Latest news with #RIDOT
Yahoo
13-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Washington Bridge contractors say RIDOT issued flawed RFP in countersuit against state
Traffic flows in both directions on Interstate 195 on the eastbound side of the Washington Bridge on Friday, June 13, 2025, at 3:50 p.m. Demolition work that has removed much of the westbound side of the Washington Bridge is expected to be completed in December. (Rhode Island Department of Transportation Traffic Camera) Two of the 13 firms being sued by the state for allegedly doing negligent work on the westbound Washington Bridge have filed a counterclaim, alleging the Rhode Island Department of Transportation (RIDOT) failed to tell them about a key inspection report. The counterclaim filed by Barletta Heavy Division Inc. and Aetna Bridge Company in Providence County Superior Court Thursday argues they should have been alerted to the findings of a January 1992 report by Lichtenstein & Associates, at the time they bid for the state's $78 million contract to rehabilitate the Washington Bridge in 2021. The 1992 report was cited by the state in its lawsuit against the firms, claiming they all should have known about deterioration in the concrete drop-in beams and signs of distress in the grout and cantilever beams that were eventually deemed a risk to the bridge's structural integrity. The westbound span on Interstate 195 was closed in December 2023 when engineers determined the bridge was at risk of collapsing. 'RIDOT knew or should have known, or ought to have known, that the Washington Bridge incorporated a unique design that limited the ability to determine its condition from visual inspections alone,' the counterclaim states. The westbound bridge is expected to be rebuilt by November 2028 and cost up to $427 million. Chicago-headquartered Walsh Construction Company was awarded the state's contract on June 6 after two attempts by Gov. Dan McKee's administration to secure a bridge builder. Work is scheduled to begin in July, which overlaps with the ongoing demolition of the existing bridge by Aetna, which is among the 13 firms being sued by the state. The Warwick-based contractor is expected to complete its work by the end of 2025. Barletta and Aetna claim the state concealed the true condition of the bridge and neglected to conduct the appropriate testing ahead of issuing a request for proposals in 2021. Instead, the companies allege that they received a project scope which did not identify any structural deficiencies with the post-tensioning system. The 1992 report called for RIDOT to perform additional radiographic and other evaluation of the Washington Bridge before any future attempts to rehabilitate the span over the Seekonk River. 'The Rhode Island Department of Transportation may have averted a costly and disastrous emergency closure of the Washington Bridge last December if it had followed recommendations in a detailed 1992 inspection report,' Barletta spokesperson Sallie Hofmeister said in an emailed statement. Because of the state's alleged failure to investigate the bridge, Barletta and Aetna claim they were deprived of incentives available after successful completion of the initial rehabilitation project. The two firms have asked the court to issue a judgment against the state for all of its damages plus interest. The state's initial August 2024 complaint seeks to recover damages based on alleged economic losses and physical damages, along with breaches of contracts. RIDOT spokesperson Charles St. Martin deferred comment to Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha's office, which is handling the state's case. 'Counterclaims are to be expected in a case like this,' Timothy Rondeau, a spokesperson for the AG's office, said in an emailed statement.'The state stands by the allegations in its complaint. As this is part of ongoing litigation, we have no further comment.' SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
07-06-2025
- Yahoo
Police: RIDOT worker fraudulently took out $51K car loan
JOHNSTON, R.I. (WPRI) — Police have arrested a Rhode Island Department of Transportation (RIDOT) employee accused of filing false documents to open bank accounts and obtain a vehicle loan, 12 News has learned. Ryan Garnetto, 45, of Johnston, has been charged with identity fraud, filing a false statement to obtain a loan, passing a fraudulent check over $1,500 and obtaining money under false pretenses. The investigation began back in February, when the Rhode Island State Police received a complaint from Westerly Community Credit Union regarding a fraudulent account and vehicle loan. The bank told investigators that someone had filed an online application with the bank in December to open a savings account, a checking account, a credit card and an automobile loan totaling $51,000. Westerly Community Credit Union opened the accounts and approved the loan after being provided a driver's license, pay stub, vehicle bill of sale, vehicle title and insurance documents. The bank also wrote a $51,000 check made payable to a car dealer in Georgia for the purchase of a 2019 Mercedes-Benz, according to police. Westerly Community Credit Union first became suspicious in January, when a man walked into the Coventry branch and deposited a $5,265 check into the account. Police said that check was later determined to be fraudulent. The bank also flagged the accounts after discovering that no payments had been made on the credit card or the vehicle loan, according to police. Investigators eventually discovered that, except for the vehicle bill of sale, the documents provided to the bank to open the accounts and take out the loan were also fraudulent. Detectives were able to identify Garnetto as the account holder by reviewing the Coventry bank's surveillance footage, which showed that he was driving a marked RIDOT vehicle, according to police. Police said Garnetto used a different name to open the accounts and take out the loan. But the name of the person he used to do so has been incarcerated at the ACI since 2019 and does not have access to a computer. Garnetto, who works for RIDOT as an engineer, was taken into custody on Tuesday and has since been released on $25,000 personal recognizance. 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
