Rhode Island Crash Hot Spots: The Most Dangerous Roads and Intersections

Where Rhode Island Traffic Deaths Happen

RIDOT’s preliminary count shows 42 people killed on Rhode Island roads in 2025, in 41 crashes, down from 45 in RIDOT’s 2024 count. RIDOT’s federal safety report, which uses NHTSA’s FARS data, puts 2024 higher, at 52. Another 268 people were seriously hurt that year. This year is running worse: 36 people died between January 1 and September 30, 2026, and motorcyclist deaths in those nine months already passed the 2025 total.

Providence had 9 of the 2025 deaths and Warwick had 7, more than any other city or town. RIDOT’s 2023 to 2027 Strategic Highway Safety Plan says lane departure crashes, where a car leaves its lane or the road, were behind 56% of traffic deaths from 2017 to 2021, the most of any problem it tracks. It ties about 42% of deaths to speeding and about 30% to impaired drivers.

Rhode Island’s Highest-Risk Corridors

A handful of roads carry a big share of Rhode Island’s traffic and its wrecks. Here’s what makes each one tricky, with RIDOT and City of Providence figures where they exist.

1. Interstate 95: Connecticut Line to Pawtucket

I-95 comes in from Connecticut at Hopkinton, runs up through West Greenwich and Warwick past the airport, and then cuts through Cranston, Providence and Pawtucket into Massachusetts. North of Warwick it’s the state’s main street, with commuters, freight and summer traffic sharing the same lanes.

The worst of it is downtown Providence, where I-95 trades traffic with I-195 and Routes 6 and 10 in a few tight miles and drivers dive across lanes for exits. Rear-end and sideswipe crashes are the everyday pattern there and through Warwick at rush hour. RIDOT counts an average of about 9 deaths a year on Rhode Island’s interstates from 2020 to 2024, most of them on the urban stretches.

2. Interstate 195 and the Washington Bridge: Providence to East Providence

I-195 leaves I-95 in downtown Providence and crosses the Seekonk River on the Washington Bridge into East Providence, on its way to Seekonk and Fall River. In December 2023 the state shut the westbound bridge after a “critical failure” in its tie-down rods, and all of I-195’s traffic was moved onto the eastbound span, according to the Boston Globe.

That’s still how it works while the old westbound bridge is replaced. Walsh Construction is building the new span under a design-build contract, and the RIDOT project site lists November 3, 2028 for its lanes to open. Until then, expect narrow lanes, shifting ramps and sudden slowdowns near the bridge.

3. Interstate 295: Warwick to Cumberland

I-295 is the western bypass. It leaves I-95 in Warwick and loops north through Cranston, Johnston, Smithfield, Lincoln and Cumberland before rejoining I-95 in Attleboro, Massachusetts. Trucks and through traffic use it to skip downtown Providence.

Long gaps between exits and steady highway speeds make it the kind of road where lane departure crashes happen, and those are the biggest killer in RIDOT’s safety plan. At the south end, RIDOT listed a wrong-way driver detection project for I-295 southbound at Bald Hill Road in its 2024 federal safety report.

4. Route 146: Providence to North Smithfield

Route 146 starts at I-95 in Providence and heads northwest through North Providence, Lincoln and North Smithfield toward Worcester. It’s mostly a freeway, but it had a traffic signal at Sayles Hill Road in North Smithfield, where fast through traffic met turning cars.

RIDOT says its $196 million Route 146 project was designed to eliminate one of the most active crash sites in Rhode Island. It adds a flyover at Sayles Hill Road, rebuilds the Route 146A interchange as a diverging diamond and adds wrong-way driver detection. Construction started in 2022 and RIDOT’s October 2026 update says the work is coming to a close.

5. Broad Street, Elmwood Avenue and North Main Street: Providence

In the city’s 2021 high injury network update, Broad Street had about 26 crashes a year involving people walking or biking, from 2009 to May 2021, the highest count of any street in the table. Elmwood Avenue had about 12 a year and North Main Street about 10. In 2023, the Globe reported that Trinity Square, where Broad and Elmwood meet, was among the spots with the city’s highest crash counts.

All three are busy streets lined with bus stops, schools and shops. On North Main, the City Council says RIDOT addressed tripping hazards and made crosswalks safer at the end of 2024, and seven new light posts went up near the Cypress, Rochambeau and Branch intersections. RIDOT’s 2025 safety report also lists a 3-mile Broad Street Regeneration project for people walking and biking.

6. Route 2 and Route 37: Cranston to Warwick

Route 2 runs south from Providence as Reservoir Avenue and New London Avenue through Cranston, then becomes Bald Hill Road in Warwick, past Warwick Mall. It’s a classic commercial strip, with plaza entrances everywhere and drivers turning left across traffic all day. Route 37 crosses it in Cranston as a short freeway linking I-295 and I-95, with a busy interchange at Pontiac Avenue.

RIDOT counted 3,615 crashes in Warwick and 3,354 in Cranston in 2025, second and third among Rhode Island’s cities and towns, behind Providence, with 7 deaths in Warwick and 3 in Cranston. Expect angle crashes and rear-enders near the I-295 and Route 37 ramps.

