The Sakonnet River Bridge is a four-lane bridge spanning the

Sakonnet River The Sakonnet River is a tidal strait in the state of Rhode Island which flows approximately 14 miles between Mount Hope Bay and Rhode Island Sound. It separates Aquidneck Island from the eastern portion of Newport County. Crossings Below is a ...

in eastern

Rhode Island Rhode Island (, like ''road'') is a state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area and the seventh-least populous, with slightly fewer than 1.1 million residents as of 2020, but i ...

. The bridge carries RI 24 and

RI 138 Route 138 is a numbered State Highway running in Rhode Island. It is the longest state numbered route in Rhode Island, and the second longest highway after U.S. Route 1 in Rhode Island, US 1. Route 138 begins in Exeter, Rhode Island, Exeter at ...

between the communities of

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city status in the United Kingdom, city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is admi ...

and Tiverton,

. The current bridge is a box girder bridge that opened in 2012 at a cost of $120 million (USD). The previous bridge was a

truss bridge A truss bridge is a bridge whose load-bearing superstructure is composed of a truss, a structure of connected elements, usually forming triangular units. The connected elements (typically straight) may be stressed from tension, compression, or ...

that was built in 1956 and demolished in 2012 due to structural deficiencies. The truss bridge had previously served as a replacement for the Stone Bridge, about to the south. It became part of RI 24 during the 1960s after the completion of the Portsmouth and Tiverton Expressways. At one point, it was briefly considered for inclusion as part of the never-built

Interstate 895 Interstate 895 (I-895) is an Interstate Highway in the U.S. state of Maryland. Known as the Harbor Tunnel Thruway, the highway runs between one junction with I-95 in Elkridge and another interchange with I-95 on the east side of Baltimore. I- ...

Tolls

In 2003, state officials declared there would be no tolls on the bridge. In 2012, governor

Lincoln Chafee Lincoln Davenport Chafee ( ; born March 26, 1953) is an American politician. He was mayor of Warwick, Rhode Island from 1993 to 1999, a United States Senator from 1999 to 2007, and the 74th Governor of Rhode Island from 2011 to 2015. He was a ...

reversed this decision. In August 2013 after the opening of the new bridge, the Rhode Island Turnpike and Bridge Authority began collecting a 10-cent toll from drivers with an

E-ZPass E-ZPass is an electronic toll collection system used on toll roads, toll bridges, and toll tunnels in the Eastern United States, Midwestern United States, and Southern United States. The E-ZPass Interagency Group (IAG) consists of member agenci ...

transponder using an open road tolling gantry. Those without E-ZPass were expected to call the Authority's office to arrange payment. The toll was imposed in order to keep open the future possibility of higher tolls due to a quirk in federal law. From August 2013 to May 2014, the Rhode Island Turnpike and Bridge Authority collected a total of $677,570. The toll was removed in June 2014 and the

Rhode Island Department of Transportation The Rhode Island Department of Transportation (RIDOT) is a Rhode Island state government agency charged with design, construction, maintenance and inspection of a wide range of transportation infrastructure. These include 3,300 lane miles of stat ...

stated in 2019 that they would not impose any tolls on the bridge in the future. After the toll was removed, opponents asked for a refund of the collected tolls, and that all tolling equipment be dismantled.

References

External links

Web site
containing engineering impact documents for the replacement of the Sakonnet River Bridge.
Web site
for Rhode Island Turnpike and Bridge Authority Sakonnet River Bridge Decorative Lighting requests. Road bridges in Rhode Island Bridges in Newport County, Rhode Island Narragansett Bay Box girder bridges in the United States Truss bridges in the United States Buildings and structures in Portsmouth, Rhode Island Buildings and structures in Tiverton, Rhode Island Bridges completed in 1956 1956 establishments in Rhode Island Former toll bridges in Rhode Island Bridges completed in 2012 2012 establishments in Rhode Island {{RhodeIsland-bridge-struct-stub