PROVIDENCE – The closure of the westbound side of the Washington Bridge is taking its toll on the state’s coffers.
The R.I. Department of Transportation estimates the problem has cost Rhode Island $860,000 so far, WPRI-TV CBS 12 reported on Tuesday. That estimate, according to RIDOT, includes costs for inspections and in-depth examinations of the Washington Bridge, as well as police details and traffic control.
The Interstate 195 westbound side of the bridge was closed to all traffic on Dec. 11 after engineers found “a critical failure” of some of the bridge’s original components that date back to the 1960s. The closure led to several days of traffic snarls that were eased but not eliminated after a partial reopening on Dec. 15.
The Washington Bridge carries Interstate 195 over the Seekonk River from Providence to East Providence and serves as a key gateway to Providence. The bridge carries close to 100,000 vehicles every day.
On Dec. 12, Gov. Daniel J. McKee said municipalities will not be on the hook for the extra overtime for police or department of public works employees that will be incurred due to the bridge closure.
“We are going to roll that extra cost that communities are having over their normal operations into the cost of the construction project,” McKee said. “Municipalities are going to be held harmless on things that are over and above their normal operations.”
Federal Highway Administrator Shailen Bhatt on Feb. 5 said a complete tear-down and replacement could take up to two years to complete.
As of now, whether that will need to happen remains unknown.
“Safety is our No. 1 priority,” he said, adding that federal officials are “tracking closely as [the situation] has evolved from a rehab and repair to a potential replacement.”
Currently, there are now seven firms analyzing the bridge’s condition, in addition to federal engineers and state agencies, Bhatt said.
On Jan. 26, Gov. Daniel J. McKee announced that the U.S. Department of Justice and the Office of the Inspector General are investigating the state’s handling of the Washington Bridge closure.
RIDOT is currently testing a new traffic pattern along the westbound lanes of I-195 aimed at alleviating some of the congestion created by ongoing safety restrictions on the Washington Bridge.