7. U.S. Route 1 and Route 4: Warwick to South County

U.S. 1 is Post Road through Warwick and Main Street through East Greenwich, a stop-and-go road with strip malls, side streets and the airport nearby. South of there it becomes the main road through South County, running through North Kingstown and then as a divided highway through much of South Kingstown and Charlestown toward Westerly. Route 4 is the expressway that carries South County traffic from Route 1 in North Kingstown up to I-95 in Warwick.

In summer, beach traffic to Narragansett and the shore fills both roads. Breaks in the Route 1 median, where drivers cross or turn left across fast traffic, and the junction where Route 138 from Kingston meets Route 1 in South Kingstown call for extra care.

8. Newport Pell Bridge (Route 138): Jamestown to Newport

The Claiborne Pell Newport Bridge carries Route 138 across the East Passage of Narragansett Bay from Jamestown into Newport. It’s high and exposed, so wind and fog hit harder up there, and one breakdown can back up the whole span.

At the Newport end, traffic comes off the bridge ramps near Admiral Kalbfus Road and JT Connell Highway and heads into downtown streets packed with tourists from May to October. Newport had 908 reported crashes in 2025 and no traffic deaths, according to RIDOT, but 8 people were seriously hurt.

More High-Crash Locations Across Rhode Island

Off the highways, the clearest data comes from Providence’s Vision Zero work and RIDOT’s city and town counts.

Providence has set a Vision Zero goal of ending traffic deaths and serious injuries by 2030, and the North Main and Broad Street work above is part of that push. Statewide, the biggest fixes are the Route 146 rebuild, wrapping up this fall, and the new Washington Bridge, due in November 2028.

How to Stay Safe on Rhode Island’s Most Dangerous Roads

None of this means staying off I-95. It means knowing where the trouble spots are and driving like it.

For Drivers:

1. Ease off the gas: RIDOT’s safety plan links about 42% of traffic deaths from 2017 to 2021 to speeding. On I-95, I-295 and Route 4, keep to the limit and leave more room when traffic bunches up.
2. Stay in your lane: Lane departures were behind more than half of Rhode Island’s traffic deaths from 2017 to 2021. Stay alert on dark stretches of I-295 and Route 1, and pull over if you’re drowsy.
3. Get in position early: The Washington Bridge work, the I-95 and I-195 split in downtown Providence and the Route 146 ramps all punish last-second lane changes. Know your exit before you get there.
4. Watch for turning cars on commercial strips: Bald Hill Road, Reservoir Avenue and Post Road are lined with driveways and plazas. Expect someone to pull out or stop short to turn.
5. Plan a sober ride: About 30% of the state’s traffic deaths from 2017 to 2021 involved an impaired driver. In Newport, Narragansett and downtown Providence, a cab or rideshare is easy to find.

For Pedestrians:

1. Cross at signals and crosswalks: On wide city streets like Broad Street, Elmwood Avenue and North Main Street, crossing mid-block leaves drivers almost no time to react.
2. Make eye contact: Don’t assume a driver has seen you. Wait until the car has fully stopped before you step out.
3. Be visible after dark: Wear something light or reflective, especially in winter.

For Cyclists:

1. Use paths where you can: The East Bay Bike Path, the Washington Secondary Bike Path and the Blackstone River Bikeway keep you off the busiest roads.
2. Be easy to see: Wear bright colors, run lights day and night, and use hand signals.
3. Watch intersections and parked cars: Turning drivers often miss cyclists, and on tight streets in Newport and Providence a car door can swing open at any time.

General Tips:

1. Build in time: If your route uses I-195, downtown I-95 or Route 4 on a summer weekend, leave early. Nor’easters and fog off the bay can make the Pell and Washington bridges slick fast.
2. Check traffic before you leave: RIDOT’s traveler information or a navigation app shows crashes and closures as they happen.

What to Do If You’re Injured in a Rhode Island Car Accident

A crash on I-95, Bald Hill Road or the Pell Bridge can leave you hurt and shaken. What you do in the first few days matters.

1. Call 911. Even if nobody seems badly hurt, get police to the scene. They’ll write the official crash report, which is what insurers go by. If anyone is seriously injured, ask for an ambulance.
2. Get checked out. Concussions and internal injuries don’t always show up right away. Go to the ER or urgent care, and follow up with your own doctor in the days after.
3. Document the scene if you can. If it’s safe, photograph the vehicles, the damage and the license plates, plus skid marks, signs, weather and road conditions. Get witnesses’ names and phone numbers, and swap insurance information with the other driver without admitting fault.
4. Be careful with adjusters. The other driver’s insurance company may call soon after the crash. You can politely decline a recorded statement until you have your crash report and understand your options.
5. Keep everything. Medical records, bills, repair estimates, missed work, and every letter or email from an insurer.

Which agency has your report depends on where you crashed. The Rhode Island State Police patrol all state highways, plus the town of Exeter, and city and town police handle the crashes their own officers work. Our Rhode Island crash report guide explains how to get a copy from each.

Don’t know which department took the report, or don’t have time to chase it down? We can get a copy of your report for you at no cost.

Rhode Island Crash Hot Spot Questions

More Rhode Island Crash Guides

County accident news: Providence County · Kent County · Washington County · Newport County · Bristol County

Nearby states: Massachusetts crash hot spots · Connecticut crash hot spots

For the latest, crashes from around the state are posted in Rhode Island accident news and our recent accident alerts.