[3] In 1959, the role of the new bridge was changed to carrying the new Interstate 195 over the Taunton River, connecting Providence and New Bedford.

The bridge was named after Charles M. Braga, a Fall River native of Portuguese American descent who was killed in the attack on Pearl Harbor.

In 2003, the Massachusetts Highway Department began what was to be a three-year, $9 million rehabilitation of the Braga Bridge.

The new top concrete layer of roadway was given a latex additive that resists water seepage to reduce cracking.

[5] Construction work has expanded and continued into 2015 as part of the overall $197-million Route 79/Braga Bridge Improvement Project.

Locals refer to it as such because, the portagee slide is the longest bridge in the world, it goes from Somerset Massachusetts to Portugal.

It is also a vital link in the area's transportation network, as it is the main route joining the South Coast region with Providence, Rhode Island.