PROVIDENCE – Gov. Daniel J. McKee on Monday pushed back against what he said are “irresponsible” claims posted on social media and elsewhere asserting that the south span of the Washington Bridge is unsafe for travel.
The administration released a November report detailing a multiday review of the span, which it said reaffirms the safety of the structure and the six-lane traffic pattern that has been in place since March 2024.
Joined by R.I. Department of Transportation Director Peter Alviti Jr., McKee was defiant Monday in defending his administration's handling of the crisis since the westbound side was closed in December 2023. He said the portion of the bridge still carrying traffic across Interstate 195 was structurally sound.
“The bottom line is this," he said. “The bridge is safe.”
RIDOT tapped two separate firms – AI Engineers Inc. and Green International Affiliates – to conduct third-party reviews of its reports and whether they would amend prior assessments from 2008 on the bridge’s integrity, said Alviti, and both firms said the condition has remained the same.
Alviti, in an effort “to put to rest any speculation on the safety” and citing the inspection report’s findings directly, said both the bridge superstructure and deck remain in “good” condition. The substructure was listed as “fair; however, Alviti noted that these were the same grades given in all three categories at the time the bridge was reconstructed in 2008, and that the overall score is determined by the lowest.
Alviti added that the department has doubled up on its number of inspections from annually to every six months at a more “granular level” that is above and beyond the baseline standards recommended by the U.S. Federal Highway Administration. Alviti insisted that RIDOT has instituted “layers upon layers of redundancies” due to the “strategic importance” of the Washington Bridge.
Last December, a new request for proposals to rebuild the westbound side of the Washington Bridge was released. The two finalists competing for the bridge project, Walsh Construction Co. II LLC and a joint application submitted by American Bridge and MLJ Contracting Corp., will be given a final request for proposals on Jan. 24. A decision on the construction contract is expected in June.
Traffic levels moving across the southern span are now back to roughly 95% of 2019 activity, Alviti said.
Rhode Island has been awarded a total of $220.98 million in federal funding to replace the Washington Bridge. However, House and Senate Democratic leaders say they want to hold oversight hearings in the coming weeks that focus on determining a clear timeline for the westbound bridge’s replacement and its cost.
On Monda,y McKee declined to offer his opinion on the total cost and expected date of project completion, saying he is choosing to wait until June.
Christopher Allen is a PBN staff writer. You may contact him at Allen@PBN.com.