Latest news with #PeterAlviti
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
New lanes to open this weekend on I-95 North in Providence
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) — More travel lanes are coming to I-95 in an effort to improve traffic flow on the highway. The Rhode Island Department of Transportation (RIDOT) announced Wednesday that it is preparing to implement changes as part of the Providence Viaduct Project. 'They're going to be very beneficial to traffic and congestion in this area,' RIDOT Director Peter Alviti said. RELATED: New bridge opens connecting I-95 to Route 146 According to Alviti, the viaduct project originally came out of a need to fix 'almost a dozen' structurally deficient bridges in the area. With additional funding, the project also aimed to address congestion in the capital city. While Alviti noted that the two relatively new through lanes that carry traffic past downtown Providence onto I-95 North helped alleviate congestion, he also acknowledged the new traffic patterns have caused further problems. 'The remaining portions of the construction that had been taking place created new traffic patterns for traffic coming onto 95 North from Atwells Avenue, from Route 6 and 10, and from downtown Providence,' Alviti explained. 'All of these entrance ramps crossed onto the highway just before the state office exit ramps and the 146 exit ramps … that created a lot of conflict in traffic coming onto the highway at the same time traffic was moving off.' To address this issue, RIDOT will be opening additional travel lanes on I-95 North and the northbound Providence Viaduct service road at Exit 38. RIDOT said crews will begin working to open the lanes on Friday, May 30. The new lanes are set to officially open on Saturday morning. Those lanes will allow all merges to happen on the service road, getting rid of the 'chronic congestion' around the entrance and exit ramps. 'This makes it safer and makes it easier for people to navigate through,' Alviti added. ALSO READ: I-95 lanes shift in Cranston as major bridge project continues In mid-June, there will be some overnight lane closures while RIDOT works to pave the roads. RIDOT said the I-95 North Viaduct carries 220,000 vehicles every day. Download the and apps to get breaking news and weather alerts. Watch or with the new . Follow us on social media: Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
30-04-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Route 1 lane closures to begin for Tower Hill Road Bridge replacement
NORTH KINGSTOWN, R.I. (WPRI) — The first two weekend lane closures on Route 1 are set to begin Thursday night as crews work to replace a 55-year-old bridge in North Kingstown. Rhode Island Department of Transportation (RIDOT) Director Peter Alviti provided an update Wednesday morning on the rapid replacement of the 'structurally deficient' Tower Hill Road Bridge. Starting at 9 p.m. Thursday, May 1, Route 1 will be down to one lane in each direction. Lanes and ramps along Route 1—where it passes over Route 138—will shift and temporarily close over the next two weekends, according to RIDOT. Drivers should expect traffic delays and are encouraged to seek alternate routes. 12 News Pinpoint Traffic: Live interactive map Those traveling from the University of Rhode Island's Kingston campus toward North Kingstown are advised to take Route 2 to reach Route 4. Additional detours recommended by RIDOT are available online. RIDOT said the work was scheduled ahead of Memorial Day weekend and the start of Rhode Island's tourism season. During the closures, crews will slide newly built bridge decks into place. The southbound side will be replaced first, with demolition and installation happening from 9 p.m. Thursday, May 1, through 5 a.m. Monday, May 5. The northbound side will follow the same schedule from May 8 to May 12. The $35.8 million project also includes repaving more than six miles of Tower Hill Road, from the Route 4 split in North Kingstown to the Oliver Stedman Government Center in South Kingstown. RIDOT said the first half of that repaving was completed last year. The second half, from Shermantown Road to the Route 4 interchange, will wrap up after the bridge installation. NEXT | 'It can result in tragedy': RIDOT urges drivers to slow down for as road work ramps up Download the and apps to get breaking news and weather alerts. Watch or with the new . Follow us on social media: Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
07-03-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Now we know how many overweight trucks are crossing the Washington Bridge
