NORTH SMITHFIELD – The Rhode Island Department of Transportation will close The intersection of Route 146 at Sayles Hill Road starting at 9 p.m. on Saturday, June 14 through noontime on Sunday, June 15 as part of the ongoing road reconstruction project.
The closure will accommodate the latest phase in the project, with work scheduled to include lifting and placing steel beams for the new flyover bridge at Sayles Hill Road according to a release from the department.
The west side of Sayles Hill Road, from Route 146 to Iron Mine Hill Road will also be closed. Left turns will not be permitted to/from Route 146 North and South to/from Sayles Hill Road, and no traffic will be allowed beneath the bridge. The southbound service road, from the Ski Shop to the Rustic Drive in, will also be closed during the timeframe.
In the week that follows, RIDOT notes that alternating lane closures or a full road closure are scheduled for bridge construction on Route 146, from Exit 7 – Route 116 – to Exit 8C or Route 99, Sunday-Wednesday nights from 9 p.m.-6 a.m. Bridge construction will involve the closure of the Route 146 South Service Road, from Ski Shop Plus to Sayles Hill Road, and restriction of left turns from both directions of Route 146 to Sayles Hill Road and any traffic under the bridge, Sunday-Wednesday nights from 11 p.m. to 6 a.m.
Local access will be maintained, but drivers are advised to follow the signed detours during all closures.
The massive project, designed to eliminate one of the most active crash sites in Rhode Island, began in 2022 and will replace multiple bridges, repave 8 miles of road and eliminate congestion at the intersection of Sayles Hill Road and Route 146. Approximately 171,000 vehicles use the highway daily.
The full cost of the project is $196 million and it is scheduled for completion in 2026.
