Oversight Hearing on RIDOT Bridge Failure on Monday, Chair Says “We Can’t Take Action”
Monday, February 12, 2024
A joint meeting of the House Committee on Oversight and the Senate Committee on Rules, Government Ethics, and Oversight is scheduled for Monday afternoon to explore the ongoing crisis on the Washington Bridge, the causes of its failure, and plans for its future.
The hearing is supposed to begin at 3 PM in Room 35 on the first floor of the State House and is viewable online.
But don’t expect this hearing to lead to much.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLAST“We can’t take any action — all we can do is expose. We don’t have any disciplinary [authority] to hire or fire, like any oversight meeting,” said House Oversight Committee Chair Rep. Patricia Serpa, in a lengthy interview with GoLocal. Serpa, a Democrat, represents District 27 and parts of West Warwick, Coventry, and Warwick.
Both Senate President Dominick Ruggerio and House Speaker Joe Shekarchi are close political allies to Rhode Island Department of Transportation director Peter Alviti.
Ruggerio and Alviti worked together for the Laborers International union for 15 years. And Shekarchi was critical to Alviti being appointed to the position. Shekarchi served as chair of former Governor Gina Raimondo’s transition committee after she was first elected in 2014. Alviti has served as RIDOT director since 2015.
The legislature claims this hearing is intended to explore the ongoing crisis on the Washington Bridge, the causes of its failure, and plans for its future.
The other legislator co-chairing the hearing is Senate Rules, Government Ethics and Oversight Committee Chair Sen. Mark McKenney (D-Dist. 30, Warwick).
RIDOT Bridge Failure
The Washington Bridge, which spans the Seekonk River on the Interstate 195 corridor, was abruptly closed down on December 11, 2023 due to a critical failure of some bridge components.
The committees are expected to hear testimony from Director of Transportation Peter Alviti, Senior Deputy Chief of Staff, Joseph Almond, who was assigned to monitor the Department of Transportation’s response to the crisis, and Jeffrey Klein, director of structural engineering for Vanasse Hangen Brustlin, the design consultant on the bridge repair project that was underway when the problem was discovered.
The testimony will include a presentation on the closure of the westbound side of the bridge, including the timeline and decision-making process of the closure, the department’s response to the closure, and the next steps.
There is an ongoing investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice. As GoLocal reported on Friday, that investigation has expanded as a growing number have received demand letters.
RIDOT under Alviti has been the subject of two federal investigations in the past three years. The other was tied to the dumping of contaminated soil next to homes in Olneyville. That led the contractor Barletta Heavy Division to sign a nonprosecution agreement with the Justice Department and pay $1.5 million. Barletta is also the lead contractor on the Washington Bridge.
Serpa on Oversight Committee's History
When asked what to expect from the hearing, Serpa said, "I have a policy person working with the Governor’s office. The Governor has assured me personally that we’ll get anything we need — he wants to be as open and transparent about this as we expect him to be. He assured me of that personally. Honestly, what that’s going to look like, I don’t know."
"Maybe there are some documents [we're] getting that you guys haven’t seen yet. We do have questions, and [one] thing the public seems most concerned about is the length of time. My suspicion is that this bridge is going to be replaced. Totally replaced. I don’t think repairs are going to work," said Serpa.
"As I said, we can’t take action. All we can do is expose the symptoms. This broken bridge is a symptom. We have to get to the root, or the Director has to get to the root, of the cause. We inspect our bridges on a regular basis. We inspected it in July and we had no idea there was a broken pin — supposedly. So how comprehensive are our bridge inspections? Who does them? Are they comprehensive? Do we need to enhance the inspection process? How many people sign off on these inspections? How many eyes look at them? How efficient are they? How confident can we be in all of our bridges?" said Serpa.
Has Anything Ever Come of an Oversight Hearing?
"In the past with UHIP, we’ve had directors fired. You go back to Liz Roberts — she was fired. She was asked to step down. She was fired and had to be replaced. You had...DCYF Director [Trista Piccola]. She left, and we finally found a replacement for her. I think those departments are running a little bit better,' said Serpa.
"We don’t know what we don’t know. I don’t think this oversight hearing is going to be the big band aid that answers all the questions, solves all the problems. Out of this hearing, I want the public to be reassured that fixes will be put in place. They’re going to look at the process, look at these inspections, look at the quality and I think the public wants some assurance this won’t happen again. We pay Director Alviti to be director. He is supposed to oversee all the inspections, all the construction — I mean the buck does stop with him, no doubt about it," said Serpa."
Regarding the state (re)awarding the contract to medical transportation company MTM, after oversight hearings regarding their poor performance, Serpa defended the committee's effort.
"There’s only two companies in the state — in the country — that perform that service. That’s a great point to bring up. When we had all those problems with MTM and they got the contract, Director Britto and that office came to oversight and they had a whole laundry list of safeguards they were putting in place, more frequent checks on service, making it easier to file a complaint, following up on complaints. In fact, they’re on my agenda to come in about how that new contract is working," said Serpa.
"I think that Directors take oversight seriously. I know through the political grapevine that they don’t particularly look forward to appearing before oversight because it's awfully uncomfortable for them. We will praise them and acknowledge [any] success, but I know they don’t like appearing before oversight. And they know we’re going to follow up. This will only be the first hearing on the bridge. We know we need [to get] all of the reports from the federal government. There’s not one of us on that committee who has expertise in bridge building nor should we be expected to," Serpa added.
"Our goal is the process. What went wrong? Clearly, there were huge missteps along the way. How could so many people have blinders on? Is it one person who goes down and inspects the belly of the bridge? Is it just one inspector? How many eyes missed that alleged, well not alleged, broken pin — how many eyes missed it?" said Serpa.
When asked what would happen if Alviti lies before the committee, Serpa said, "We swear them in. We know that Directors have lied in the past. We’ve never had anyone take an oath. We expect them to be professional, truthful, and forthcoming. If Director Alviti is lying about the situation, I’m sure the federal government is going to uncover it. If we have mistakenly paid them — well, not mistakenly, I think that’s the wrong way to put it — if we’ve been reimbursed for work not performed, I’m sure they’re going to look at the inspection reports."
Regarding the report on Washington Bridge unveiled by GoLocal, Serpa said she believes it will come up at the hearing.
"I suspect that we will," said Serpa.
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