Drivers traveling on Route 138 in North Kingstown will be met with construction-related delays for the next several weeks, the Rhode Island Department of Transportation (RIDOT) said.
The work, which is weather permitting, will involve a shift of the travel lanes in both directions to the right, creating a work zone in the center median, RIDOT officials said in a news release.
RIDOT’s $35.8 million project will replace this 55-year-old structurally deficient bridge and will install a new traffic pattern on Route 138 where it passes underneath the Tower Hill Road (Route 1) Bridge in North Kingstown.
RIDOT officials said the bridge will be replaced using an accelerated method by pre-assembling new bridge decks in the vicinity of the old bridge. The new bridge decks will then be moved into position using self-propelled module transport units, a method that has been used successfully for a number of times to rapidly replace bridges with minimal disruption to motorists, officials said.
The 6.5-mile stretch of Route 138 from the Route 4 split in North Kingstown to the Oliver Stedman Government Center in South Kingstown will also be resurfaced as part of the project.
Additional improvements will include upgrading the wheelchair ramps at the Bridgetown Road/Mooresfield Road intersection, and implementing stormwater treatment enhancements, RIDOT officials said.
The Tower Hill Road Improvements project is being made possible by funding from RhodeWorks and the Bipartisan Infrastructure and Improvement Act, officials said.
Travel Advisory
Effective the weekend of Friday, March 1, weather permitting, the Rhode Island Department of Transportation (RIDOT) will install a new traffic pattern on Route 138 where it passes underneath the Tower Hill Road (Route 1) Bridge in North Kingstown.
RIDOT will shift the travel lanes in both directions to the right, creating a work zone in the center median. It will be in place for approximately eight weeks.
RIDOT’s $35.8 million project will replace this 55-year-old structurally deficient bridge. RIDOT will use accelerated bridge construction methods to build the new bridge, assembling new bridge decks in the vicinity of the old bridge. At a future date, RIDOT will move them into position using self-propelled module transport units. RIDOT has used this method successfully a number of times to rapidly replace bridges with as little disruption to motorists as possible.
It also includes resurfacing 6.5 miles of Route 1 from the Route 4 split in North Kingstown to the Oliver Stedman Government Center in South Kingstown. Additionally, the current wheelchair ramps at the Bridgetown Road/Mooresfield Road intersection will be upgraded with ADA-compliant ones, and stormwater treatment enhancements will be implemented.
All construction projects are subject to changes in schedule and scope depending on needs, circumstances, findings, and weather.
The Tower Hill Road Improvements project is made possible by RhodeWorks and the Bipartisan Infrastructure and Improvement Act. RIDOT is committed to bringing Rhode Island’s infrastructure into a state of good repair while respecting the environment and striving to improve it. Learn more at www.ridot.net/RhodeWorks.
Generative artificial intelligence (AI) assisted a What’sUpNewp journalist with the reporting included in this story.
