Interstate 195 (Rhode Island-Massachusetts)

Major cities; Bolded cities are officially-designated control cities for signs
	Providence, Rhode Island; Fall River, Massachusetts; New Bedford, Massachusetts; Cape Cod, Massachusetts (via Route 25);

	Interstate 195; Auxiliary route of the Interstate Highway System
Length:	40.1 mi (64.5 km)
Formed:	1958 (completed in 1990)
West end:	I-95 and US 6 in Providence, Rhode Island
East end:	I-495 and Route 25 near Wareham, Massachusetts

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Interstate 195 (abbreviated I-195) is an interstate highway running a combined 40.1 miles (64.5 km) in the U.S. states of Massachusetts and Rhode Island. It travels from a junction with Interstate 95 in Providence, Rhode Island east to a junction with Interstate 495 and Route 25 in Wareham, Massachusetts. It runs east-west and passes through the cities of Fall River, Massachusetts and New Bedford, Massachusetts.

The section in downtown Providence is currently being replaced and moved to the south to lie just south of the Fox Point Hurricane Barrier.

[edit] Route description

[edit] History

I-195 in Fall River, photo from 1968

Predating I-195 were two sections of road - Fox Point Boulevard and the Washington Bridge. The Washington Bridge, crossing the Seekonk River between Providence and East Providence, was opened on September 25, 1930, replacing an 1885 swing bridge with a higher bascule bridge. A new eastbound bridge opened in November 1968.[1]

Fox Point Boulevard, later George M. Cohan Boulevard, was a surface boulevard connecting the Washington Bridge west to the Point Street Bridge and downtown Providence. It was built with no cross traffic by using U-turn ramps in the median to reverse direction. This was the last part in Providence to be built as a freeway, opened in December 1968.

The first freeway section came off the west end of Cohan Boulevard and over the Providence River, ending at the one-way pair of Pine Street and Friendship Street, which opened in November 1958. The ramp to Pine Street has been closed, but the entrance from Friendship Street still exists. The I-95 interchange at this end opened in fall 1964; the Pine Street ramp was kept for a while.

The next section to be constructed was the part in East Providence. It opened to the last exit before the state line on December 15, 1959, and was extended into Massachusetts by August 1960.

Before the Interstate Highway System numbering was decided upon, I-195 was planned as a relocation of US 6; in fact, all but the last section were signed as US 6 when built (the first section only eastbound though). In 1957, the number Interstate 95E was assigned, as all intercity routes were numbered before the three-digit Interstate numbering was chosen, and the Providence-New Bedford route was too long to be considered intracity. The I-195 designation was assigned in 1959 with the final numbering. At some time after 1976, the definition of I-195 was extended east to I-495 (which was itself extended).

I-195 still carries US 6, now in both directions, from I-95 to the last interchange before Massachusetts. It also carries US 1A and US 44 over the Washington Bridge and its approaches, though the former has almost no signs.

Until around 1990, the US 6 freeway from RI 10 at Olneyville west to I-295 was signed as RI 195.

[edit] Iway

Main article: Iway

Interstate 195's stretch through Providence is currently (2008) in the process of being rerouted due to the sharp curves and the way the road cuts through part of the city. The relocation will make the segment safer for traffic, reunify the Jewelery District with Downcity Providence, and free up more space. In the process some 35 buildings, housing over 80 businesses and six residences were demolished.^[1] The new stretch of highway is being called the Iway by the Rhode Island Department of Transportation and includes a signature bridge over the Providence River^[2] as well as a landscaped pedestrian walkway over the highway. It will connect India Point Park to the Fox Point neighborhood. The project is estimated to cost $446 million, with the new stretch opening in 2009 (full interchange), and demolition of the old road to be completed in 2012.^[3]

