The Massachusetts Department of Transportation retained Pare to replace the Washington Street Bridge over Route 9 and to rehabilitate retaining walls along Route 9. Pare’s services included design of a 150-foot-long, 2-span, continuous plate girder super-structure; replacement of the center bridge pier with a new pile-supported pier to resist seismic loads; rehabilitation of the existing abutments; and rehabilitation of approximately 1,200 feet of stone masonry retaining walls.

The bridge is located in an historic district, so attention to aesthetic detail and coordination with local historic agencies was required. Roadway design work included modifications to the vertical roadway alignment to improve clearances and drainage, and design of utility relocations.

Due to the heavy volume of traffic on both Route 9 and Washington Street, the project was constructed in phases to maintain two-way traffic on both roadways. Two lanes of traffic were maintained in each direction on Route 9 for most of the construction period.