Although Route 146 only runs for just over 16 miles in Rhode Island, the route is heavily used. More than 171,000 vehicles travel Route 146 between Providence and Worcester, Rhode Island, each day by both local and through traffic. The Rhode Island Department of Transportation (RIDOT), along with the joint venture team of Skanska and JH Lynch, are in the middle of a project along an 8-mile stretch of Route 146 that will improve safety, enhance mobility, and restore critical infrastructure.
Rhode Island Route 146 is a north-south route from Providence to the Massachusetts border. At that point, it turns into Massachusetts 146 and continues toward the state turnpike and I-290.
The stretch of Rhode Island Route 146 between the Massachusetts border and Providence has two lanes in each direction. However, many do not see it that way.
“Drivers travel on the route as if it were a divided highway at a high rate of speed,” said Stephen DelGrosso, Skanska’s Vice President of Operations, who is overseeing the project.
In the area of Sayles Hill Road, the speed limit on the route is 45 mph. DelGrosso estimates that drivers sometimes travel up to 65 mph. There is only one traffic light on Route 146 (where it intersects with Sayles Hill Road in North Smithfield) in Rhode Island. In the vicinity of the traffic light, there are adjacent businesses with driveways that lead onto Route 146.
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Combine the vehicles exiting and entering the adjacent driveways along with the traffic signal, and that is a recipe for accidents. According to RIDOT’s website, this intersection averages more than 85 crashes per year.
The project scope includes a few different elements. The team is building a new bridge in that same area that will pass over Sayles Hill Road.
“The bridge will separate local and through traffic,” DelGrosso said. “The local traffic will use the road below, while the through traffic will use the four-lane bridge overhead.”
A mile north of the traffic signal, Route 146 northbound crosses over Route 146A via an old concrete arch bridge. The project scope includes demolishing the bridge and installing a single-span steel girder bridge that will carry northbound and southbound 146 traffic.
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Another major element of the scope is demolishing and rebuilding two bridges (northbound and southbound) on I-295. The highway crosses over Route 146 and is 27 miles long, starting in Warwick, Rhode Island, looping around Providence, and terminating in Attleboro, Massachusetts.
Other project elements include repaving the existing Route 146 lanes along the 8-mile project area. The team is widening Route 146 around the traffic signal to create a safer alignment. Lastly, the scope involves drainage construction, utility relocation, and installation of retaining walls.
On top of considering how they will transport equipment and materials to and around the work zone, another challenge that the team is facing is a lack of space on the Route 146 project.
“We’re in close proximity to the abutters [businesses and residential homes],” DelGrosso said. “It’s a narrow road that leaves us with small work zones.”
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Tight work zones are also dangerous work zones for construction workers and drivers. The team is taking steps to ensure safety on the work site. The Traffic Management Plan allows for some midday hours when the team can shut down a lane. During this time, traffic volumes are low. The team has also worked some night shifts when they needed to complete more extensive work such as bridge demolition and steel girder erection.
“We have an extensive safety program, and we won’t work without the proper traffic set-up,” DelGrosso said.
When the team closes a lane, they use a truck-mounted attenuator along with police details. Local authorities have been a big help in keeping everyone safe in the congested area.
“We’ve gotten lots of cooperation from the local police, and there’s a police presence around the work zones,” DelGrosso said.
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The team is installing thousands of feet of new drainage pipe. In many locations, the team had to pre-drill rock to install the new concrete drain lines. They then broke up the rock to install the drainage.
“Pre-drilling the existing rock makes it easier to excavate the rock,” DelGrosso said.
Finally, the team installed 15 retaining walls up and down the alignment.
“While the project was in the design phase, we worked with our designers to determine which type of retaining wall was best and most efficient based on the topography in each area of the project,” DelGrosso said.
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The selection process was time-consuming. The design team determined they would use a variety of precast retaining walls, which included mechanically stabilized earth, concrete block, and soldier pile with precast concrete panels.
“The type of retaining wall was determined based in part on the height of wall needed and if there is an embankment, which required us to cut back the existing ground,” DelGrosso said.
Another challenge the team faced was finding some organic soils that were not anticipated. DelGrosso said that Skanska worked with RIDOT to redesign walls in this area.
The soils impacted construction because, according to DelGrosso, “building on organic soils may lead to settlement, so it’s not conducive to supporting ramp design.”
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As part of the redesign, the team also utilized lightweight fill in.
Skanska has worked with RIDOT previously, and DelGrosso called them a good partner to work with. The previous big project (replacing the I-95 Northbound Viaduct in Providence) is nearing completion.
This is the first time Skanska has worked with Lynch as a joint venture partner. The two had previously worked together on a Skanska project. Lynch’s main office is just 3 miles from the project.
“The project includes 8 miles of paving in each direction, and that’s their specialty,” DelGrosso said. “There’s also a fair amount of bridge work, which is our specialty.”
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The project is a design-build project, so the selection of the Skanska-Lynch team was based on price and the technical proposal. A local element to the team can be helpful.
The total contract was for $167 million. According to the project page on RIDOT’s website, the department secured a $65 million INFRA Grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation to help fund the project.
The project is on budget, which DelGrosso credits to excellent project management staff. There have been some changes, including further improvement of existing drainage, which has raised the construction price.
Construction began in late 2022, and it is now scheduled for completion in the summer of 2026. However, most work — including the new overpass and the 146/146A interchange and two new I-295 bridges — is expected to be completed this fall. The final paving will be completed in 2026.
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When the project is complete, the traffic signals will control local traffic at the Sayles Hill Road/Route 146 intersection, and the new overpass will allow through traffic to pass over Sayles Hill Road. This and the new alignment are expected to improve safety and traffic flow. The new bridges and the removal of aging infrastructure will also be beneficial.
- Owner: Rhode Island Department of Transportation
- General Contractor: Skanska, New York, New York; JH Lynch & Sons, Cumberland, Rhode Island
- Designer: HNTB, New York, New York
