With the emergency closure of the Washington Bridge in Providence, Newport and Middletown residents are now contending with increased traffic and gridlock as drivers use an alternative route through Aquidneck Island, particularly during the commuting hours. The backups are compounding existing bottlenecks caused by ongoing construction on the Pell Bridge.
Newport Mayor Xay Khamsyvoravong had anticipated the potential problem.
“Earlier in the day, I had raised to the state, and our administration had reaffirmed, that we were concerned that traffic might be seeking a southern route as an alternative to going over the Henderson Bridge in East Providence,” Khamsyvoravong said. “And that is, in fact, what ended up happening down in Newport.”
Khamsyvoravong noted that the sudden influx of vehicles coincided with construction work on the Pell Bridge that was proceeding as originally planned.
“So I think you have the perfect storm of events occurring,” Khamsyvoravong said. “With the Department of Transportation, our police department, our city administration has been really on top of communicating with those agencies, looking to see if we can find alternatives to alleviate some of this pressure.”
Khamsyvoravong said they’d appealed to local employers to try to stagger their arrival and departure times. He said they’re doing everything they can locally to adapt to the situation as it evolves. And he has advice for people traveling through Aquidneck Island.
“Please plan and please be patient. And also please use those resources for information that are available from the state at the local level,” Khasyvoravong said. “We are doing everything with our police details to keep traffic moving on the local roads. But at the end of the day, we’re hitting choke points right now that require everyone to plan for some additional time for travel.”
Newport Police Chief Ryan Duffy echoed the mayor’s advice.
“People get used to being able to flow through Newport at certain times at a certain pace, and this throws a wrench in it,” Duffy said. “And so whenever there’s a wrench thrown in things, people can get frustrated. So we just ask the people, you know, be patient and be vigilant when driving and plan accordingly.”
Duffy said he will assign police officers at key intersections during commuting hours to help the flow, and he’ll continue to assess the situation daily.
State officials say construction work on the Pell Bridge is critical and cannot be stopped. The heavier traffic flow on Aquidneck Island is expected to last for weeks, and possibly months.
Cheryl Hatch can be reached at chatch@thepublicsradio.org
