The Rhode Island Department of Transportation awarded a $625 million contract to a joint venture of Skanska USA, McCourt Construction and Aetna Bridge Co. on July 31 for a massive bridge overhaul program. Agency officials say the design-build project is the largest ever undertaken.
The project known as I-95 15 It is needed to address deteriorating bridges along Interstate 95 and State Route 10, according to RIDOT. The project corridor covers about 7.5 miles of pavement that carries more than 185,000 vehicles daily in Providence, Warwick and Cranston, RI.
“There is no higher priority for the department than the repair of these nine bridges in ‘poor’ condition, four in ‘fair’ approaching poor condition, and two in ‘fair’ condition,” wrote RIDOT Director , Peter Alviti, in a federal grant application.
The project is expected to reduce the number of RIDOT rated “poor” bridges by 7.6 percent, including the elimination of three of the five most traveled structurally deficient bridges in the state, according to RIDOT. It will also remove permit restrictions affecting most truck freight in the area.
The scope of the work includes replacing 10 bridges, removing four others and completing two bridges from a previous contract, documents show. The team would also rebuild drainage structures along the corridor, which has flooded at least twice in recent years, and make other improvements such as rebuilding a retaining wall and improving road barriers.
Courtesy of Rhode Island Department of TransportationSkanska McCourt Aetna JV was the sole bidder for the job, a RIDOT spokesman says. Representatives for the contractors said they could not immediately comment on the project.
Last month, U.S. Department of Transportation officials announced they had selected the I-95 15 project for a $251.1 million Bridge Investment Program grant. It was one of 13 projects selected for a total of more than $5 billion in funding. In a statement U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said there are now about 3,000 fewer bridges in “bad” condition than when the Biden administration began.
“For too long America has let bridges fall into disrepair, which has made people less safe, disrupted our supply chains and cost people time and money,” he said.
Construction has already begun and the project is scheduled to be completed in 2031, according to RIDOT.
