PROVIDENCE – State officials on Monday publicly acknowledged that the Washington Bridge may need to be torn down and rebuilt, depending on the findings of the review currently being conducted by its engineering contractors.
During an afternoon briefing at R.I. Department of Transportation headquarters, Director Peter Alviti Jr. said the agency will continue to work around-the-clock on the $78 million reconstruction project that has already led to the discovery of previously undisclosed deficiencies in addition to the failed steel anchor pins that hold major beams of the bridge in place.
Alviti said the department was unsure how long the comprehensive review, which includes chemical analyses on tension rods, will last and a timeline for the bridge's reopening – first estimated at three months – remains indefinite.
“The direction we take will be driven by the facts we get from the expert engineers,” said Gov. Daniel J. McKee. “Safety being the key word.”
Absent from the briefing was East Providence Mayor Roberto L. DaSilva, who on Sunday posted a message to Facebook referring to the possibility that the bridge may need to be torn down, writing that he hoped “the data does not show a need to replace the bridge” but if it did, it “would be the correct decision to make.”
Calls to DaSilva’s office were not immediately returned.
The R.I. Department of Administration in December announced it would procure a contractor to provide independent oversight and review of the state's forensic analysis to determine what caused the damage that led to the emergency shutdown in early December that has snarled traffic and impacted commuters and businesses across the state.
These analyses “tend to uncover additional kinds of deficiencies,” Alviti said.
Also unknown are the final costs, which Alviti and McKee said would be determined by the engineer’s findings. State officials are already performing a cost analysis for three scenarios: repairing the existing bridge, a partial rebuild of certain components, or a complete teardown.
Alviti vowed that “there will be no stop in progress in any scenarios due to funding.”
In addition to state consultants, RIDOT is working with the Federal Highway Administration to determine the best path forward, he added.
"It’s a rather complex structure. ... And it takes time for them to do it right. What they find will determine the scope of the work that we need to do,” Alviti said.
Alviti reiterated that the state will continue to pursue a "rapid" construction process, as it did previously for the more than 400 bridges the department repaired over the last seven years.
"We are giving this project priority over all other projects we are doing in Rhode Island,” he said.
Christopher Allen is a PBN staff writer. You may contact him at Allen@pbn.com.
