I-195 in New Bedford Went Untouched for 60 Years – Until Now

The construction work to replace New Bedford's I-195/Route 18 Interchange is going to be a major inconvenience for everyone. Area residents, tourists, delivery drivers and public safety officials who depend on the roadways to get to and from their destinations will feel the pain.

Interstate 195 is one of only a handful of ways to get east of the Acushnet River. There are a total of eight river crossings, five of which are in Acushnet. The fastest, most efficient, and most used route is I-195.

READ MORE: New Bedford I-195/Route 18 Detours

The I-195 reconstruction project puts pressure on the more than 120-year-old New Bedford-Fairhaven Bridge on Route 6, which will absorb much of the overflow when traffic on the interstate backs up.

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That is a lot to ask of the aging span, which finds itself in disrepair and closed to motor vehicle traffic at times. The overburdened Coggeshall Street Bridge, built in the 1890s, will see its share of overflow traffic.

The Interstate 195/Route 18 Interchange project is necessary and long overdue. Not much has been done to upgrade the 195 bridges since they were built some 60 years ago.

History of Interstate 195 Construction

Construction of I-195 from Westport to the New Bedford-Fairhaven border lasted from 1963 to 1965. It wasn't until 1968 that the extension from Fairhaven to Wareham began. The stretch from Fairhaven to I-495 was finished in 1974.

The construction of I-195 was a component of Urban Renewal, a federal program that led to the widespread demolition of homes, businesses, and entire neighborhoods in cities such as New Bedford and Fall River. This initiative paved the way for the construction of Route 18, resulting in the loss of more neighborhoods and countless residents in the name of progress and modernization.

The $400 million project is expected to last five years.