The Rhode Island Department of Transportation (RIDOT) is reminding motorists of the start of the first phase of the Lafayette Road Bridge replacement project this weekend. Lafayette Road Bridge carries Route 4 over Lafayette Road in North Kingstown, located between the Exit 3/Route 102 interchange and Oak Hill Road, near McKay's Furniture.
Phase 1, to replace the northbound side of the bridge, will start at 9 p.m. tomorrow, Friday, September 27 and conclude on Monday, September 30 by 6 a.m. Route 4 will be taken down to one lane in each direction. Traffic will be shifted to a newly constructed center lane on Route 4. Lafayette Road will be closed to traffic. The detour map can be found at www.ridot.net/detourmaps. Motorists should plan for extra travel time or consider alternate routes during this weekend.
Built in 1988, the Lafayette Road Bridge is structurally deficient. Phase 2 to replace the southbound half of the bridge will take place in October. This $8.7 million project will be finished in Summer 2020.
RIDOT will use accelerated bridge construction (ABC) for this replacement. The ABC method that will be used is Slide-in Bridge or lateral slide. With this method, a new bridge is built on temporary supports parallel to the existing bridge. The existing bridge is demolished or removed, and the new bridge is slid into place, tied to the approaches, and paved, usually within 72 hours.
The Slide-in Bridge method causes less traffic disruption and provides greater safety for motorists and construction workers because of the condensed time frame. There are also fewer environmental impacts from vehicle and construction equipment emissions. The Lafayette Road Bridge carries approximately 56,000 vehicles daily.
All construction projects are subject to changes in schedule and scope depending on needs, circumstances, findings, and weather. The Lafayette Road Bridge project is 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.
