Gov. Dan McKee said Thursday that Rhode Island’s critical bridge, which was partially closed in December due to safety concerns, will need to be destroyed and replaced.
McKee said at an afternoon press conference that an independent study of the Washington Bridge, which carries Interstate 195 over the Seekonk River from Providence to East Providence and serves as a key gateway to Providence, has determined that it needs to be replaced. It said additional structural defects were discovered.
He said the state needs to replace some or all of the bridge’s superstructure and substructure.
‘Catastrophic’ structural flaws feared at partially closed Providence Bridge
“We’re going to fix the bridge, make it right and make sure people are safe,” he said.
McKee said his administration is investigating how the bridge needed to be closed and replaced.
“We will hold all those responsible fully accountable,” he said. “The day of reckoning is almost upon us.”
Construction workers work on the eastbound lanes of the Washington Bridge on August 4, 2007 in Providence, Rhode Island. (AP Photo/Stu Milne, File)
Peter Alviti, director of the Rhode Island Department of Transportation, said the new bridge is substantially complete and should carry traffic between March and September 2026.
He said the cost of destroying and replacing the bridge should be between $250 million and $300 million. The state is considering various funding sources, including federal grants.
During the demolition and construction of the new bridge, the state plans to reroute six lanes of traffic, three lanes in each direction, on the eastbound bridge structure.
Alviti said the eastbound bridge is a separate structure. The state had a structural engineering firm determine it was safe to carry six lanes of traffic, and then had a second engineering firm review the first firm’s work to ensure the bridge was safe, he said. said.
Alviti said the Justice Department is conducting a separate investigation into the need to abruptly close the bridge.
House Speaker Joseph Shekarchi and Senate President Dominic Ruggerio issued a joint statement Thursday acknowledging the disruption facing Rhode Island drivers and pledging to work with the state’s congressional delegation to seek federal funding. did.
“We caution that the costs quoted today are estimates only, and as we have seen on too many projects, construction costs often exceed original estimates,” they said.
Nearly 100,000 vehicles pass through this bridge every day.
The sudden westbound closure in mid-December initially wreaked havoc on traffic, turning 40- to 45-minute drives into hours, leaving commuters stranded for hours and some diverted from their normal routes. Some schools have closed and implemented remote classes.
The westbound section of the Washington Bridge, built in 1969, was rated “Poor,” according to the Federal Highway Administration’s National Bridge Inventory released in June.
A bridge’s overall rating is based on whether its individual components (deck, superstructure, substructure, or culvert (if present)) are in poor or poor condition.
Alviti warned of the bridge’s poor condition in a 2019 grant application aimed at repairing it and improving traffic flow, writing that it was “approaching a state of permanent disrepair.” .
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
According to federal data, bridges are inspected every 24 months. State officials said the last test was in July.
