Newport Pell Bridge
The Claiborne Pell Newport Bridge in Newport, Rhode Island, United States, a suspension bridge that connects Newport and Jamestown, crossing the Narragansett Bay. It was built in 1969 and is featured on the reverse of the Rhode Island quarter. CC-BY-SA-3.0/Matt H. Wade at Wikipedia Matt H. Wade - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:UpstateNYer Creative Commons: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ Credit: CC-BY-SA-3.0/Matt H. Wade at Wikipedia / Matt H. Wade

The Rhode Island Turnpike and Bridge Authority (RITBA) today announced that the open-road tolling lanes at the center of the Pell Bridge toll plaza will be expanded to two lanes in each direction beginning November 11, 2021, and the extreme outside lanes will then be closed.

“We are pleased that the transition to all-electronic tolling is complete and we are able to increase the number of open-road tolling lanes available to motorists,” said Lori Caron Silveira, Executive Director of the Rhode Island Turnpike and Bridge Authority. “The formerly gated, outside lanes will be closed in each direction as construction continues, so we ask that motorists carefully follow the signage as they move through the toll plaza area.”

With all-electronic tolling:

  • Tolls collected through RITBA-issued E-ZPass transponders will continue to be charged at the published discounted rates. If a vehicle is not equipped with a valid transponder, the owner will receive a toll invoice in the mail for $2.00 per axle (i.e. $4.00 for a passenger vehicle) through November 30, 2021.
  • Effective December 1, 2021, owners of those vehicles not utilizing a valid E-ZPass transponder will receive an invoice in the mail for $3.00 per axle (i.e. $6.00 for a passenger vehicle).

To register for an E-ZPass visit www.ezpassritba.com

Ryan Belmore is the owner and publisher of What's Up Newp. He took over the publication in 2012 and has grown it into a three-time Rhode Island Monthly Best Local News Blog (2018, 2019, 2020). He was named LION Publishers Member of the Year in 2020 and received the Dominique Award from the Arts & Cultural Society of Newport County the same year. He has been awarded grants for investigative and community journalism, and continues to coach and mentor new local news publications nationwide. Ryan...