Over 2,600 trucks weighing at least 80,000 pounds have crossed the eastbound Washington Bridge over the past seven weeks, according to new Rhode Island Department of Transportation data.(Photo by Rhode Island PBS Producer David Lawlor) More than 2,600 overweight trucks have crossed the eastbound Washington Bridge over the past seven weeks, according to newly released data from the Rhode Island Department of Transportation (RIDOT). The data comes from RIDOT's newly installed weigh-in-motion system, part of a larger technical package designed to monitor the structural health of the highway over the Seekonk River. RIDOT plans to update the online dashboard on truck weights every Wednesday. The state paid $2.8 million last May to Swiss-based technology company Kistler to install sensors meant to monitor traffic volumes, vehicle weights and axle loads, vehicle distances, and vehicle classes that cross the bridge. The eastbound bridge has a weight limit of 80,000 pounds, but vehicles weighing up to 96,000 pounds can cross if they are given a permit. Trucks weighing 140,000 pounds or more will trigger a visual inspection by crews to assess any potential impacts to the highway connecting East Providence to Providence. The heaviest vehicle to cross the eastbound bridge since the new monitors were installed weighed 135,225 pounds on Jan. 15, according to RIDOT's data. Feb. 7 saw the highest number of overweight trucks, with 170 crossing in both directions. RIDOT plans to close portions of Waterfront Drive in East Providence on March 17 and 18 in order to install sensors for the structural health monitoring system. The eastbound span, constructed in 2008, was converted to take on traffic heading west days after the state closed the westbound side of the bridge in December 2023 upon the discovery of broken anchor rods that put it at risk of collapse. 'Safety is RIDOT's highest priority,' RIDOT Director Peter Alviti, Jr. said in a statement. 'As part of our comprehensive efforts for maintenance and inspection of the eastbound bridge, we installed this state-of-the-art system which will allow RIDOT to have its finger on the pulse of the bridge in real time, every day, around the clock.' RIDOT's new data comes as contractors begin to tear down the substructure of the westbound bridge, which is expected to wrap up by the end of the year. The state plans to award the contract to rebuild the westbound bridge by June 6, 2025. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
14-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Eight things to know from a three-hour Washington Bridge oversight hearing
Rhode Island Department of Transportation Director Peter Alviti, Jr., center, is seen with Rep. Patricia Serpa, a West Warwick Democrat, right, on Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025, before a joint oversight hearing by both Rhode Island senators and representatives. Lawmakers had plenty of questions for Alviti about the Washington Bridge. (Photo by Alexander Castro/Rhode Island Current) Lawmakers from the Rhode Island House and Senate's respective oversight committees whittled away the daylight as they played 20 questions Thursday with Peter Alviti, Jr., the director of the Rhode Island Department of Transportation (RIDOT). Well, there were a lot more than 20 questions at the nearly three-hour joint oversight hearing in windowless, subterranean Room 35 of the Rhode Island State House. It's been a little over 13 months since the Washington Bridge's westbound lane shuttered due to structural deficiencies, but curiosity remains. Legislators wanted to know when demolition will end on the old bridge, when the new structure will go up, as well as an assortment of other concerns and clarifications. 'Our mission is to build this bridge, and we're gonna build it,' Alviti said. But not all questions were permitted: Lawmakers couldn't ask about the pending litigation against 13 vendors who worked on, inspected or designed the bridge's original westbound span, which has been closed since December 2023. 'We'll avoid questions that will impact the lawsuit,' said Sen. Mark McKenney, the Warwick Democrat who chairs the Senate Committee on Rules, Government Ethics and Oversight, in his opening remarks. 'As much as we'd like to discuss some of those issues pertaining to causation.' While the hearing couldn't untangle the failure's root causes, Rep. Patricia Serpa, the West Warwick Democrat who chairs the House Committee on Oversight, cast the joint event as a means of sharing information and hopefully restoring public confidence in RIDOT — especially for people who, like her, don't like driving over bridges. 'I personally have gone out of my way to avoid them, even if it meets a few extra miles. I just won't use them,' Serpa said. 