The Rhode Island Department of Transportation (RIDOT) announced today that it is tentatively scheduled to close the off-ramp from I-95 South to Route 37 West (Exit 14B) for bridge repairs beginning Monday, November 2. The daytime restrictions are necessary for RIDOT Bridge Maintenance crews to install timber shoring on the bridge that carries Route 37 over the Pawtuxet River on Cranston/Warwick line.
The exit is scheduled to be closed from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. each day Monday through Thursday. Those looking to take Route 37 West from I-95 South will follow a signed detour to Post Road North in Warwick (Exit 5B), where police will help guide motorists back onto the highway. In addition, the right lane will be closed on I-95 South between Exit 15 (Jefferson Blvd.) and Exit 14, as will the right lane on Route 37 West between Exit 4 (I-95) and Exit 3 (Pontiac Ave).
Built in 1963, the Pawtuxet River North Bridge is classified as structurally deficient and is showing significant deterioration in the beams that hold up the deck. Without the timber blocks, the Department would likely have to apply a weight limit, forcing heavy commercial vehicles to detour. Permanent steel repairs are scheduled to be advertised by the end of the year with work beginning in Spring 2016.
For more information, visit us online at www.dot.ri.gov or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/RIDOTNews. For real-time traffic updates, subscribe to our Twitter feed at www.twitter.com/RIDOTNews.
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