Rhode Island Route 146

Route 146 is a limited-access road in the U.S. state of Rhode Island, maintained by the Rhode Island Department of Transportation (RIDOT). Spanning approximately 16 miles (26 km) along a northsouth axis, it links the cities of Providence, Woonsocket, and Worcester, Massachusetts.

Route 146
Route 146 highlighted in red, Route 146A in blue
Route information
Maintained by RIDOT
Length16.24 mi[1] (26.14 km)
Major junctions
South end I-95 in Providence
 
North end Route 146 at the Massachusetts state line in North Smithfield
Location
CountiesProvidence
Highway system
Rhode Island Routes
Route 142 Route 152

The southern terminus of Route 146 is located at Interstate 95 (I-95) in Providence. The majority of the route is a controlled-access highway, with the exception of at-grade crossings and driveway access in the towns of North Smithfield and Lincoln. The northern terminus is located at the Rhode IslandMassachusetts border in Millville, where it transitions into Massachusetts Route 146 and continues northbound towards the Massachusetts Turnpike in Millbury and I-290 in Worcester.

Route description

Route 146 begins in downtown Providence at I-95 northbound Exit 23 (there is no direct access from I-95 southbound, Exit 23 access to Route 146 is via surface streets). Locally it is known as Old Louisquisset Pike, and is a narrow 4-lane freeway with no shoulders and a simple Jersey barrier median separating oncoming traffic. The first two interchanges are partial access only, with Rhode Island Route 7 (Douglas Avenue) and Rhode Island Route 246 (Charles Street) and provide access between Route 146 and I-95 via surface streets for where there is no direct access (southbound I-95 to northbound 146, and southbound 146 to northbound I-95). The first complete interchange is a diamond interchange with Branch Avenue, followed by a partial interchange with Rhode Island Route 15 (no northbound entrance to Route 146). The next interchange, with Route 246 a second time, provides the access missing from the Route 15 interchange.

At this point, now in North Providence the "Old Louisquisset Pike" designation leaves to follow Route 246, and the 146 freeway becomes the Eddie Dowling Highway. Near the southern boundary of Lincoln, there is a southbound-only offramp (no other access) with Route 246, while the northbound side abuts Olney Pond in the Lincoln Woods State Park. Two partial cloverleaf interchanges follow with Twin River Road and Rhode Island Route 123/Breakneck Hill Road. The next interchange northbound is a right-in/right-out terminus of Sherman Avenue, while southbound has access to 246 here. A single onramp provides Wilbur Avenue an entrance to northbound 146 next, then a modified cloverleaf interchange with Rhode Island Route 116, followed shortly by a full cloverleaf interchange with I-295 and the southern terminus of Rhode Island Route 99, which is a short connector freeway to the city of Woonsocket Route 99 access is a northbound exit/southbound entrance only, the other directions need to use surface streets for access.

North of this interchange, the road turns into a divided boulevard with at-grade crossings and driveway access through the southern part of the town of North Smithfield, Rhode Island. A stoplight marks the only major intersection, an at-grade crossing with Sayles Hill Road, which doubles back and has a right in/right out interchange with southbound 146. At the partial interchange with Rhode Island Route 146A (northbound exit and southbound entrance) the freeway resumes, now called the North Smithfield Expressway, which has three interchanges in the town: Rhode Island Route 104, Pound Hill Road, and a complex interchange with School Street and 146A that also provides access to Rhode Island Route 5 and Rhode Island Route 102. Approximately two miles north of this interchange, the freeway continues into Massachusetts as Massachusetts Route 146, the Worcester/Providence Pike.

History

Prior to the construction of the two freeway sections, Route 146 used present-day Route 246 and Route 146A. The only part of the original alignment still in use is the non-freeway section between Interstate 295/Route 99 and Route 146A in the southern part of North Smithfield.

In May 2019, Route 146 received mile-based exit numbers. Previously, the exits were unnumbered.

Future

In May 2019, the Rhode Island Senate announced that the state would borrow $200 million to reconfigure I-95 through Downtown Providence, near the southern terminus of Route 146. The replacement of the Providence Viaduct with twin bridges is intended to alleviate the bottleneck created by traffic entering I-95 from the US 6 and RI 10, and exiting towards RI 146 and US 44. The project is expected to cost $250 million.[2]

RIDOT plans to build two toll gantries, one in Lincoln and one in North Smithfield, for truck-only electronic toll collection.[3]

Exit list

Exits were unnumbered until Summer 2019, when RIDOT began adding mileage-based exit numbers to conform to federal highway standards. The project is expected to be completed by 2021.[4] The entire route is in Providence County.

