Iway split: traffic is moving along
7:47 AM Thu, Oct 22, 2009 | Permalink
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| Thursday's Providence Journal front page »
DOT engineers have said they expect some traffic congestion with the opening of the permanent connection between the new section of Route 195 and Route 95. At 7:05 a.m. Thursday, traffic on Route 195 west thickened and slowed to about 5 miles per hour on the Washington Street Bridge. There were some stops at the India Point Bridge, as motorists maneuvered into the proper lanes depending on whether they were taking Route 95 north or Route 95 south. But by the split, traffic lightened again and speeds increased back to 55 miles per hour. There were no stoppages for motorists entering Route 95 north. Traffic was moving freely. Drivers heading to the city from Route 195 west can still access South Main Street in Providence, but that exit location will shift next year, according to the DOT. The State Police were assisting with another traffic issue around 7 a.m. Thursday morning, according to Lt. Arnold "Skip" Buxton. On Route 95 north in Coventry, near exit 6, a wide truck was stuck. On that stretch of highway, a construction project has closed one of the three lanes. At the split, where drivers can take either of the two lanes that remain open, the truck driver stopped when he realized he wasn't going to be able to fit in between the jersey barriers demarcating the lane, Buxton said. Now, crews are working to determine how to move that truck off the highway. The other lane remains open for travel, Buxton said. For other traffic needs, check out the state roadways, via the Department of Transportation's online traffic offerings. You can find any traffic alerts describing accidents here and browse traffic cams to see real-time photos of the highways. Also, check out congestion mapping -- i.e., how heavy the traffic is - here and listen to or read the radio reports for the week about traffic and construction on specific roadways. In addition, you can check out the DOT's presence on the social networking site, Twitter, where the department sends all of its traffic alerts. The department also posts occasional "tweets" and blog updates there if there's a big winter storm or other incident that would affect the state roadways.
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They needed one more sign right at the new split. Even when traffic was light going over the new bridge cars were slowing down and looking to the right towards S. Main Street.
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195W over the bridges are still a mess. Why does traffic have to be backed up to the state line? How do you alleviate that? I exited today at Point St. It's a good thing that I know my way around the neighborhoods. I needed to get to Broad St. NO SIGNS for Broad or Elmwood or anything.You go to the light at Point St and that's it!! You're on your own!! I work with agencies that travel from So Mass.
I don't know what time they will get here today. This was not a well thought out plan! Everyone keeps mentioning the jewelry district. I'm not originally from this state..what is the jewelry district? Can you access the court house from the So Main St exit?
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okay... I guess my last post didn't post b/c I used the 'M' word.
95N going towards downtown is very confusing so be careful folks. The new white lines (dividers) are crossing the old ones and the old ones are just faded so you'll be driving and you could easily cut someone off. There will be accidents.
The DOT has to correct but probably won't. I wonder how much hate mail they or phone calls they recieved? I bet a ton!
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I would like to say how impressed I am with the new highway construction.
All of my co-workers and neighbors who commute from 195W to 95 north have been impressed at how well the construction has been handled.
After the new 95N to 195E bridge was opened, we were happy to find less congestion and a quicker commute home. We saved time! And this morning the commute on the new 195W bridge to 95N was much quicker than usual.
It is nice to be able to say that the state did a good job on this project. Unlike the mess in Barrington -- where the companies who are building the bridges have taken forever, and demanded more money.
Thanks to DOT, good job!
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At 8:30 Thursday morning, traffic was backed up on I-195 West, east of Providence, with stop and go traffic. This was not as bad as usual, but not as good as I had hoped for. Things did ease up at the split, as the DOT said, but it always did before. There seemed to be a lot of congestion at the So Main St exit - I think there was some confusion on the part of the people who did not read the paper or look at the maps, as well as some confusion about the re-positioning of the exit, which was not mentioned in the press releases. Here's hoping it works itself out in the near future!
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I like how it looks and it's design is practical. I do have a problem with there not being enough signs prior to the exits to inform drivers what to expect. Maybe it's because the sign shop at the prison is shut down and we now purchase our state signs from a private contractor. I also don't like the bumpy cement used and the bridge expansion joints are like speed bumps. Coming from 195 east into Providence the drainage grates in the high speed lane are at least a foot deep and 2x2 feet wide. If a motorcycle ever hits it they are dead. It has thown my truck allignment out of whack. Be careful driving that stretch. Hope the can fix it.
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