Travel Advisory: Closure Of Waterfront Drive In East Providence

EAST PROVIDENCE, RI —The Rhode Island Department of transportation (RIDOT) will close part of Waterfront Drive, from Dexter Street to Warren Avenue, in East Providence starting Friday, June 4.

The work is part of RIDOT's Henderson Bridge Replacement Project. The bridge, a 26-span, 2,000-foot structure built in 1969, carries vehicles over the Seekonk River from East Providence to Providence. It has been rated as structurally deficient since 1996. The lane closures are the first step in the repair project, which will reduce Rhode Island's structurally deficient bridge area by 12 percent.

This section of Waterfront Drive will remain closed until spring 2022, when it will be reconfigured into a new road network. It will connect to Massasoit Avenue to the south of the bridge and Henderson Expressway to the north of the bridge. The new design will provide better access to Waterfront Drive and approximately 25 acres of land along the Seekonk River.

During the closure, drivers can detour using Valley Street and North Brow Street. The closed section of Waterfront Drive has very little traffic and abutting property owners can use other streets.

The $84.4 million repair project to replace the Henderson Bridge was supported by $54.5 million in federal funding to help states with bridges in poor condition and made possible by RhodeWorks, RIDOT's commitment to modernizing and repairing Rhode Island's transportation infrastructure and promoting economic development.

Updates on changes to the state's construction project schedules and scopes can be found at www.ridot.net/RhodeWorks. Information on temporary lane closures and travel advisories is available at www.ridot.net/traveladvisories.