Rhode Island officials are espousing the benefits of an estimated $150 million project to replace multiple bridges along the Route 146 corridor, repave eight miles of roadway, and correct congestion.
Rhode Island Department of Transportation (RIDOT) Director Peter Alviti, Jr. recently joined Sens. Jack Reed (D-RI) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), as well as Reps. Jim Langevin (D-RI), David Cicilline (D-RI), and other state and local leaders in highlighting the improvements.
The project is partially funded by a $65 million INFRA grant secured this summer by Rhode Island’s congressional delegation.
“We are announcing the start of relief for the 170,000 vehicles that navigate the bumps and ruts of Route 146 every day,” Alviti said.
“Help is on the way. This is a critical transportation route that has gone unimproved for far too long. Once again, our congressional delegation has gone to bat for Rhode Island and delivered tens of millions of dollars in grant funding so we can properly address all our concerns with Route 146 in a single project. We owe them a huge debt of gratitude.”
The scope of work includes removing the traffic signal where Route 146 meets Sayles Hill Road and building a bridge so the highway can pass freely over Sayles Hill Road.
The intersection averages more than 85 crashes per year. It is a source of significant congestion and travel delay, indicating it is the only signalized intersection on the entire Route 146 highway corridor in Rhode Island.
“This federal investment will allow RIDOT to go beyond simply fixing what we have,” said Reed, ranking member of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing, and Urban Development (THUD). “It will lead to significant safety improvements, including the reconfiguration of the Sayles Hill Road intersection.”