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Rhode Island's new Washington Bridge lacks suicide prevention barriers despite known history of suicides from the old bridge.

The Samaritans of Rhode Island are urging the state to include suicide prevention measures in all transportation infrastructure projects.

They recommend incorporating barriers, access deterrents, and vertical design elements in new and existing structures.

The omission of these measures from the $427 million Washington Bridge project is criticized as a conscious choice, not an oversight.

The Samaritans highlight the Barriers to Suicide Act of 2025 as a national precedent for integrating suicide prevention in infrastructure planning.

Some bridges carry more than cars – they carry the weight of silence, despair and missed ch

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