05-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
McKee to reveal cost, timeline, winning bidder for Washington Bridge on Friday
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) — A year and a half after the abrupt closure of the westbound Washington Bridge, Rhode Islanders are set to learn how long it will take to build a replacement and how much it will cost. Gov. Dan McKee will hold a State House news conference Friday at 10 a.m. to announce which of the two finalists has won the contract for the new bridge, his office announced. The state closed the 56-year-old bridge with almost no notice during rush hour on Dec. 11, 2023, after a structure failure was discovered, leading to major traffic problems and widespread than 96,000 vehicles traveling on I-195 Westbound drove over the bridge each day before the closure, according to RIDOT. The state has since rerouted traffic on the eastbound Washington Bridge, a newer span, to go in both directions with additional lanes. While the bridge was initially expected to reopen within a few months, further inspections revealed it couldn't be salvaged, and is currently being demolished. The state's effort to engineer a quick process for constructing the new bridge failed last July when no companies bid, leading the administration to regroup and change its approach. The two finalists chosen in December as part of the new bidding process were Walsh Construction of Chicago and a joint venture between American Bridge Co. of Pennsylvania and MLJ Contracting Corp. of New York. The governor's office describes both as 'nationally recognized bridge building groups.' The losing bidder will be paid $1.75 million as a consolation prize for participating in the process. During his monthly interview on 12 News at 4 last month, R.I. Department of Transportation Director Peter Alviti described the proposals presented by both groups to officials as 'very impressive.' The bidding process is secret so no information has been released about their plans. (Story continues below video.) The state initially estimated the new bridge would cost $368 million and be open by August 2026. Officials long ago stopped saying if they thought those goals were still achievable, though they never ruled it out, either. Rhode Island's congressional delegation has so far secured $221 million in federal grants to help offset the cost of the bridge project. In the meantime, a separate $98 million project to demolish the old westbound bridge is proceeding. Demolition of the substructure was completed on Feb. 21. The state expanded the project last year to also include demolition of the old bridge's underwater substructure, and that work is expected to supposed to be finished by mid-December. Separately, the state has filed a lawsuit against various companies that worked on the bridge over the years. McKee and Alviti have repeatedly expressed confidence in the structural integrity of the eastbound bridge, which now has considerably more weight on it due to the added westbound vehicle traffic as well as temporary concrete barriers. Alviti said last year he still expects the eastbound bridge, built in the 2000s, to hold up for its full expected lifespan of 75 years. Ted Nesi (tnesi@ is a Target 12 investigative reporter and 12 News politics/business editor. He co-hosts Newsmakers and writes Nesi's Notes on Saturdays. Connect with him on Twitter, Bluesky and Facebook. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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
16-05-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
I-95 lanes to shift in Cranston as major bridge project continues
CRANSTON, R.I. (WPRI) — All lanes on I-95 at the Route 10 interchange in Cranston will shift to the right this week as construction begins on the Huntington Viaduct. As part of the ongoing 15 Bridges Project, the lanes will be narrowed Friday night, but all on- and off-ramps will remain open. According to the Rhode Island Department of Transportation (RIDOT), the shift will remain in place through 2026. RIDOT said any additional changes will be announced 'well in advance.' State officials said the 15 Bridges Project is Rhode Island's largest infrastructure undertaking aimed to address 15 bridges rated as 'poor' or 'fair to poor,' located along the I-95 and Route 10 corridors between Providence and Warwick. MORE: RI announces plans to fix 11 bridges, eliminate 4 more Eleven of the bridges, including nine considered structurally deficient, will be repaired. Four along Route 10, from Pontiac Avenue to Park Avenue, will be torn down. The entire project is expected to take seven years, wrapping in 2031. 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.
