Interstate 295 (Rhode Island–Massachusetts)

Interstate 295 (I-295), sometimes called the Providence Beltway, is an auxiliary Interstate Highway in the U.S. states of Rhode Island and Massachusetts; it is maintained by the Rhode Island Department of Transportation (RIDOT) and the Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT). Spanning nearly 27 miles (43 km) it forms a western beltway around Providence, and is a bypass of I-95 as it travels through the capital city. I-895 was proposed as a complementary eastern beltway to complete a full loop around the city in the 1960s, but was ultimately scrapped in the 1980s.

Interstate 295
Providence Beltway
I-295 highlighted in red
Route information
Auxiliary route of I-95
Maintained by Rhode Island Department of Transportation (RIDOT) and Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT)
Length	26.58 mi (42.78 km)
Existed	1969–present
Major junctions
South end	I-95 in Warwick, RI
	US 6 / US 6A in Johnston, RI US 44 in Smithfield, RI US 1 in North Attleborough, MA
North end	I‑95 in Attleboro, MA
Location
States	Rhode Island, Massachusetts
Counties	RI: Kent, Providence MA: Bristol
Highway system
Interstate Highway System Main Auxiliary Suffixed Business Future Rhode Island Routes Massachusetts State Highway System Interstate U.S. State ← Route 246 RI → Route 401 ← I‑291 MA → Route 295

Interstate 295 Exit to Route 113 west – West Warwick

The southern terminus of I-295 is at its split from I-95 in Warwick, Rhode Island. Among several state highways, it intersects with US 6 in Johnston and US 44 in Smithfield before entering North Attleborough, Massachusetts from Cumberland, Rhode Island. It intersects with US 1 in North Attleborough before arriving at its northern terminus as it merges into I-95 in Attleboro. I-295 is the first highway in Rhode Island to convert to an exclusive mileage-based exit numbering system, having transitioned from a sequential numbering system in 2017. Exit signs north of the interchange with US 6 previously included both miletabs and exit numbers before being replaced in 2007.[1]

Route description

Interstate 295 serves as a partial circumferential highway around Providence, Rhode Island, bypassing the city to the west and north. The southern terminus of Interstate 295 is located in Warwick (interstate 95 exit 11 Northbound/12B Southbound). The complex interchange involves access between I-95, I-295, and Rhode Island Route 113, which is labeled Exit 1A (the interchange with I-95 is unnumbered). Immediately after this interchange, I-295 crosses the Pawtucket River, and passes the Warwick Mall, which lies on a property outlined by the interchange and the two highways. The mall is accessed via Exit 1B, which provides partial access to Rhode Island Route 2 (northbound I-295 exits to northbound Route 2, while southbound I-295 exits to southbound Route 2). Exit 3A-B provides access to Rhode Island Route 37 within the town of Cranston. Exit 6 for Rhode Island Route 14 is next, known locally as Plainfield Pike, which defines the border between Cranston and Johnston. Exit 7 provides access to a local industrial park. There is a complex interchange with U.S. 6 and U.S. 6A in Johnston, labeled Exit 9A-B-C, which involves near overlap between U.S. 6 and I-295 (U.S. 6 uses the collector-distributor lanes along the side of I-295 briefly, and access from U.S. 6 westbound to I-295 southbound requires the use of a special double-loop ramp at 9B). A diamond interchange (Exit 10) with Rhode Island Route 5 is the last exit in Johnston, and the highway enters Smithfield and immediately has a cloverleaf interchange (Exit 12A-B) with U.S. 44. After another cloverleaf interchange (Exit 15A-B) with Rhode Island Route 7, the highway begins a gentle curve eastward towards Massachusetts. Within the town of Lincoln, I-295 meets Rhode Island Route 146 (Exit 18A-B), the Eddie Dowling Highway, part of the larger Worcester/Providence Pike. There are two interchanges in the town of Cumberland, being Rhode Island Route 122 (exit 20) and Rhode Island Route 114 (exit 22). Entering Massachusetts in the town of North Attleboro there is a cloverleaf interchange (Exit 1A-B) with U.S. Route 1 before reaching its northern terminus (locally eastbound) in Attleboro at Exit 2A-B with I-95.

History

In the mid-1950s, the state of Rhode Island introduced plans to build a beltway around Providence, then known as Relocated Route 5 for inclusion in the Interstate Highway System. A modified version of this plan was accepted, with another modification done in 1960 resulting in a planned alignment. Construction began in 1964 and the original route was completed by 1975. The original intention was to have Interstate 295 act as a full ring road around the greater Providence area with the alignment roughly following Route 37 across Narragansett Bay and continuing in a northern direction with a major interchange located at Interstate 195 exit 2 in Swansea, Massachusetts before heading west towards Attleboro. Due to opposition from communities in the proposed alignment, cancellation occurred in 1982.

The original alignment of Interstate 84 called for an east-west right of way from the Rhode Island and Connecticut state line (Willimantic, Connecticut and Foster, Rhode Island) to Johnston, Rhode Island through the Scituate Reservoir. The connection with Interstate 295 was planned as a full interchange with flyover ramps. Due to fears of runoff affecting the Scituate Reservoir, this alignment of Interstate 84 was cancelled. This interchange (Exits 9A-C) currently acts as multiplex for US 6 with a partial interchange with Route 10 further down US 6. The ramp that was originally going to be used to merge onto I-84 West from I-295 North has been converted to a turnaround ramp (Exit 9B) from I-295 North to I-295 South.

