Sakonnet River Bridge

The Sakonnet River Bridge is a four-lane bridge spanning the Sakonnet River in eastern Rhode Island. The bridge carries RI 24 and RI 138 between the communities of Portsmouth and Tiverton, Rhode Island. The current bridge is a box girder bridge that opened in 2012 at a cost of $120 million (USD). The previous bridge was a truss bridge that was built in 1956 and demolished in 2012 due to structural deficiencies. The truss bridge had previously served as a replacement for the Stone Bridge, about 0.8 mi (1.3 km) to the south.

Sakonnet River Bridge
Sakonnet River Bridge (Truss), 1956-2012, Demolished 2018
Coordinates41.6381°N 71.2140°W / 41.6381; -71.2140 (Sakonnet River Bridge)
Carries Route 24 / Route 138
CrossesSakonnet River
Localebetween Portsmouth and Tiverton
Characteristics
Designtruss bridge (1st)
Box girder bridge (2nd)
History
Opened1956 (1st bridge), 2012 (2nd bridge)
Closed2012 (1st bridge)
Location

It became part of RI 24 during the 1960s after the completion of the Portsmouth and Tiverton Expressways. At one point, it was briefly considered for inclusion as part of the never-built Interstate 895.

Tolls

In August 2013 after the opening of the new bridge, the Rhode Island Turnpike and Bridge Authority began collecting a 10-cent toll from drivers with an E-ZPass transponder using an open road tolling gantry. Those without E-ZPass were expected to call the Authority's office to arrange payment. The toll was imposed in order to keep open the future possibility of higher tolls due to a quirk in federal law.[1] The toll was removed in June 2014 and the Rhode Island Department of Transportation stated in 2019 that they would not impose any tolls on the bridge in the future.[2]

References
  1. O'Connor, Kevin P. (August 19, 2013). "Tolls begin on Sakonnet River Bridge ... and most people are paying the 10 cents". The Herald News. Retrieved August 18, 2019.
  2. "RIDOT asks feds to rescind decision allowing Sakonnet bridge tolls". WJAR. April 3, 2019. Retrieved August 18, 2019.
  • Web site containing engineering impact documents for the replacement of the Sakonnet River Bridge.
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