McKee criticized over $400M bridge replacement
(The Center Square) — Rhode Island Gov. Dan McKee says replacing the Washington Bridge will cost the state more than $400 million and take years, drawing GOP criticism over his administration’s response to the incident.
The new price tag for the project — which is more than $100 million higher than initial estimates — includes demolition of the structurally deficient structure that serves as a gateway to Rhode Island’s largest city, Providence, carrying about 100,000 vehicles a day over the Seekonk River.
McKee said Rhode Island will apply for a U.S. Department of Transportation grant to pay for 60% of the expense. McKee has also submitted a budget amendment to borrow up to $334.6 million to pay more of the bridge replacement cost if the state doesn’t get the federal grant.
He said his administration is investigating the circumstances that led to the need to shut down and replace the bridge and has pledged that a “day of reckoning” will be “coming soon.”
But Rhode Island Republican Party Chairman Joe Powers says the bridge’s failure comes as “no surprise” and blames the McKee administration for ignoring deficiencies flagged by bridge inspectors over a decade ago.
“This is not just a recent misstep,” Powers told reporters during a Tuesday briefing. “It’s a culmination of years of inadequate leadership that the Rhode Islanders have endured, and we have had enough.”
The GOP criticism comes as the party hopes to win legislative seats in the November elections in a deep blue state where Democrats outnumber Republicans 3-1, control the governor’s office, hold all of the congressional seats and have a super-majority in the state Assembly.
An independent review of the Washington Street Bridge uncovered additional structural deficiencies that required it to be replaced. The westbound portion of the bridge, originally built in 1969, was rated as “poor,” according to the Federal Highway Administration’s latest National Bridge Inventory.
In December, the state shut down the bridge after civil engineers discovered that “anchor pins” holding structural beams in place were failing, which could have caused the bridge to collapse.
McKee said the situation has been “disruptive and challenging” and said it “will continue to be that way for a while” but pledged to “do everything necessary to keep people safe” and get to the bottom of what caused the failures.
On Monday, the McKee administration announced a $1 million relief program for businesses in Providence that have been impacted by the bridge closure.
The state has also spent $400,000 on a digital ad campaign to win public support for the replacement project.
