RIDOT Starts $36M Rte. 295 Repaving

WARWICK, RI  — RIDOT has begun a $36 million Rte. 295 repaving project along the entire highway from the Massachusetts border in Cumberland to Warwick, upgrading drainage and using more durable materials.

The RIDOT last repaved the highway in 2004, according to a RIDOT announcement about the work. The work will repave more than 40 miles of interstate highway, north and south combined. The project also includes resurfacing two small sections of pavement on I-95 in Pawtucket from Lonsdale Avenue to Walcott Street. I-295 carries 50,000 vehicles daily. The section of I-95 in Pawtucket carries 110,000 vehicles a day.

The work is part of RIDOT’s $92 million investment in paving. Over the next five years, RIDOT plans to invest $492 million to resurface Rhode Island’s state roads.

The project will be done in two phases working from north to south. Phase one will resurface the highway from the Massachusetts state line to the Route 44 interchange (Exit 12). Phase two will repave from Route 44 to I-95. Paving of the on and off ramps will take place next spring. Work is scheduled for completion in 2024, RIDOT announced.

“This major repaving project is part of a full-press effort within Rhode Island government to fix our highways, from our hardworking road crews at RIDOT up to our congressional delegation. Turning around decades of neglect is no small feat, but RhodeWorks is now supercharged by the federal infrastructure bill and stronger than ever,” said Lt. Governor Sabina Matos.

The paving mixes that RIDOT uses take advantage of state-of-the-art research to produce the most durable and smooth riding surface. This greatly extends the life of the road surface and eliminates the need for resurfacing which involved large equipment and traffic tie ups. It also saves millions of taxpayer dollars and conserves resources including petroleum products used in asphalt production.

The project includes stormwater improvements. RIDOT will clean existing drainage pipes and structures and construct stormwater treatment units. Stormwater improvements include the construction of 12 Stormwater Treatment Units (STUs) along I-295 from approximately Scott Road to the Massachusetts State Line in Cumberland. The project includes the widening and regrading of existing open drainage channels within the median and along the shoulders of I-295. These STUs will capture stormwater through the installation of additional paved waterways as well as through existing closed drainage. The STUs will also treat stormwater through the installation of check dams and the raising of existing outlet control structures to create storage volume for each STU. Pre-treatment of the stormwater will be achieved through the installation of sediment forebays at the bottom of the paved waterways.