NORTH KINGSTOWN, R.I. (WPRI) – There was no shortage of trucks entering the new Wickford Village roundabout Tuesday. And while most made it through, some struggled, including a heavy-duty truck that had to reverse out of the intersection.
The Rhode Island Department of Transportation (RIDOT) said the roundabout has been under construction since Labor Day weekend, but a truck ban began last week as the project entered its final phase.
A RIPTA bus appears to be stuck in the Wickford Junction roundabout. (Courtesy: Nick Kapuscinski)
Yet over the weekend, a photo surfaced on social media showing what appeared to be a RIPTA bus stuck in the roundabout.
“Unfortunately, the driver accidentally deviated from the approved detour,” Rhode Island Public Transit Authority (RIPTA) spokesperson Cristy Raposo Perry wrote in an email to 12 News.
North Kingstown police told 12 News they were never called to help that bus.
“Someone posts something online and then it grows like wildfire,” Police Captain Don Barrington said. “But we haven’t had any calls for service down there.”
RIDOT told 12 News that an around-the-clock truck ban at the intersection is supposed to last until Oct. 28, but 12 News crews spotted a sign on Post Road that appeared to suggest the truck ban lasts from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m.
LED sign on Post Road that cycles through the messages “Brown St. truck detour,” “6 a.m. to 9 p.m.,” and “Brown St. open for business.”
North Kingstown police said that the sign, which belongs to RIDOT, was set up to indicate that shops on Brown Street in Wickford Village remain open during the truck ban.
North Kingstown police also said they’ve been allowing large vehicles to use the intersection when necessary.
“Businesses are open in Wickford, so if they get a delivery, the trucks are able to go down [the roundabout] during the business day,” Barrington explained. “In the evening, they are not going down that, they detour around.”
While RIDOT and North Kingstown police seem to have different approaches to truck ban enforcement, both assured 12 News that once construction wraps up at the end of October, trucks should not have a problem entering or exiting the roundabout.
“The whole point is for the trucks to slightly drive over the middle of the rotary and be able to make that turn,” said Buttercup Flower and Wine Bar owner Lauren Scowcroft, whose small business is just feet away from the roundabout.
She was initially against the new traffic pattern, but said she has since come around.
“Just give it a chance,” she said. “I think it’ll all work out.”
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