Rhode Island transportation officials have set Nov. 3, 2028, as the date traffic lanes are expected to open on the replacement westbound Washington Bridge, providing a precise target for a project that has reshaped travel between East Providence and Providence. The project page lists a projected cost of $427.88 million and says all lanes should be open in fall 2028, with final work extending into summer 2029.
The construction is intended to replace the bridge from its foundations through the deck, rather than rehabilitate the old westbound structure. RIDOT says the new bridge will have a 100-year design life and carry roughly 80,000 vehicles a day. The official rebuild site says the design shortens the river crossing by 459 feet through fewer supporting piers and expands the westbound roadway from four through lanes to five.
The work also reaches beyond the span itself. Plans call for widening I-195 West between the Broadway on-ramp and the bridge, adding a new on-ramp from Gano Street and building an off-ramp to Waterfront Drive. RIDOT's federal grant materials describe the replacement as a network project that also includes resurfacing, ramp work, drainage upgrades and improved bicycle connectivity.
Construction moved into the river this year after federal permits delayed the start of foundation work. In June, Walsh Construction crews began visible work from barges; a project report said the sequence called for foundations first, then piers and the substructure, followed by bridge-deck concrete. The contract has a base price of $339 million, while incentives and contingencies can raise the total to roughly $427 million.
By Aug. 19, state officials said work had moved above water. Walsh's timetable called for steel placement during the coming winter, ramp construction in summer 2027 and finishing systems—including lighting, drainage, waterproofing and expansion joints—during summer 2028, according to a televised construction update. RIDOT has framed the design-build contract as a way to overlap engineering and construction under one responsible contractor.
Financing combines federal aid and state borrowing. RIDOT says the package uses about $221 million in competitive federal grants along with GARVEE bonds, which are repaid with future federal highway funds. The agency initially sought $220.98 million through the federal Multimodal Project Discretionary Grant program when the replacement was estimated at $368.3 million; the current project budget is higher because the final contract package includes the full bridge and related roadway work.
The opening date is consequential because the bridge is the principal I-195 link across the Seekonk River. It is also a measurable test for a project born from the westbound bridge's emergency closure in December 2023. RIDOT posts weekly travel-time and structural-monitoring data and monthly snapshot reports on its project page. For drivers, the immediate reality remains construction and altered traffic; the promised payoff is a wider, fully replaced crossing with a specific date attached.