Exit list

In 2016, it was announced that both Rhode Island and Massachusetts interchanges were to receive new exit numbers based on route mileage in accordance with federal standards. Massachusetts was scheduled to start in 2016,[2] though the project was indefinitely postponed in mid-2016. On November 18, 2019, MassDOT confirmed the project will begin in late summer 2020.[3][4]Massachusetts exits were renumbered over two nights on January 3-4, 2021. Rhode Island exits were renumbered from November 27, 2017 to December 8, 2017.[5][6][7][8]

State	County	Location[9]	mi[9]	km	Old exit[10]	New exit[10]	Destinations	Notes
Rhode Island	Kent	Warwick	0.00	0.00	—	—	I-95 south – New York	Includes a ramp from I-95 south to I-295 north, exits 11-12B on I-95
			0.70	1.13	1	1A	Route 113 west – West Warwick
			1.10	1.77	2	1B	Route 2 north – Cranston, Warwick Mall	Northbound exit and southbound entrance
			1.50	2.41			Route 2 south – Warwick	Southbound exit and northbound entrance
	Providence	Cranston	3.70	5.95	3	3	Route 37 / Phenix Avenue – Cranston, T. F. Green Airport	Signed as exits 3A (east) and 3B (west)
		Johnston	6.50	10.46	4	6	Route 14 (Plainfield Pike)
					Truck-only electronic toll gantry ($6.50)[11]
			7.60	12.23	5	7	Rhode Island Resource Recovery Industrial Park	Opened in 2005
			8.80	14.16	6	9	US 6 / US 6A east – Providence, Hartford, CT	Signed as exits 9A (US 6 east), 9B (northbound U-turn to I-295 south), and 9C (US 6 west / US 6A east)
					Truck-only electronic toll gantry ($8.50)[11]
			10.60	17.06	—	10	Route 5 – Johnston, Smithfield	Opened July 28, 2018[12]
		Smithfield	12.20	19.63	7	12	US 44 – North Providence, Smithfield	Signed as exits 12A (east) and 12B (west)
			15.40	24.78	8	15	Route 7 – North Smithfield, North Providence	Signed as exits 15A (south) and 15B (north)
		Lincoln	18.70	30.09	9	18	Route 146 – Lincoln, Woonsocket	Signed as exits 18A (south) and 18B (north)
		Cumberland	21.10	33.96	10	20	Route 122 – Cumberland
					Truck-only electronic toll gantry ($7.50)[11]
			22.80	36.69	11	22	Route 114 – Cumberland
			23.50 0.00	37.82 0.00	Rhode Island–Massachusetts state line
Massachusetts	Bristol	North Attleborough	1.86	2.99	1	2	US 1 – Pawtucket, RI, North Attleboro	Signed as exits 2A (south) and 2B (north)[4]
		Attleboro	4.03	6.49	2	4	I‑95 – Boston, Providence, RI	Signed as exits 4A (south) and 4B (north);)[4] exit 4 on I-95
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi       Electronic toll collection       Incomplete access

References

1. https://www.aaroads.com/guides/i-295-south-ri/
2. Commonwealth of Massachusetts (2015). "COMMBUYS - Bid Solicitation FAP# HSIP-002S(874) Exit Signage Conversion to Milepost-Based Numbering System along Various Interstates, Routes and the Lowell Connector". Retrieved September 17, 2015.
3. "Milepost-based Exit Renumbering" (PDF). Massachusetts Department of Transportation. December 5, 2019. Retrieved December 5, 2019.
4. "Route 140 I-295 Renumbering" (PDF). Massachusetts Department of Transportation. December 5, 2019. Retrieved December 5, 2019.
5. Rhode Island Department of Transportation (RIDOT) (2017). "Engineer's Estimate/Bidder's Comparison Detail, Mileage Based Exit Renumbering I-295 and Route 99, RIDOT Contract No. 2017-CT-044". Retrieved August 30, 2017.
6. Shiina LoSciuto and Sarah Doiron (2017). "RIDOT to Renumber I-295 Exits". Retrieved September 23, 2017.
7. "RIDOT announces date for start of I-295 Highway Renumbering Program". Rhode Island Department of Transportation (RIDOT). 2017. Retrieved November 16, 2017.
8. "Interactive Google Map of I-295 Exit renumbering". Rhode Island Department of Transportation (RIDOT). 2017. Retrieved November 16, 2017.
9. MassDOT Planning Division. "Massachusetts Route Log Application". Massachusetts Department of Transportation. Archived from the original on 2014-08-26. Retrieved 2014-08-21.
10. "Rhode Island Exit Renumbering, I-295" (PDF). RIDOT. Retrieved January 26, 2020.
11. "Environmental Assessment" (PDF). Rhode Island Department of Transportation. December 14, 2018. Retrieved September 16, 2019.
12. http://turnto10.com/news/local/officials-mark-opening-of-new-i-295-exit-in-johnston

External links