NEWPORT, R.I. — Anyone planning to cross the Newport Pell Bridge on Monday should budget extra time. Crews will take away one lane in each direction for most of the day, leaving the span with a single travel lane both ways from midmorning until the early hours of Tuesday.
The Rhode Island Turnpike and Bridge Authority scheduled the work to replace a girder bearing at Pier 10E. Pier 10E stands on the Newport end of the span, in the stretch past the east tower before the bridge comes down to land, so the work zone will be close to the Newport toll side of the trip.
The schedule starts on the westbound side. Crews will first block the right lane heading west, at 7 a.m. on Monday, Oct. 26, and then take the left lane heading east two hours after that. Traffic should be back to full width by 3 a.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 27, which means the closure will run nearly 20 hours in total and will overlap with both the morning and the evening commute for drivers leaving or reaching Aquidneck Island.
Turnpike authority staff are asking people behind the wheel to leave early, ease off the gas and pay close attention as they near the crews. With only one lane open in each direction, a single stalled car or fender bender could back up traffic quickly, and there is little room for crews or tow trucks to maneuver on a narrowed deck.
Drivers should not expect this to be the last round. The authority plans a similar set of closures the following week and will post exact dates and times once they are confirmed, so commuters who rely on the bridge may want to check for updates before heading out next week as well.
Section: More Newport RI crime news
Filed under: Newport RI Traffic News
