Latest news with #RhodeIslandDepartmentofTransportation
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Washington Bridge rebuild to cost up to $427M. Expect to drive on it by late 2028.
Rhode Island Department of Transportation Director Peter Alviti Jr. goes over the timeline to rebuild the westbound Washington Bridge at a State House press conference on Friday, June 6, 2025. At left is Gov. Dan McKee. At right is Walsh Construction Company Program Manager Charles Parish. (Photo by Christopher Shea/Rhode Island Current) The completion date and cost for a new westbound Washington Bridge is finally here. But it will take two more years and $59 million more than expected to resurrect a new thoroughfare connecting Providence and East Providence. Gov. Dan McKee unveiled the November 2028 target completion date and an up-to-$427 million contract cost at a State House press conference Friday. The long-awaited news comes nearly a year-and-a-half after state officials halted all traffic on the westbound highway after engineers discovered broken anchor rods that put the bridge spanning the Seekonk River at risk of collapse. State officials originally sought to rebuild the bridge by August 2026 at an estimated cost of $368 million. 'I understand that this has been a challenging time for those who rely on the Washington Bridge, especially in the early days before we were able to restore six lanes of traffic,' McKee said. 'We owe it to you to deliver a bridge that is safe and will ultimately make your lives easier.' Tasked with constructing the new bridge is Walsh Construction Company. The Chicago-based firm worked on the Pearl Harbor Memorial Bridge on Interstate 95 over the Quinnipiac River in New Haven, Connecticut, along with the Interstate 90 Westbound Innerbelt Bridge in Cleveland, Ohio. For this project, the firm will draw from its design of the Chain of Rocks Bridge in St. Louis, Walsh Program Manager Charles Parish told reporters. 'It's not often that you get to build the same project twice, or the same bridge twice,' Parish said. 'But our ability to do that on the new Washington Bridge gave us the confidence to commit to both the price and schedule that we're sure we can meet.' The state's plan calls for five lanes of travel over the new bridge, along with an onramp from Gano Street in Providence and a new offramp to Waterfront Drive in East Providence. The original bridge had four lanes. Construction is scheduled to begin next month, which overlaps with the ongoing demolition of the existing bridge. Demolition contractor Aetna Bridge Company is expected to complete its work by the end of 2025. During that time, Walsh will secure permitting, workers, and pre-fabricate material to rebuild the bridge, Parish said. Walsh will be paid at least $339 million to build the new bridge, with incentives and contingencies that could bring the total cost up to $427 million. The deal also has built-in daily penalties of $25,000 for exceeding the project deadline. With demolition and emergency repairs, the entire project adds up to $570 million, which is 'well within what we budget,' McKee said. McKee's administration has identified more than $713 million in financing available for the project over the last year. That includes $35 million in remaining pandemic relief aid, $107.6 million from the state's capital plan fund, and up to $334.6 million in Grant Anticipation Revenue Vehicles bonds, which allow the state to borrow against future allocations of federal transportation money. The state was also awarded nearly a pair of federal infrastructure grants worth roughly $221 million. The grants were temporarily frozen under President Donald Trump's initial flurry of executive orders, but released to Rhode Island in late March. However, Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha, in a lawsuit filed with 19 other states in May, warned that funding could still be at risk due to a federal directive tying infrastructure grants to compliance with the Trump administration's diversity and immigration policies. McKee said he does not believe federal funds will be taken away from the project. 'We have the sign off from [Transportation] Secretary (Sean) Duffy,' the governor said Friday. Also unclear: how the new price tag will impact the state's budget. House Speaker K. Joseph Shekarchi said in a statement that legislative leaders will review the governor's announcement as they shape a final fiscal 2026 budget. 'As the bridge project moves forward, the House of Representatives will continue its work ensuring the administration is accountable,' Shekarchi said. Walsh was one of two finalists vying to rebuild the bridge after the state issued its latest bidding window last December. The other proposal came from a joint venture by American Bridge and MLJ, firms based respectively in Pennsylvania and New York. Rhode Island Director of Transportation Peter Alviti Jr. said both companies were qualified and made similar technical proposals. Walsh's proposal projected around $340 million in hard construction costs, while American Construction and MLJ's bid estimated nearly $387 million. Because it did not win the state's tentative contract, the losing bidder will receive a $1.75 million consolation prize for participating, as set out in the state's solicitation. It took two rounds of requests or proposals to yield any firm bids, a sore spot that McKee's critics continue to seize on, including his potential 2026 Democratic gubernatorial rival, Helena Buonanno Foulkes. 'Governor McKee's catastrophic failure to manage the Washington Bridge has impacted countless Rhode Island families and businesses, forcing them to endure longer commutes, lost wages, and economic hardship,' Foulkes said in a statement Friday. But McKee said he has no regrets. 'As far as I'm concerned we're in a good spot,' he said. 'The people in the state of Rhode Island know that the funding is there, the time schedule is there, and we have a quality bridge-builder to actually execute the project.' SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
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.
