Projo 7 to 7 News Blog

I thought my commute to work from Barrington on Wednesday was the calm before the storm. I hit very little traffic, managed not to go much below 25 to 35 mph even on the busiest stretches of Route 195, and made it to my downtown parking lot in 24 minutes.

But the Iway storm forecasted to snarl traffic on Thursday didn't materialize for me. It only took me 6 minutes longer than on Wednesday to get from Barrington to Providence. I left my driveway at exactly 8:20 a.m. both days.

I had a hunch the drive wasn't going to be too awful when I was coming up the Wampanoag Trail and didn't see the tell-tale sign of cars backing up on the long winding ramp. Yes, as I crossed the Route 195 overpass I could see westbound cars backing up, their brake lights on.

It was stop-and-go, but it only took about 3 minutes to merge with traffic on Route 195, which I accomplished at 8:33. For a brief time, I hit 20 mph before the final East Providence exit. Go Speed Racer!

That didn't last long. Traffic bottled up again a little bit. But after moving over to the left lanes, I managed to move along at 15 mph. Signs were everywhere telling me that I should be in the right lanes to get to 95 North, but I made like a daredevil and stayed as long as I could on the left, where the lanes were moving more quickly. I was actually going about 30 mph! Go Speed Racer!

I crossed the Washington Bridge and, 24 minutes into my commute, hit the new highway split at 8:44. Traffic over the Iway seemed to be moving along very quickly, but here in the right lanes to 95 North, traffic seemed lighter than a regular day.

Before I knew it, I passed the old split and arrived in my parking lot in downtown Providence at 8:50.

Will the editors be pleased that I'm filing my story much earlier than anticipated, or disappointed there's no big story out there to report? I'll have to wait and see.

Follow our continuing report on the new Iway section, and give your own traffic reports at projo.com.

 Tags  Barrington RI Iway Providence RI

Comments

becourteous said:

You are one of the reasons that the commute will not go well for some -- you admit you were a daredevil and stayed as long as you could in the left lane because they were moving faster -- when you should have been in the right lanes. Trying to get back in the right lanes at the last minute is what will cause more backups and accidents. The road signs are there well in advance for dis-courteous drivers like you.

Link | June 18, 2009 9:54 AM
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Janet said:

I agree with becourteous!!!!People waiting till the last minute was the ONLY reason there was a problem. They should have a state trooper taking down license plate numbers and relaying them to a trooper further down the road handing out tickets!

Link | June 18, 2009 10:55 AM
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