Permanent Lane Closures Return To The Newport Bridge March 23

NEWPORT, RI — Changes are coming to the Pell Bridge in Newport this month. Starting March 23, construction will begin again in earnest, once again bringing changes to the traffic patterns on the bridge.

The construction is a continuation of the work started in spring 2017. The project will extent the life of the bridge's road deck. Initially meant to last 30 years, the bridge passed its 50th anniversary last summer and carries more than 10 million vehicles per year.

Phase one of this year's construction will begin on March 23 with the work on the bridge deck in the far-right eastbound lane. During the morning rush hour from 6 a.m. to 9 a.m., the lanes will be moved to keep two lanes open heading into Newport. In the afternoon, from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m., the median will be moved to have two lanes heading out of Aquidneck Island. At these times, one lane will be open in the opposite direction.

During non-peak hours, there might be single-lane closures in both directions, the Rhode Island Bridge and Turnpike Authority said, to allow the contractor access to two lanes.

Starting in early June, phase two of construction will begin, the department said, expected to last until the end of August. During this time, construction will shift to the westbound passing lane, or the center lane heading out of Newport. As with phase one, there will be two lanes open on the busy side of the bridge during rush hour, with other temporarily single-lane closures during non-peak times.

In September, construction will begin on phase three of construction, which is set to be completed in early December. During this stage, work will be done on on the center lane on the eastbound side of the bridge, heading into Newport. Once again, there will be two lanes during rush hours, with a single lane in the opposite direction. Single lane closures will again be possible during non-peak and overnight hours.

While construction is underway, the speed limit will be dropped to 25 mph on the bridge. With lane restrictions planned, overwide and overweight vehicles, over eight feet, six inches or weighing more than 80,000 pounds.