[edit] Exit list

Town	Exit #	Mile	Destinations	Notes
begins at I-95. It begins joined with US 6.
Providence		0.0	I-95 South – New York City I-95 North (exit 20)/US 6 West – Boston, Hartford	Entry to 195 also available from Friendship Street until 2008-05-27 (when it permanently closes ^[4]), and Interstate 95 northbound exit 19 (partial access to the relocated 195) On 2008-05-27, Interstate 95 Northbound Traffic wishing to access 195 Must use exit 19 as exit 20 will close permanently. Interstate 95 Southbound traffic will still use exit 20.
	1	0.4	Downtown Providence	No westbound exit. No eastbound access from Interstate 95 exit 19 I-195 ramp
	2	0.7	East: Wickenden Street – India Point West: US 44 West (South Main Street)	To US 1A South (not signed). Accessible via I-95 North exit 19 as of 2008-05-22 ^[5]
	join
	3	1.1	Gano St – India Point	Closed as of 2008-05-22 ^[6]
East Providence	4	1.8	US 44 East (Taunton Avenue) Veterans Memorial Parkway – Riverside	Partial interchange: EB exit/WB entrance only
	leaves
	5	2.0	Route 103 east (Warren Avenue)	Partial interchange: EB exit/WB entrance only Old US 6.
	6	2.4	Broadway	Westbound access to US 44 and Route 103
	7	3.0	US 6 east – Seekonk To Route 114 south – Barrington	Partial interchange: EB exit/WB entrance only East Shore Expressway
	leaves
	8	3.2	US 1A north (Pawtucket Avenue) to Route 114 north – Rumford	Partial interchange: EB exit/WB entrance only
	leaves
MA-RI state line

[edit] Exits in Massachusetts

Exit #	Town/City	Road Intersected	Notes
I-195 crosses into Massachusetts from Rhode Island
Bristol County
1	Seekonk	Route 114A	Provides quick access to U.S. Route 6
2	Swansea	Route 136 South	Rte. 136's northern terminus is at this point.
3	Swansea	U.S. Route 6 to Route 118	Exit recently expanded; the Swansea Mall is located at the intersection of Rtes. 6 & 118.
4	Somerset	Route 103 Lee's River Ave	Split into 4A-B westbound; 4B heads eastbound on Wilbur Ave/Rte. 103, 4A heads westbound. Eastbound Exit 4 connects to Lee's River Ave., which terminates just south of the exit at Rte. 103.
5	Fall River	Route 79 North/Route 138	Southern terminus of Rte. 79 is at this exit. Both sides split after exit to northbound (Rtes. 79/138) and southbound (Rte. 138 only). Exit is at the eastern end of the Charles M. Braga Jr. Memorial Bridge on the eastern banks of the Taunton River.
6		Pleasant Street (Westbound)/Hartwell Street (Eastbound)	Both exits provide downtown access to Fall River.
7		Route 81 South (Plymouth Avenue)	Northern terminus of Rte. 81. Exits 6 and 7 share an access ramp on both sides.
8A		Route 24 South	Route 24 joins eastbound and leaves westbound
Route 24 joins I-195
8B	Fall River	Route 24 North	Route 24 leaves eastbound and joins westbound.
leaves
9	Westport	Sanford Road/N. Westport	Eastbound exit only, no entrances. (Road actually terminates just north of Sanford Rd. on Old Bedford Rd., which was rerouted at the time of original construction.)
10	Westport	Route 88 South	Northern terminus of Rte. 88; also provides quick access to Rte. 6 at first exit.
11	Dartmouth	Reed Road/Hixville/Dartmouth	Split into 11A-B westbound; 11B heads north towards Hixville, 11A heads towards Dartmouth and North Westport.
12	Dartmouth	Faunce Corner Road	Split into 12A-B westbound; 12B heads north towards Faunce Corner; 12A heads south on Faunce Corner Mall Rd towards the Dartmouth Mall.
13A-B	New Bedford	Route 140
14		Penniman Street	Eastbound exit/westbound entrance only.
15		Route 18 SOUTH	No access to Route 18 North from I-195 in either direction. No access to I-195 from Route 18 South. Access to I-195 East and West from Rte. 18 North.
16		Washburn Street	Eastbound exit/entrance only.
17		Coggeshall Street	Westbound exit/entrance only.
18	Fairhaven	Route 240 South	To U.S. Route 6; this is the northern terminus of Rte. 240.
Plymouth County
19A-B	Mattapoisett	Mattapoisett/N. Rochester	Exit serves North St., which heads south towards Rte. 6 and Mattapoisett Harbor and north towards Rochester.
20	Marion	Route 105	Rte. 105 heads south towards Rte. 6 and Marion Harbor and north towards Rochester. Also provides access to the western parts of Wareham.
21	Wareham	Route 28	Ramps recently upgraded with stoplights to accommodate new Wareham Crossing shopping center just northwest of the junction. Southbound heads towards Wareham harbor.
22A		I-495 North	I-495's southern terminus is at this junction; is is the same roadway as Rte. 25.
22B		Route 25 East	Rte. 25's northern terminus is at this junction; is is the same roadway as I-495.