Providence sits at the head of Narragansett Bay where the Providence River forms, and its highways meet just west of downtown. I-95 runs north and south through the city toward Pawtucket and Boston in one direction and Cranston, Warwick and the airport in the other. I-195 branches east from I-95 across the Providence River and the Seekonk River into East Providence and on toward Fall River, while the 6-10 Connector links downtown with Route 6 toward Johnston and Route 10 toward Cranston. RI 146 heads north toward Lincoln and Worcester.
The interchange where I-95, I-195 and the 6-10 Connector come together is the busiest point in the state, and the bridges over the rivers back up every weekday. On the surface, the streets are old, narrow and often one way, laid out long before cars. Atwells Avenue runs through Federal Hill, Broad Street and Elmwood Avenue head south, North Main Street carries US 1 north toward Pawtucket, and Thayer Street, Hope Street and Blackstone Boulevard serve the East Side.
Providence Station, below the State House, has Amtrak and commuter rail service to Boston, and Kennedy Plaza downtown is the hub for RIPTA buses. T.F. Green International Airport sits a short drive south in Warwick. Brown University, the Rhode Island School of Design, Providence College, Johnson & Wales and Rhode Island College bring thousands of students' cars into the city's neighborhoods, many of which sit for weeks between trips home.
For a mobile mechanic, Providence is a city of triple-deckers, hills and tight curbs. Many homes share narrow driveways, College Hill and Federal Hill have steep streets, and the city has long restricted overnight street parking, with resident permits in some neighborhoods and parking bans during snow emergencies. Those details get sorted out before the mechanic heads over.