Route 146
Route 146 highlighted in red, Route 146A in blue
Route information
Maintained byRIDOT
Length	16.24 mi[1] (26.14 km)
Major junctions
South end	I-95 /US 6 /US 44 /Route 10 inProvidence
Major intersections	Route 15 inNorth Providence Route 116 inLincoln I-295 in Lincoln Route 99 in Lincoln Route 146A inNorth Smithfield
North end	Route 146 at theMassachusetts state line
Location
Country	United States
State	Rhode Island
Counties	Providence
Highway system
Rhode Island Routes
←Route 142 →Route 152

Route 146 is a 16.24-mile (26.14 km)state highway in the U.S. state ofRhode Island, maintained by theRhode Island Department of Transportation (RIDOT). Running along a northwest–southeast axis, it links the cities ofProvidence,Woonsocket, andWorcester, Massachusetts.

The southern terminus of Route 146 is located atInterstate 95 (I-95) in Providence. The majority of the route is afreeway, with the exception of at-grade crossings and driveway access in the towns ofNorth Smithfield andLincoln. The northern terminus is located at the Rhode Island–Massachusetts state line inMillville, where it transitions intoMassachusetts Route 146 and continues northbound towards theMassachusetts Turnpike inMillbury andI-290 in Worcester.

Route 146 begins in downtownProvidence at I-95 northbound exit 38 (there is no direct access from I-95 southbound; access to Route 146 is via surface streets). Locally it is known as Old Louisquisset Pike, and is a narrow four-lanefreeway with no shoulders and a simpleJersey barrier median separating oncoming traffic. The first two interchanges are partial access only, withRoute 7 (Douglas Avenue) andRoute 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 Route 146, and southbound Route 146 to northbound I-95). The first complete interchange is a diamond interchange with Branch Avenue, followed by a partial interchange withRoute 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 inNorth Providence the "Old Louisquisset Pike" designation leaves to follow Route 246, and the Route 146 freeway becomes the Eddie Dowling Highway. Near the southern boundary ofLincoln, there is a southbound-only offramp (no other access) with Route 246, while the northbound side abuts Olney Pond in theLincoln Woods State Park. Twopartial cloverleaf interchanges follow with Twin River Road andRoute 123/Breakneck Hill Road. The next interchange northbound is aright-in/right-out terminus of Sherman Avenue, while southbound has access to Route 246 here. A single onramp provides Wilbur Road an entrance to northbound Route 146 next, then a modified cloverleaf interchange withRoute 116, followed shortly by a full cloverleaf interchange withI-295 and the southern terminus ofRoute 99, which is a short connector freeway to the city ofWoonsocket. 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 anarterial road with at-grade crossings and driveway access through the southern part of the town ofNorth 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 Route 146. At the partial interchange withRoute 146A (northbound exit and southbound entrance) the freeway resumes, now called the North Smithfield Expressway, which has three interchanges in the town:Route 104, Pound Hill Road, and a complex interchange with School Street and Route 146A that also provides access toRoute 5 andRoute 102. Approximately two miles (3.2 km) north of this interchange, the freeway continues into Massachusetts asMassachusetts Route 146, the Worcester–Providence Pike.

This sectionneeds expansion. You can help byadding to it.(June 2012)

Prior to the construction of the two freeway sections, Route 146 used present-dayRoute 246 andRoute 146A. The only part of the original alignment still in use is the non-freeway section betweenI-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.

RIDOT erected two tollgantries in 2019, one in Lincoln and one in North Smithfield, for truck-onlyelectronic toll collection.^[2] Those gantries have been shut off since September 2022.

In May 2019, theRhode 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 thebottleneck created by traffic entering I-95 fromUS Route 6 (US 6) andRoute 10, and exiting towards Route 146 andUS 44. The project is expected to cost $250 million.^[3]

In 2022, RIDOT began work on an overpass at Sayles Hill Road, the only set of traffic signals along the route in Rhode Island. The project also includes constructing service roads and bus bays, and rebuilding the interchange with Route 146A at North Smithfield. Work is scheduled to be completed in 2026.^[4]

The entire route is inProvidence County.

