Starting at 8 p.m. Tuesday night, August 13, the Rhode Island Department of Transportation (RIDOT) will establish a new traffic pattern on Route 37 East between Natick Avenue and Glen Hills Drive in Cranston. There will be alternating lane closures in this area until the new pattern is in place by 6 a.m. Wednesday morning. All lanes on this section of Route 37 East will shift to the right onto newly constructed portions of four consecutive bridges that RIDOT built in the last year.
Two days later, on Thursday night, August 15, the single lane of Route 37 West traffic will shift to the left. This traffic pattern will be in place for approximately one year, followed by final milling and paving and shifting of traffic into its permanent alignment.
In June 2023, RIDOT shifted all travel lanes to the westbound side of Route 37, freeing up the eastbound side of these bridges for demolition and reconstruction. The bridges carry Route 37 over I-295 North and South, Cranston Street, and the Washington Secondary Bike Path.
Motorists should reduce their speed and provide additional time for travel through the work zone. Drivers taking on-ramps to Route 37 from I-295 North should be prepared to make a full stop before merging onto the highway.
Work on these bridges is part of the $85 million Cranston Canyon Project, which is addressing deteriorated bridges along the western end of Route 37 and its intersection with I-295. It includes safety improvements along the "canyon" section of I-295 – the nickname given for the rocky outcropping on this section of the Interstate. The project also will reduce chronic congestion issues on both highways, which will reduce vehicle emissions. Approximately 84,000 vehicles travel daily on I-295 North between Route 37 and Route 14, and 36,500 vehicles on Route 37, west of Pontiac Avenue.
All construction projects are subject to changes in schedule and scope depending on needs, circumstances, findings and weather.
The Cranston Canyon Project is made possible by RhodeWorks and the Bipartisan Infrastructure and Improvement Act. RIDOT is committed to bringing Rhode Island's infrastructure into a state of good repair while respecting the environment and striving to improve it. Learn more at www.ridot.net/RhodeWorks.