New Jersey has become home to one of America’s first amusement parks where visitors can operate, ride and interact with construction machinery, following the opening of Diggerland USA.

Created by Ilya Girlya, the amusement park follows the successful operation of Diggerland UK offerings, with Girlya’s New Jersey project partnering with the UK-based attraction’s owner Hugh Edeleanu.

The US attraction is home to the Spin Dizzy ride, which is comprised of a 20-tonne spinning excavator, with alterations being made to turn its bucket into seats for riders.

Diggerland US also maintains a focus on allowing guests to interact with machines, including the use of a 12-foot-high JCB 3CX Backhoe, which can be operated under the guidance of park staff.

Other features at the site include stunts performed by staff on construction machines, as well as obstacle courses made navigable through the use of digging equipment.

The park’s operator owns the Sahara Sam's Oasis attraction and sought to build on his family background in construction to make the trade into an appealing entertainment format.

As part of the creation of the site, the US attraction liaised with a team of engineers from the UK to bring modified equipment over to New Jersey, with more than 50 new construction attractions for the US park being created by a European sister arm of the UK-based owners.

The UK Diggerland attraction, created by H.E Services, currently runs offerings in Durham, Devon, Kent and Yorkshire.

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