Interstate 95 (I-95) is the main north–south
Interstate Highway
The Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways, commonly known as the Interstate Highway System, or the Eisenhower Interstate System, is a network of controlled-access highways that forms part of the National Hi ...
on the
East Coast of the United States
The East Coast of the United States, also known as the Eastern Seaboard, the Atlantic Coast, and the Atlantic Seaboard, is the region encompassing the coast, coastline where the Eastern United States meets the Atlantic Ocean; it has always pla ...
, running generally southwest–northeast through the
US state of
Rhode Island
Rhode Island ( ) is a state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Connecticut to its west; Massachusetts to its north and east; and the Atlantic Ocean to its south via Rhode Island Sound and Block Is ...
. It runs from the border with
Connecticut
Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...
near
Westerly, through
Warwick and
Providence, and to the
Massachusetts
Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...
state line in
Pawtucket. It has two
auxiliary routes, both of which enter Massachusetts—
I-195, a spur from Providence east to
Cape Cod
Cape Cod is a peninsula extending into the Atlantic Ocean from the southeastern corner of Massachusetts, in the northeastern United States. Its historic, maritime character and ample beaches attract heavy tourism during the summer months. The ...
, and
I-295, a western bypass of the
Providence metropolitan area.
South of Warwick, I-95 does not follow
US Route 1 (US 1), which it generally replaced in
New England
New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...
. It instead takes a shorter inland route, parallel to
Route 3. Route 3 was designated
New England Route 1A in 1922, a
New England Interstate Route, but it has never been a
US Route.
Route description
History
Southern Rhode Island

The diagonal corridor of
Route 3 was a well-traveled shortcut to the older
US 1 even before any part of I-95 was built. In the 1930s, a further cutoff was built in southeastern Connecticut and southwestern Rhode Island, joining
Old Mystic, Connecticut, to Route 3 in
Hopkinton. The existing
Connecticut Route 84 in Connecticut was rerouted to use the new road (now
Connecticut Route 184), and the short piece in Rhode Island was also numbered Rhode Island Route 84 (Route 84). (This alignment had been the
Hopkinton and Richmond Turnpike—better known as the
New London Turnpike—but had fallen into disrepair.) The
right-of-way of New London Turnpike goes through the Big River Management Area (as a dirt road), crosses Division Road as a four-way intersection with the north side of the turnpike paved, has an interchange with I-95 (exit 7), and continues for before connecting with Route 3 in West Warwick for a quarter mile (). New London Turnpike turns into New London Ave and continues straight for before connecting with Providence Street (
Route 33). It follows Providence Street until it hits the Meshanticut Interchange.
The first section of what is now I-95 was planned as an upgrade and relocation of Route 84 and Route 3 from the state line north of
Westerly to existing Route 3 of
Richmond. The short Route 84 was widened to a four-lane divided road with one intersection at Gray Lane. Instead of merging with Route 3, it was modified to continue northeast, passing under Route 3 with a
folded diamond interchange (modern day exit 1). The rest of the new road was designated Route 3 once it was completed on December 12, 1955. It was not built to
freeway
A controlled-access highway is a type of highway that has been designed for high-speed vehicular traffic, with all traffic flow—ingress and egress—regulated. Common English terms are freeway, motorway, and expressway. Other similar terms ...
standards, only having interchanges at Route 3 in Hopkinton and
Route 138 in Richmond (a
cloverleaf; modern day exit 3), as well as a bridge over the
Wood River and Mechanic Street.
A section of freeway (known as the Kent County Freeway) opened in July 1958, running from Route 3 at
Kitts Corner northeast across the
Big River (modern day exit 6) and east across Route 3 to
Route 2 on the
West Warwick–
Warwick line (modern day exit 8). Its west end was a simple intersection with old Route 3, in which only northbound traffic could continue on the old road—southbound traffic had to enter the new freeway east of the Big River. The only two
interchanges were with Route 3 east of the Big River (a
diamond interchange) and with Route 2 at its east end (a four-ramp interchange providing half the ramps of a cloverleaf).
