Starting on Sunday night, May 16, the Rhode Island Department of Transportation (RIDOT) will close Route 6 at the Glenbridge Avenue Bridge in Providence for six consecutive nights. The closure will allow RIDOT to place steel beams across the highway for a new bridge deck that will be built next to the old bridge and slid into place later this year.
Detours will be in place each night from midnight to 5 a.m., when traffic is lightest and there will be less impact to travelers. They will be in effect for westbound traffic for the first three nights, May 16-18, and for eastbound traffic the nights of May 19-21.
Eastbound traffic will exit at Killingly Street, and follow a detour using Hartford Avenue (Route 6A) to get back onto Route 6 East. Those traveling westbound on Route 6 will use the Hartford Avenue exit and follow the detour to get back on the highway at the Killingly Street interchange. A detour map is available at www.ridot.net/DetourMaps.
The replacement of the Glenbridge Avenue Bridge is the last bridge to be worked on as part of an $8.6 million project for 13 bridges and culverts in Providence, Scituate, Foster, Glocester and Smithfield. The Glenbridge Avenue Bridge carries 14,200 vehicles per day and is a vital link across the Route 6 highway corridor, connecting businesses and neighborhoods along Hartford Avenue and Manton Avenue.
In early fall, RIDOT will install the new bridge over a 10-day period, which will require closures of Glenbridge Avenue and Route 6. RIDOT will announce all closures well in advance. This accelerated bridge construction approach is less disruptive overall and is an alternative to phased construction that would have required lane closures on the bridge over a two-year period.
All construction projects are subject to changes in schedule and scope depending on needs, circumstances, findings, and weather.
The replacement of the Glenbridge Avenue Bridge 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.