BURRILLVILLE – The 96-foot-long aluminum pedestrian bridge in Pascoag is newly open and already a popular spot. On Thursday morning, U.S. Senator Jack Reed visited it and took a short walking tour of the area with some of the people responsible for making it happen.
“We’re very happy to welcome Senator Reed today to show where federal money he secured has gone,” said Burrillville Town Council President Donald Fox.
Posted on Reed’s Facebook page was his comment about his visit to Pascoag.
“With many communities facing road funding challenges, I delivered $200,000 to help Burrillville improve pedestrian safety and improve traffic flow,” noted Reed. “Great to see the town making daily commutes safer and more efficient for all.”
Town Manager Michael Wood thanked the senator for taking the time to visit Burrillville. He noted that the new bridge in Pascoag is “a need for the town that we have been working on a long time.”
“The bridge and River Walk are the vital components, of the ongoing recreational and economic plans for the area,” said Wood.
The structure was fabricated and installed by SumCo Eco-Contracting out of Wakefield, Mass.
Company team lead Ron Ferraiuolo, the contractor, said that he guided everyone through installation.
“It’s great working with the town,” Ferraiuolo said. “There were a couple of struggles to get through.”
The bridge work, he noted, included needed demolition, then installation of casting in place of concrete abutments, and replacement of a timber boardwalk.
Burrillville’s Director of Public Works and Engineering Services Jeffrey McCormick said he didn’t expect the new bridge to immediately become so popular.
“I come here to check on it a lot, and I’m amazed how many people are stopping, looking at the water,” McCormick said.
“Even before it was officially open, people were using the bridge,” agreed Jim Langlois, chairman of Burrillville Redevelopment Agency. “We’re very happy about that.”
Langlois noted the town has a lot of hiking trails – but only one connects to businesses.
In the Burrillville Bugle Spring-Summer 2025 issue, Langlois wrote of the Pascoag Riverwalk Improvements.
“Featuring new decking, signage and pedestrian bridge connecting the walkway to High Street and Gonyea Park,” he noted “Creating walkable continuity along the river and through downtown Pascoag. Special thanks to Senator Jack Reed for helping us receive a legislative grant to help fund this project.”
“We’re excited to see the future of Pascoag created in front of our eyes.” said George Lough, a member of the Burrillville Redevelopment Agency during the tour on Thursday. Such corridors will create new business, he said.
Walkability, on features such as the new pedestrian bridge, and on trails throughout Rhode Island, are a part of the state’s sustainable vision. Towns that are more walkable are in sync with RI S0174 Rhode Island Senate Joint Resolution 174, approved on June 2 of this year. The Joint Resolution To Establish A Statewide Main Street Coordinating Program notes in part “When Main Street districts are functioning as vibrant places, they yield many benefits to the State and its municipalities, with the potential to generate substantial economic activity, tax revenues, housing, tourism, small business creation, jobs, and real estate development, as well as positive social and public health outcomes.”
SumCo Eco-Contracting’s slogan on their website is “Building a better and more sustainable tomorrow.”
Scholars Steven Gehrke and Kelly Clifton seemed to have areas like Pascoag in mind in their study A pathway linking smart growth neighborhoods to home-based pedestrian travel.
“Planners and decision-makers have turned to integrated transportation-land use policies and investments to address the pressing need for improvements in physical activity levels via the creation of walkable communities,” they noted. “A neighborhood characterized by a traditional street network design with strong sidewalk coverage and local retail, mixed land development patterns represented by complementary and spatially interspersed land use patches, and compactness exhibited by a high employment intensity were found to be indicative of a smart growth neighborhood.”
Reed, senior member of the Banking Committee and supporter of the USDA Mutual Self-Help Program and HUD program HOME funding, seems interested in Burrillville’s future. This past Thursday, under a blue sky, Reed crossed over the Pascoag bridge and stopped by veteran-owned Bravo Brewing Company “to hear how this veteran-owned small business tapped into success after catastrophic flooding almost shuttered operations for good.”
“Going ‘against the grain,’ Bravo pivoted to a brewpub business model and adds delicious depth to Rhode Island’s craft beer landscape,” Reed noted.
The short span from the new bridge to Bravo is through a small section of the town’s progressing walkability.
where, exactly, is the bridge located?
Thank you Mr. Langlois for all your efforts over the decades in making Pascoag, and Burrillville a better place! Your efforts have certainly prevailed! Cheers to all involved and thanks!
This whole “story” is not true….I’ve lived here 40 years and never needed a bridge to nowhere..People that do not live here come here and declare we are to do this and that….no one is crossing the bridge to “look at the water”….waste of money.
I used the bridge and path yesterday. I needed to pick up items from CVS and Bridgidos. I parked at Bridgidos near the new bridge and walked to CVS and back. I took care of errands and put in some walking steps at the same time. Love it! Great job.