[ Rhode Island Department of Transportation, Interstate Highway Opening Dates]
The I-95 designation was approved on June 27, 1958. The section in southern Rhode Island was temporarily designated Rhode Island Route 95 (Route 95) until it could be upgraded to a freeway. This route ran from the Connecticut state line along what had been
Route 84, continuing along the relocated Route 3 to north of Richmond, along normal Route 3 to Kitts Corner, and along the new freeway east to Route 2. As much as possible, Route 3 was moved back to the old road; it only used the new freeway by necessity in the area near Kitts Corner and over the Big River. Connecticut also renumbered their section of Connecticut Route 84 to
Connecticut Route 95 at that time.
I-95 in Connecticut was finished December 12, 1964, to the Rhode Island state line, where it connected to the older Route 95 divided highway. The old road from the border to Gray Lane was combined with the
frontage road built when Route 84 was upgraded to form what is now known as Extension 184. The portion from the Connecticut state line to Route 3 north of Richmond was upgraded to a freeway with construction ending May 1968.
To the north, that freeway was connected with the Kent County Freeway by a new section, opened November 22, 1969, as the last section of I-95 in Rhode Island. The connection to Route 3 at Kitts Corner was removed, and Route 3 was moved back to the old road over the Big River. Route 95 was renumbered I-95, as the whole road was now a freeway.
An interchange with the New London Turnpike named exit 21 (old exit 7) was added to the Kent County Freeway by 1972.
In 1983, a new interchange with Hopkins Hill Road named exit 19 (old exit 6A) opened.
Providence area
The construction of I-95 split the city of Providence in two, cutting off the city's western neighborhoods from downtown and its eastern neighborhoods.
Among the areas affected was Cathedral Square, which had been a bustling center of civic life before
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
. I-95, constructed adjacent to Cathedral Square, changed the area's character forever. A 1972 redesign by
I. M. Pei attempted to revitalize the square but failed.
Pawtucket area
The people of
Pawtucket feared the construction of I-95 as early as 1949. Editions of ''
The Times
''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...
'' and ''
The Providence Journal'' in 1949 recall how neighbors in the Woodlawn section of Pawtucket feared the construction of the highway. According to
Rhode Island Department of Transportation (RIDOT) blueprints, the highway was originally planned for the west side of Pawtucket, avoiding the
Blackstone River. The highway was originally designed to be constructed east of the
New York and New Haven Railroad tracks and create underpasses on Mineral Spring Avenue, Broad Street, and Dexter Street. The highway was meant to travel east of
Pawtucket/Central Falls station and into
South Attleboro, Massachusetts.
The
Pawtucket River Bridge is part of I-95 and has been replaced.
Future
In January 2024, the state of Rhode Island was rewarded an $81 million federal grant to construct the missing movements between I-95 and
Route 4 in Warwick. A new I-95 South entrance ramp from
Route 2 at the adjacent interchange will also be constructed.
Exit list
RIDOT converted exit number from
sequential to
mileage-based numbering per
federal highway standards. Exit renumbering began on August 28, 2022, and completed on November 3, 2022.
Tolls
High-speed toll gantries were installed at several locations along I-95 between 2018 and 2020. Toll rates at each point varied between $2.25 and $9.50. Tolls were collected only from commercial trucks pulling trailers. Federal judges ordered Rhode Island officials on September 21, 2022, to stop collecting truck-only tolls due to the long-hauling trucking industry's complaint that the highway charges were unconstitutional and unfair.
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Interstate 95 In Rhode Island
95
Providence metropolitan area
Rhode Island
Transportation in Washington County, Rhode Island
Transportation in Kent County, Rhode Island
Transportation in Providence County, Rhode Island
Tolled sections of Interstate Highways