It had been my opinion early on that only a superstructure replacement was necessary to reconnect I-195 westbound. However, finding support for the concept was impossible. It may be too late to consider anything other than what the Rhode Island Department of Transportation already decided, but let me share my opinion anyway.
Coming up with the design
I graduated from the University of Rhode Island in 1964, receiving a bachelor of science in civil engineering. My first job was in the bridge department of Charles Maguire and Associates, the largest Rhode Island engineering firm at that time. My boss was Robert Pare, the chief of the department, a well-known bridge engineer.
One day he informed us that Maguire was selected by the state to design a major new bridge for I-195 over the Seekonk River. The first phase of the design was to be the development of three design concepts. One engineer would work on a concrete structure, another one a steel structure, and my assignment was to come up with something interesting and innovative.
I was interested in and quite familiar with the emergence of pre-stressed and post-tensioned concrete; I looked for a configuration that would fit in the task at hand. My initial concept was large, hollow triangles on piers, connected by pre-stressed girders. It contrasted dramatically from the existing bridge, slightly resembling the celebrated Maracaibo Lake bridge in Venezuela. We generated great 3D drawings and got ready for the presentation to Sam Engdahl, who was the chief bridge engineer for Rhode Island…