and the Route 9 northbound ramp to Smith Street, and they will remain closed until repairs are completed. 

An emergency detour has also been set up in the area. 

CBS News New York was told police will continue to be out at checkpoints to help people get around.

"Very busy with trucks ... very loud"

Seeing the road empty during the Monday rush was very unusual to area resident Jose Colon.

"Very busy with trucks in and out, very loud, very loud. It's not quiet at all," Colon said of what the road is usually like.

Speaking through a translator, resident Osvaldo De Los Santos said it has been a nightmare trying to get around.

"It has been very tormenting because we're practically in jail," De Los Santos said.

Impacted families allowed to return home

McCormac said 18 families were evacuated and moved to a hotel over the weekend, but have since been told it is safe to return.

"The experts have been out there and they've measured everything and determined that it's stable," McCormac said. "There is no more risk of anything moving, at least they think, and it has been 48 hours or more before anything has moved significantly. So that's why everybody's comfortable saying the residents can go in, but there are emergency activators there."

Officials said the focus now is on utilities.

"The gas issue is impacting everybody and very dangerously. Same with an electric issue, same with a water issue. So those, that's our next biggest priority. At some point, people will figure out what happened and why it happened, but we have to make sure people are safe first and foremost," McCormac said.

Kendra Milner and her family returned home Monday.

"It was like something that comes out of a movie -- it's shocking," Milner said. "Eight, nine o'clock, they came by and told us we had to leave, They were afraid something was gonna happen to our house, but we packed up and left.. We have four kids. It wasn't a good experience, especially for the kids."

McCormac said residents will be immediately notified if something happens.

It's not clear when the situation will be resolved. The mayor said it could take months to get back to normal, but added an investigation is underway.