RIDOT Posts Highway Message “Thank You, Director Alviti, You Will Be Missed”
GoLocalProv News Team
RIDOT Posts Highway Message “Thank You, Director Alviti, You Will Be Missed”
On Rhode Island’s highway message boards across the state, the Rhode Island Department of Transportation posted a message on Thursday stating, “Thank You, Director Alviti, You Will Be Missed.”
The message comes after the embattled director of RIDOT leaves the agency after more than a decade. Governor Dan McKee announced Alviti's departure in early February.
The Washington Bridge failure took place under his tenure.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTAlviti has left a legacy of distrust and cronyism that dates back to far before the failure of the Washington Bridge in December of 2023, but stretches back years earlier.
Berating the public at public meetings to covering up contamination in the Olneyville neighborhood in Providence as part of the 6/10 project, Alviti's tenure has been marred by significant missteps.
Alviti repeatedly defended the 6/10 contractor, Barletta Heavy Machine, who, after a four-year GoLocal investigation, ultimately paid $12.5 million in settlement payments with federal and state prosecutors.
One top manager for the company pleaded guilty to federal and state charges.
RIDOT Messaging
According to RIDOT spokesman Charles St. Martin, “The message boards are operated by our Transportation Management Center operators. They receive direction from different divisions of RIDOT depending on the message.”
By the afternoon, the Alviti message appeared to have been removed from the message boards.
Threats Going Out the Door
“To be clear, I was not fired, nor was I asked to resign,” said Alviti in a statement on Thursday. “This decision has nothing to do with the Washington Bridge.”
Alviti then threatened anyone who says otherwise.
“Rest assured, I will be paying close attention between now and August to everything that is said publicly about this,” said Alviti. “If anyone lies or misrepresents the facts for personal gain, they will hear from me—forcefully."
Alviti’s statements come almost exactly ten years after he got in the face of a constituent at a public meeting.
As GoLocal reported in 2016:
Rhode Island DOT Director Peter Alviti is caught on video letting loose at an audience member at a public hearing Monday night who asked a question about alternatives to the 6/10 Connector project.