Yahoo
09-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Federal government releases $251 million for R.I. to fix bridges along I-95
This is one of 11 bridges along Interstate 95 slated to be replaced with federal funds released by the Trump administration. (Rhode Island Department of Transportation photo) Roughly $251 million in federal funding designated to rehabilitate 15 bridges along Rhode Island's Interstate 95 between Providence and Warwick has been officially secured, the state's congressional delegation announced Wednesday. The funding awarded in July 2024 under the U.S. Department of Transportation's Bridge Investment Program had been in doubt after President Donald Trump froze the grant not long after taking office to make sure all federal spending aligned with his new administration's priorities. 'Transportation investment should be driven by need and merit — not partisanship,' U.S. Sen. Jack Reed said in a statement. 'We're talking about overdue, needed upgrades and maintenance to bridges along our interstate highway system.' Reed credited Rhode Island's U.S. Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse's work on the chamber's Environment and Public Works Committee in getting the funds released. 'I'll continue pressing to free and secure federal funding for Rhode Island's job-creating infrastructure investments,' Whitehouse said in a statement. The delegation's announcement comes over a month after the federal government released $221 million in grant funding allocated by the Biden administration to rebuild the westbound Washington Bridge. This latest $251 million federal funding secured by the state will go toward replacing 11 bridges, while eliminating four in order to improve vertical clearances along I-95. The bridges range from Pettaconsett Avenue in Warwick to Eddy Street in Providence. The entire project is estimated by the Rhode Island Department of Transportation (RIDOT) to cost $723 million. Collectively the bridges serve 180,000 vehicles daily, according to RIDOT. An additional $549,770 in federal funding will be unfrozen for the city of East Providence to modernize its traffic infrastructure, the congressional delegation announced. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
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
22-04-2025
- Yahoo
‘It can result in tragedy': RIDOT urges drivers to slow down for Work Zone Awareness Week
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) — As National Work Zone Awareness Week continues, the Rhode Island Department of Transportation is urging drivers to slow down around work zones. With warmer weather returning, construction crews are getting back to work. The week of April 21 – 25 marks an annual spring campaign that promotes and encourages safe driving through highway work zones. 'Work zone safety isn't just about putting up barriers and signs,' Derek Torrey, Rhode Island Division Administrator of the Federal Highway Administration, said. 'It's about creating a culture of awareness and responsibility where everyone—from workers to drivers—understands their role in preventing accidents.' According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, deadly crashes in work zones have increased steadily over the past decade, rising from about 500 deaths per year to nearly 900. While RIDOT hasn't reported any work zone deaths in several years, there were nearly 500 work zone-related crashes in Rhode Island last year. 'It doesn't just carry a risk of a citation and fine. It can result in a tragedy,' R.I. State Police Col. Robert Creamer said. 'Every day, law enforcement officers, emergency responders, roadside workers put themselves in harm's way to improve our roads and protect our communities, the least we can do is move over or slow down.' During a press conference Tuesday, Lincoln Police Lt. Brad Stewart shared two personal stories to underscore the importance of safe driving. In 2013, Stewart stopped to help a driver with a flat tire on the side of Route 146. Shortly after he returned to his cruiser, a drunk driver slammed into the back of his parked vehicle. 'Come to find out, this driver was four times the legal limit—something that could have been completely preventable, whether it be rideshare, calling a friend or just making a decision not to drive,' Stewart said. About five years later, Stewart was working a construction detail on the same highway when another drunk driver swerved to avoid a crashed truck, nearly hit him, and ended up slamming into a construction truck towing a sign board. 'I thought that the two guys on the back of that truck that were setting up those cones and the signboard were dead,' he recalled. Fortunately, no one was hurt. But Stewart said the close call is a powerful reminder: everyone deserves to make it home safe. 'Slow down. Move over. If you see flashing lights, pay attention to signage. Pay attention to work zones,' he added. 'Let's try to make this state safer to drive in.' 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.
