On March 27, Gov. Dan McKee announced that the Rhode Island Department of Transportation and the U.S. Department of Transportation signed an agreement securing $220.9 million in federal funding to complete the reconstruction of the Washington Bridge.
RIDOT originally closed the westbound side of the bridge in December 2023 due to structural and safety concerns flagged by engineers working on the bridge.
“Since coming into office, my team has discovered an unprecedented backlog of grants,” which “prevented real infrastructure from being built and funded,” U.S. Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy said. The signing of this agreement and release of the funds is part of the Trump administration’s efforts to “deliver real results,” the press release explained.
Now, the state is in the process of finding a contractor to rebuild the westbound side of the bridge. According to RIDOT spokesperson Charles St. Martin III, RIDOT hopes to choose a contractor by June 6 before creating a timeline for the repair and reopening of the bridge.
“This is another sign of continued progress in our work to build a modern, soundly constructed Washington Bridge that will outlast our lifetimes,” McKee said in the press release. McKee thanked Rhode Island’s congressional delegation, who he said played a large role in securing the funding.
According to Duffy, the federal funding was first secured in October 2024 under the Biden administration, but was not available to the state until now due to a backlog of funds.
As of March 27, RIDOT gained access to the first $30 million of the allocated funds, according to the press release.
St. Martin described RIDOT’s ongoing approach to infrastructure in the state through RhodeWorks — RIDOT’s “10-year plan that provides for long-term infrastructure improvements on a sustained and constantly updated timeline,” in an email to The Herald. Over the past nine years, the program has rebuilt and repaired 290 bridges and paved 626 miles of road, St. Martin added.
“Under the RhodeWorks legislation, RIDOT is mandated to report to the legislature every quarter on how we have used every penny in every project that we are doing,” St. Martin wrote. This framework will be applied to Washington Bridge reconstruction efforts, maintaining accountability through quarterly reports that include cost and schedule details for not only Washington Bridge but all RIDOT projects.
Asher Schofield, co-owner of Frog & Toad, discussed how the bridge closure has impacted his small business. “Initially we saw a sharp decline in daily revenue for a two-week period when the bridge closure was announced,” he wrote in an email to The Herald.
Despite changes, the store’s business has since bounced back. “Consumers have just adapted to the reality of the transportation challenges,” Schofield wrote, adding that some customers pick up orders from the store’s West location.
“The Governor and members of his cabinet have personally met with many business owners,” Olivia DaRocha, press secretary for McKee, wrote in an email to The Herald. She explained that “these discussions factored into the decision to provide grants to businesses impacted by the closure.”
Frog & Toad received a $2,500 grant from the City of Providence in November 2024, Schofield wrote. The application process was “super easy,” he added, noting the grant “didn’t cover the revenue loss that we experienced but was a welcome boost.”
But Schofield has concerns that the state’s handling of the Washington Bridge will have long-term effects.
“There has long been a perception that Rhode Island is a difficult state to do business in and that we have a government bureaucracy problem here,” he wrote. “While I don’t necessarily agree with that, I don’t think the Washington Bridge situation helps either of those stigmas.”
Pavani Durbhakula is a senior staff writer and photographer. She is a first-year from DC and plans to study IAPA and Public Health. In her free time, she enjoys baking, reading, and searching for new coffee shops.
