AASHTO Journal - RIDOT Completes Tower Hill Road Bridge Early

The Rhode Island Department of Transportation recently held an event to celebrate the early completion of its Tower Hill Road bridge project on Route 1 in North Kingstown.

[Above photo by RIDOT]

The agency said it finished the $35.8 million project nine months ahead of schedule by using accelerated bridge construction methods to quickly replace the bridge that carried Route 1 over Route 138; a vital connection for more than 52,000 travelers who use this busy transportation corridor daily.

RIDOT added that it built new bridge decks adjacent to the old bridge so they could be installed rapidly over two extended weekends. By using those and other accelerated construction methods, motorists on Route 1 avoided up to two years of lane closures associated with conventional building tactics.

“This was a fantastic job start to finish,” noted RIDOT Director Peter Alviti, Jr., in a statement. “We planned, funded and executed this project to deliver the benefits of a safer bridge and smoother roads with as little disruption as possible for drivers, reaching the finish line nine months ahead of schedule.”

In planning its reconstruction, RIDOT said it designed the new bridge to have a smaller footprint to meet today’s traffic needs. Constructed in 1969, the old bridge was built larger than necessary because it was planned to be part of a future highway connection across South County that was never constructed.

The project also included repaving more than six miles of Route 1 in North Kingstown and South Kingstown. It completed the first phase of paving, from Shermantown Road in North Kingstown to the Oliver Stedman Government Center in South Kingstown, in 2024 with the second segment paved during the summer of this year after the bridge installation, from Shermantown Road to the Route 4 interchange.

Throughout the project, RIDOT said it coordinated its work schedules to have the least impact on the busy summer tourism season. That included completion of the two extended weekends for demolition and bridge installation prior to Memorial Day weekend.

RIDOT said it was also able to complete each weekend operation ahead of schedule, reopening closed lanes hours ahead of time.