Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Bridges Infrastructure topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
DPW outlines bridges plan and fixes for Bowden Street, Cannon Pond Dam
Summary
Providence Department of Public Works officials told the City Council they are developing a 20‑year bridge asset management plan and have design and stabilization work under way for multiple structures, including a missing abutment on a Pawtucket River bridge.
Providence Department of Public Works officials told the City Council on July 16 that they are developing a 20‑year asset management plan for the city’s bridges and have design and short‑term stabilization work under way for multiple sites.
“Bridges: we’re in the middle of developing a 20‑year asset management plan for our bridges,” a DPW presenter said during the meeting, describing ongoing design work and interim measures. The presenter said designers have a plan ready for a bridge over the Pawtucket River where an abutment foundation is missing, and that the department is pursuing stabilization work on structures such as the Pointe Street bridge to prolong their life until a more substantive rehabilitation can be performed by state or federal partners.
Why it matters: DPW staff told the council the plan will catalog the city’s roughly 52 bridges, set priorities and guide multi‑year budgeting. Staff said a draft of the management plan is expected in late fall or early winter and will identify which structures require immediate stabilization versus long‑term replacement.
DPW also described a localized roadway safety project for Bowden Street, where a steep drop and stormwater runoff have caused repeated guardrail loss and roadway slippage. “We continue to lose our guardrail…we’ve had a temporary barrier for about three years,” the DPW presenter said, and the proposed work would reopen the street to two‑way travel and address stormwater runoff that has contributed to slope instability.
On the small dam at Cannon Pond, staff said the city has done prior work to address a Department of Environmental Management (DEM) critical finding related to a low‑level outlet. “There’s been discussion about removal of the dam in the past,” the DPW presenter said, but absent a removal plan DPW is proposing stabilization and concrete repairs to extend the structure’s life and reduce liability.
Staff noted some bridge projects have been added to the statewide transportation improvement program; one project staff previously estimated at roughly $4 million was described as having become a smaller, interim $400,000 project until a larger DOT project can be scheduled.
Ending: DPW officials asked councilors for continued patience while the asset‑management plan is finalized and said they will share the plan and its priority list with the administration and council when it is complete.
