Route 2 starts at US 1 in Charlestown, which is also the southern terminus of Route 112. Route 2 and Route 112 continue north, and Route 2 splits off to the northeast before intersecting with Route 138. Continuing in a northeast direction, Route 2 has a short concurrency with Route 102 in North Kingstown. It then turns to the north and parallels Route 4 until reaching Interstate 95. Route 2 passes the eastern terminus of Route 3 before reaching an interchange with Interstate 295. It continues through downtown Cranston and has interchanges with Route 37 and Route 10 before reaching its northern terminus at US 1 slightly inside the city line of Providence. Route 2 is a heavily traveled highway in Cranston and Warwick as it is a major commercial corridor.
For a brief time during the construction of the Route 10 freeway, Route 2 left Reservoir Avenue in Cranston and turned north onto the current Route 10 freeway, ending at the Olneyville exit.