By Ted Hayes

State DOT to rebuild at Warren's 'Broken Bridge'

DOT holding informational meeting Thursday evening

Posted 4/5/18

The state Department of Transportation will soon start work on a project many Warranties have wanted for some time — replacing the so-called “Broken Bridge” over the upper Kickemuit …

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By Ted Hayes

State DOT to rebuild at Warren's 'Broken Bridge'

DOT holding informational meeting Thursday evening

Posted

The state Department of Transportation will soon start work on a project many Warranties have wanted for some time — replacing the so-called “Broken Bridge” over the upper Kickemuit River.
Armed with $1.36 million in “Safe Routes to School” improvement funds, DOT officials are in the planning stages of the project, which would connect the Warren Bike Path behind the Kickemuit Middle School to points west. If the design and permitting phases go as planned — a public information meeting on the project is planned for Thursday evening at Warren Town Hall — DOT spokesman Charles St. Martin said Monday that construction work on the project could commence early next year.
When the bridge does come, town officials and planners believe it will be a boon not just for walkers but also students at the High Cole Elementary and Kickemuit Middle schools, who now have to contend with traffic on Route 103 when walking to school.
“It’s exciting,” Warren Town Manager Kate Michaud said Friday. “Really, this is to get bicycles off Child Street, and provide safe walking access (to and from school.”
The project could also turn into a pilot program of sorts, as both town and state officials are looking into the possibility of building it using expertise and materials from the East Bay’s many boat building and composites firms.
“We have all these local resources and it would be interesting to try to incorporate them,“ said Ms. Michaud, who worked with DOT officials last year to tour several composite-based businesses in Bristol.
The project will go out to bid so there is no guarantees that composite work will be featured in construction. But Ms. Michaud said the advantages of using technologically advanced materials include weight savings, decreased site preparation work, and a lower need for maintenance. If incorporating composites into the design is feasible, she said, the project would be a great example of home-grown engineering prowess.
Mr. St. Martin agrees:
“That’s something that’s been brought up,” he said. “It’s something that’s not committed yet, but could be used for this project. We would like to use (composites) if we could … it’s kind of neat. We have used a little bit of composites in bridge work,” but have not built an entire project using it.
Road west
Regardless of what materials are used, the construction of the bridge to a neighborhood behind Barker Avenue could be the first step in a longer-term town and DOT goal — opening up nearly all of Warren to off-load bike and walking access.
Ms. Michaud said one ultimate hope is that the path at the bridge can be extended all the way to the East Bay Bike Path via Franklin Street. Though dealing with Metacom Avenue will be “challenging,” she said, there are ideas in the works, including some cited by Roger Williams University students who studied the Metacom crossing in a class project last year.
As for the connection to the East Bay Bike Path, the DOT has already set aside $2 million in its TIP (Transportation Improvement Plan) to pay for the connection. According to the TIP, that work is scheduled to be funded in 2022.

What: Broken Bridge informational meeting
Who: Sponsored by state Department of Transportation (DOT)
Where: Warren Town Hall
When: Thursday, April 5, from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m.
Why: DOT is holding the meeting to receive public input as it prepares its environmental assessment of the project, a preliminary step before permitting, bidding and construction
Can’t attend? Mail your comments to RIDOT c/o CDM Smith, 260 West Exchange St., Suite 300, Providence RI 02903, or visit bit.ly/WarrenSurvey.

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