'So I hope that your department can ultimately restore the trust of all of us and for all of the folks out there.' Here are a few key points and highlights from the meeting. The demolition of the closed bridge's superstructure is now 80% complete, Alviti said, and will be finished this month. The final stage involves demolition of the bridge's substructure, which Alviti said will begin next month. You'll have to wait until June for those answers. That's when one of two vendors — Walsh Construction, or the combined team of American Bridge Company and MLJ Contracting Corporation — will be awarded the contract to build the new bridge. Alviti said the vendors' price proposals will arrive on May 30. The bids are fixed once submitted, so that's the price the state is going to have to pay, Alviti said. But Alviti didn't want to commit to an earlier price estimate from last April of $368 million. Whatever the price, Alviti said, 'We have enough funding in play. We're confident we have enough funding in place to cover those costs,' noting later that there is currently $713 million in funding available for the new bridge between federal and state sources. While the Rhode Island Department of Administration draws up purchasing contracts to comply with state procurement laws, it's RIDOT that submits the necessary technical specs that go into requests for proposal (RFP) from vendors. Rep. Julie Casimiro, a North Kingstown Democrat, asked who at RIDOT would be managing the RFP for the new bridge. Alviti said he would. 'I submitted to you my CV for your review,' he said. 'I've taken a personal interest in this one, as you can understand.' Anthony Pompei, a registered professional engineer and project manager at RIDOT since 2016, is overseeing the demolition project. Both men's résumés can be found in the packet of documents given to committee members Thursday. Alviti couldn't answer that question, even though Serpa pressed the director to answer in '25 words or less.' Alviti began speaking, 'There are so many ways they can build this bridge —' Serpa interjected politely: 'OK, but I don't need to know all the ways.' 'Once they pick the way they're going to build it, they'll know how long it's going to take,' Alviti said, reiterating that that information would be most likely available in June with the contract's finalization. Alviti didn't think so. Based on communications RIDOT had with the Federal Highway Administration, Alviti interpreted President Donald Trump's executive order — which seeks to constrain federal transportation funds for certain projects — as having a more narrow focus on initiatives which wouldn't apply to the Washington Bridge, like the Green New Deal or DEI. 'We have a total of $550 million worth of grants awarded to us that should be made available to us as they were originally promised,' Alviti said, adding that his department has been in touch with the Federal Highway Administration 'on a daily basis to make sure that they continue…to get the funds for those two grants released.' The final contract price will be based on fixed bids and won't fluctuate, Alviti said, but added that the cost of materials could change. Any cost overruns would come from the same three categories that can make any transportation project more expensive: steel, liquid asphalt and diesel. The U.S. Department of Transportation stipulates that transportation projects use domestic steel, so tariffs wouldn't affect that resource, but Alviti said it's uncertain if a trade war could ultimately affect the domestic supply chain. Still, Alviti was confident the finalist vendors have strong relationships with domestic steel suppliers. He also testified that, in the 290 bridges Rhode Island built in the past decade, 95% of the projects were on budget. Rep. Jennifer Boylan, a Barrington Democrat, drives over the bridge often. In the bridge's current three-lane configuration, used in both directions, the right lane is a bit wider and meant to accommodate trucks and larger vehicles. But Boylan worries that the trucks she often sees driving in the left lane could be compromising the bridge's safety. Said Boylan: 'My husband's like, 'Would you just stop about the right lane already?' Because I'm always, saying, 'Oh my god, Do I need to worry when trucks are not in the right lane?'' Alviti said the structural integrity of the bridge is intact even with the reconfigured lanes, and the right lane rules derive from a driving safety standpoint, not an engineering concern. 'It makes me nervous as much as it makes you nervous,' Alviti said of trucks driving in the left lane. 'So tell your husband to bug off.' Yes: The finalist who does not win the construction contract gets $1.75 million, as a stipend for procurement is standard practice, Alviti said. He added that the two bidders will pay millions over the next few months, each employing around 10 to 12 separate firms to help perform scores of engineering, financial and cost analyses before they submit their final bids. Sen. Gordon Rogers, a Foster Republican who asked Alviti this question, said it wasn't meant as a 'gotcha.' Rogers recalled working construction, spending hours around his kitchen table, crafting project bids that might go nowhere. 'This ain't that,' Alviti said. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