Location	mi[1]	km	Exit[5]	Destinations	Notes
Providence	0.00	0.00	–	I-95 south toI-195 east /US 6 /Route 10 south –Downtown ProvidenceModule:Jct error: Invalid "to" argument	Southern terminus; exit 37A-B-C on I-95 the New Service Road To I-95 Northbound
	0.30	0.48	1A	Route 246 (Charles Street) / Admiral Street – State Offices	Southbound exit and northbound entrance
	1.40	2.25	1B	Branch Avenue	Signed as exit 1 northbound
North Providence	2.50	4.02	2	Route 15 (Mineral Spring Avenue) –North Providence,Pawtucket	No northbound entrance
Lincoln	4.00	6.44	4A	Route 246 (Old Louisquisset Pike)	Southbound exit only
	4.50	7.24	4B	Twin River Road	Signed as exit 4 northbound
	5.00	8.05	5	Route 123 (Breakneck Hill Road)
	6.40	10.30	6	Route 246 (Old Louisquisset Pike) / Sherman Avenue	Signed for Route 246 southbound, Sherman Avenue northbound
	7.40	11.91	7	Route 116 –Lincoln,Smithfield	Southbound exit 7 provides access to Route 246 viacollector–distributor lanes shared with exits 8A-B
	8.50	13.68	8A-B	I-295 –Boston, MA,Warwick	Signed as exits 8A (north) and 8B (south); exits 18A-B on I-295
	8.80	14.16	8C	Route 99 north toRoute 122 –Woonsocket,Cumberland	Northbound exit and southbound entrance; accessed from the collector–distributor lanes shared with exits 8A-B
	9.00	14.48	9	Reservoir Road	Interchange; no northbound exit
			Northern end of freeway section
	9.70	15.61		ToRoute 99 north	Access via Sayles Hill Road; currently being reconfigured into an interchange as part of a project to complete the freeway gap in North Smithfield
North Smithfield	10.50	16.90	Southern end of freeway section
			–	Sayles Hill Road	Southbound exit and entrance; will be reconfigured as part of a project to complete the freeway gap in North Smithfield
	10.60	17.06	10	Route 146A north –Woonsocket,Park Square	Southbound access is via center medianu-turn ramp; exit number not signed southbound; southern terminus of Route 146A; will be reconfigured as part of a project to complete the freeway gap in North Smithfield
	12.10	19.47	11	Route 104 –Woonsocket,North Smithfield
	13.40	21.57	13	Pound Hill Road –North Smithfield	Access to Industrial Drive and CVS Distribution Center
	14.30	23.01	14	Route 146A –North Smithfield,Burrillville
	16.24	26.14	–	Route 146 north –Worcester	Continuation intoMassachusetts
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi       Incomplete access

Route 146A
Location	North Smithfield–Woonsocket-Burrillville
Length	5.9 mi[6] (9.5 km)

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

It runs for 5.9 miles (9.5 km) through North Smithfield on Route 146 toMassachusetts state line atRoute 146A using Eddie Dowling Highway, Smithfield Road,Great Road, Victory Highway, North Main Street and Quaker Highway.

Major intersections
The entire route is inProvidence County.

Location	mi[6]	km	Destinations	Notes
North Smithfield	0.0	0.0	Route 146 –Providence,Worcester, MA	Southern terminus; exit 10 on Route 146
Woonsocket	1.6	2.6	Route 104 (Greenville Road)
North Smithfield	3.9	6.3	Route 146 –Providence,Worcester, MA	Exit 14 on Route 146
Burrillville	5.2	8.4	Route 5 south (Victory Highway) /Route 102 south (North Main Street)	Southern terminus of concurrency with Route 5; northern terminus of Route 102
	5.3	8.5	Route 5 north (Central Street)	Northern terminus of concurrency with Route 5
	5.9	9.5	Route 146A north –Uxbridge	Continuation intoMassachusetts
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi       Concurrency terminus

• U.S. Roads portal

• 2019 Highway Map, Rhode Island

• Numbered routes in Rhode Island
• Transportation in Providence County, Rhode Island

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