Deck on Providence roadway to be replaced

PROVIDENCE—A heavily-traveled roadway that runs through parts of downtown Providence needs a new deck.

Transportation department officials said Tuesday that the concrete deck of the Providence Viaduct, an elevated section of highway that carries Interstate 95 across the Amtrak railroad tracks and the Woonasquatucket River, needs to be replaced.

Kazem Farhoumand, the department’s chief engineer, said replacing the deck was one of the most important transportation priorites in the state, given its location and the fact it carries 170,000 to 200,000 cars a day.

He said he didn’t know how much it would cost to replace the deck, which dates from the 1960s.