The Rhode Island Department of Transportation (RIDOT) today announced work is scheduled to begin on the Pleasant Valley Parkway Bridge replacement project; the bridge, originally built in 1973, carries Dean Street over the Woonasquatucket River in Providence and is one of 230 bridges in the state currently classified as structurally deficient. This replacement will remove it from the structurally deficient list.
The project includes a $5.6 million contract awarded to the Cardi Corporation and a five percent budget contingency of $280,000. Work is scheduled to reach substantial completion in fall of 2017. The contractor anticipates 50 different workers in the skilled trades to be employed throughout the job.
One out of every five Rhode Island bridges is structurally deficient. According to 2014 Federal Highway Administration data, Rhode Island ranks last among the 50 states in terms of structurally deficient bridges.
"The replacement of the Pleasant Valley Parkway Bridge is another example of RIDOT doing everything it can to renew Rhode Island's aging infrastructure," RIDOT Director Peter Alviti Jr. said. "While we are putting our existing resources to their best possible use on this project, it is clear there is still much more work to do."
More than 40,000 vehicles use the Pleasant Valley Parkway Bridge each day. In preparation for its replacement, which will require a temporary closure of the bridge, likely beginning next spring, traffic changes will be taking place on nearby city streets. For example, temporary traffic signals will be installed on Dean Street, Kinsley Avenue and Promenade Street, and the traffic islands in the immediate area of the bridge will be reconfigured. RIDOT will make every reasonable effort to minimize the impact of construction on motorists and the surrounding community.
More information, including detour maps, will be available as the closure schedule is finalized. To sign up for weekly updates on this and other RIDOT projects around the state, contact dot.customerservice@dot.ri.gov. Visit www.dot.ri.gov or follow RIDOTnews on Facebook or Twitter for timely information on construction projects and traffic conditions.
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