Locationmi[1]kmExit[4]DestinationsNotes
Providence0.000.00 I-95 south to I-195 Downtown ProvidenceSouthern terminus; exit 23 on I-95
0.300.481A Route 246 (Charles Street) / Admiral Street – State OfficesSouthbound exit and northbound entrance
0.400.64 Route 7 (Douglas Avenue)Southbound entrance only
1.402.251BBranch AvenueSigned as exit 1 northbound
North Providence2.504.022 Route 15 (Mineral Spring Avenue) North Providence, PawtucketNo northbound entrance
2.904.67 Route 246 (Charles Street)Entrance ramps only
Lincoln4.006.444A Route 246 (Old Louisquisset Pike)Southbound exit only
4.507.244BTwin River RoadSigned as exit 4 northbound
5.008.055 Route 123 (Breakneck Hill Road)
6.4010.306 Route 246 (Old Louisquisset Pike) / Sherman AvenueSigned for Route 246 southbound, Sherman Avenue northbound
6.7010.78Wilbur RoadNorthbound entrance only
7.4011.917 Route 116 Lincoln, SmithfieldSigned as exits 7A (north) and 7B (south); southbound exit 7B also provides access to Route 246 via collector/distributor lanes shared with exit 8
Truck-only electronic toll gantry ($3.50)[5]
8.5013.688 I-295 Warwick, Boston, MASigned as exits 8A (north) and 8B (south); exit 18 on I-295
8.8014.168C Route 99 north to Route 122 Woonsocket, CumberlandNorthbound exit and southbound entrance;
accessed from the collectordistributor lanes shared with exit 8
8.9014.32Northern terminus of freeway section
9.0014.489Reservoir RoadSouthbound exit and entrance; northbound entrance from Old Great Road
9.7015.61 Sayles Hill Road to Route 99At-grade intersection
North Smithfield10.5016.90Sayles Hill RoadInterchange; southbound exit and entrance
10.6017.0610 Route 146A north Woonsocket, Park SquareNorthbound exit and southbound entrance with southbound u-turn
10.7017.22Southern terminus of freeway section
Truck-only electronic toll gantry ($6.75)[5]
12.1019.4711 Route 104 Woonsocket, North Smithfield
13.4021.5713Pound Hill Road – North SmithfieldAccess to Industrial Drive and CVS Distribution Center
14.3023.0114 Route 146A North Smithfield, Burrillville
16.2426.14 Route 146 north WorcesterContinuation into Massachusetts
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

Suffixed route

Route 146A
LocationNorth SmithfieldWoonsocket
Length5.9 mi[6] (9.5 km)

Route 146A is a numbered state highway running 5.9 miles (9.5 km) in Rhode Island. It was designated as Route 146 before the construction of the North Smithfield Expressway. The road follows a former stagecoach path through historic Union Village in North Smithfield. This road was known as "the Great Road". The northern end of the road crosses the state line near Buxton Street at Uxbridge, Massachusetts. This section was known as Ironstone, after good quality bog iron ore found near here.

It takes the following route through the state:

Major intersections
The entire route is in Providence County.

Locationmi[6]kmDestinationsNotes
North Smithfield0.00.0 Route 146 south ProvidenceU-turn to Route 146 north
North SmithfieldWoonsocket line1.21.9 Route 104 north (Park Avenue)Southern terminus of concurrency with Route 104
1.62.6 Route 104 south (Greenville Road)Northern terminus of concurrency with Route 104
North Smithfield3.96.3 Route 146 Providence, Worcester, MAInterchange
5.28.4 Route 5 south (Victory Highway) / Route 102 south (North Main Street)Southern terminus of concurrency with Route 5, north end of Route 102
5.38.5 Route 5 north (Central Street)Northern terminus of concurrency with Route 5
5.99.5 Route 146A north UxbridgeContinuation into Massachusetts
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

See also

  •  U.S. Roads portal

References

  1. Google (December 31, 2013). "Route 146" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved December 31, 2013.
  2. Anderson, Patrick (May 16, 2019). "R.I. Senate OKs borrowing $200M to rebuild Route 95N through Providence". The Providence Journal. Retrieved May 21, 2019.
  3. "Environment Assessment Toll Locations 3, 4 & 6 through 13" (PDF). Rhode Island Department of Transportation. December 14, 2018. Retrieved May 21, 2019.
  4. Rhode Island Department of Transportation. "Rhode Island Mile-Marker Exit Program". Retrieved January 26, 2020.
  5. "Truck-Only Tolling Merged". Rhode Island Department of Transportation. Google. Retrieved July 28, 2020.
  6. Google (December 31, 2013). "Route 146A" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved December 31, 2013.

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