Previous spans

1793 Washington Bridge plaque replica

The first bridge in this general location was constructed in 1793, when John Brown's Providence South Bridge Company built a covered drawbridge. This bridge served as part of a turnpike that followed Taunton Avenue from Watchemoket Square to Taunton, Massachusetts. The same year, Brown's brother Moses built the Central Bridge (red bridge) to the north, connecting what are now the Providence and East Providence ends of Waterman Avenue. Replacements were built in 1807 and 1815 after each existing bridge was destroyed by weather.^[1] A swing bridge was then built in 1885, and carried a street car line.

Current span

Plaque on the Washington Bridge

The original (southern) span of the current bridge was opened on September 25, 1930, as a bascule bridge. Designed by engineer Clarence W. Hudson and architect Carl L. Otto, both of New York City,^[2] it is dedicated to George Washington, in honor of his crossing with General Rochambeau. It linked the old Fox Point Boulevard on the Providence side with the intersection of Warren and Taunton Avenues - Watchemoket Square - both of which still terminate at the East Providence end of the bridge. The four-lane bridge, which carries two lanes in each direction, was marked by four approximately 15 ft high by 8 ft wide at the base by 3 ft deep (4.6x2.4x0.9 m) stone monuments, all having identical bronze dedications to Washington on them. The bridge structure itself, with its stone façade and arches under the roadway, is similar to the Arlington Memorial Bridge in Washington, D.C., on a shortened scale.

In 1959, the span, along with the approach roads, were redesignated as part of the newly created I-195, which, by the end of the year, extended to the Massachusetts border. However, it was determined that future congestion on the bridge was far too much for its future use. In 1968, a second span that mimicked the arches of the original was completed to the north of the original span. Separated by approximately twenty feet (6 m) the two interstate bridges were hemmed into the space afforded. It was at this time that two changes were made to the original bridge; the bascule section was permanently closed, as the new bridges were not designed to include bascule functions. The bridge monuments on the northern side of the bridge on each approach were relocated to the respective sides of the new western approach span, giving the bridge its final appearance.

Signs for Exits 4 and 5, eastbound traffic lane.

In 1996, both bridges were repaired. The new bridge had large amounts of its steel understructure replaced, which required some lanes to be closed during the entire project. The old bridge was patched by closing lanes at night, cutting holes in the surface, performing repairs, and opening the lanes for the morning rush.

By the early 2000s, rehabilitation had moved on to the eastbound span. With experience gained from reconstructing the concrete spandrel arch span Ashton Viaduct, RIDOT opted to fully replace the portion of the 1930 bridge carrying vehicles with a new bridge. To avoid issues with obtaining new right of way, the new eastbound span was constructed starting in the gap between the two bridges, with the older bridge having its northernmost arch ribs removed to allow construction to proceed. A new eastbound span opened in 2008. The remaining portion of the original 1930 segment is now used as the pedestrian span. ^[3] That portion had closed in July 2012, as RIDOT expanded the original infrastructure into a Linear Park.^[4] Much of the repair was limited by RI State budget constraints and other cost issues related to its age and the stress of multi-regional congested traffic traveling eastward to the Seekonk/Fall River suburbs and Cape Cod. Along with the Henderson Bridge located one mile to the north, the Washington Bridge is one of two spans crossing the Seekonk River.

In the Washington Bridge project, the eastbound bridge was replaced. This involved building a portion of the new bridge in the gap between the two structures, moving traffic to the new bridge, then demolishing the left lanes of the old bridge to make room for the right lanes of the new one. The old control booths for the bascule section have been removed. The new span is now complete. Part of the original eastbound structure was preserved, and is being used as a bike and pedestrian route.

$25 million in federal funding was allocated in 2020 for a now-estimated $78 million rehabilitation of the westbound structure. The actual repairs were delayed by lawsuits from all the contractors that submitted bids; one contractor was disqualified and the bidding process restarted.^[5]

2023 westbound closure

The westbound I-195 entrance ramp in East Providence was closed due to the bridge closure.

The westbound span of the Washington Bridge was suddenly closed on Monday, December, 11, 2023, after the Rhode Island Department of Transportation announced the discovery of "critical failure of some original bridge components".^[6] Westbound traffic was initially detoured on an alternate route through East Providence and onto the newly reopened Henderson Bridge before rejoining with Interstate 195 via the Gano Street exit.

The span had been carrying about 90,000 cars per day.^[7] Extreme volume along the detour route slowed typical trips across the river from a few minutes to over an hour; traffic on I-195 backed up into Massachusetts.^[8] East Providence schools were forced to indefinitely switch to an early-dismissal schedule, with remote learning only on the Wednesday after the closure.^[7] State police were instructed to allow ambulances to cross one lane of the westbound bridge starting Tuesday, to maintain access to local hospitals; Rhode Island Hospital is the only Level-1 trauma center for Rhode Island and southeastern Massachusetts.^[7] The "critical failure" was revealed that Tuesday to be sheared pins noticed the previous Friday by a engineer working on old eastbound deck demolition for Vanasse Hangen Brustlin, Inc..^[8] The pins had been intact as of the last inspection in July 2023, but the damage put the bridge in danger of collapse.^[8]

At 1 AM^[9] on Friday, December 15, two temporary westbound lanes opened using the eastbound structure, substantially reducing delays^[9] but leaving the highway with reduced capacity in both directions.^[10], a process that had originally been expected to take two to three weeks.^[11] A 500-person ferry was planned to start trips from 6am to 7pm every half hour on Monday, December 18, between India Point Bristol.^[10] RIPTA shuttle buses were planned to bring westbound passengers to bus and train connections at Kennedy Plaza and Providence station, respectively, with a shuttle to a park-and-ride lot in Colt State Park in Bristol.^[10]

RIDOT's initial estimate for permanent westbound repairs was three months, depending on weather and other factors.^[12] Local TV station WPRI has since reported that it will take longer than three months (but did not report the time estimated to complete work); WPRI also reported that the Bristol-Providence ferry will stop service after January 19, 2024.^[13]

George Redman Linear Park

Bicycle and pedestrian traffic are separated on the George Redman Linear Park (looking east)

From 2012 to 2015, a bicycle and pedestrian park was constructed on a remaining section of the original Washington Bridge.^[14] The park opened in September 2015, at a total cost of $21.8 million.^[15] The park consists of an 11-foot-wide bicycle lane, a separated footpath paved with stamped concrete, and several seating areas.^[15] The path is completely separated from I-195 automobile traffic.

The linear park is named George Redman Linear Park, in honor of East Providence cyclist^[16] and park activist George Redman.^[17] A plaque honoring Redman can be seen on the west end of the park.