By Bruce Landis
Providence Journal photo / Frieda Squires
An electronic toll collector was installed several weeks ago on the Portsmouth side of the Sakonnet River Bridge.
PROVIDENCE -- U.S. District Judge Ronald R. Lagueux refused to grant the Town of Portsmouth a court order it sought to block the collection of tolls on the Sakonnet River Bridge.David Darlington, the chairman of the Turnpike and Bridge Authority, said the agency will now continue to move toward instituting tolls on the bridge, where it is installing equipment to collect the tolls electronically.
The town had asked for a temporary injunction, which could have blocked the authority from instituting tolls at least until the case is argued based on evidence. That can take months.