The Rhode Island Department of Transportation (RIDOT) announced today the start of a bridge preservation project for the Shippeetown Road Bridge in East Greenwich, which requires closing it to southbound traffic for approximately two months effective Wednesday, May 29. Northbound traffic will not be affected.
The bridge carries Shippeetown Road over I-95 between Crompton Road and Division Road in East Greenwich, close to the West Warwick line. RIDOT will repair the concrete arches, install a waterproof membrane, install new guardrail and curbing, and repave the bridge.
During the closure, traffic will be directed to follow a detour using Crompton Road, New London Turnpike and Division Road to return to Shippeetown Road. A detour map is available at www.ridot.net/DetourMaps.
The Shippeetown Road Bridge was built in 1957 and carries 4,300 vehicles per day.
The bridge is one of 12 bridges and culverts along the I-95 corridor from Warwick to West Greenwich that is part of the $10.8-million Bridge Group 05 project. RIDOT will perform preservation-level maintenance to all of these structures to extend their service lives, avoiding the need for far more expensive bridge rehabilitation or replacement projects in the future. The entire 12-bridge project will finish by the end of 2020.
The Bridge Group 05 project was made possible by RhodeWorks, RIDOT's ongoing commitment to repair structurally deficient bridges and bring Rhode Island's transportation infrastructure into a state of good repair, promote economic development, and create jobs. Learn more at www.ridot.net/RhodeWorks.