$60 Million Federal Grant To Fix Notorious I-10 Bottleneck In Baton Rouge
A $60 million federal grant will improve a I-10 traffic issue in Baton Rouge that every commuter has dreaded dealing with for years.
Over the next two years, drivers who frequent I-10 near the Mississippi River bridge in Baton Rouge will notice major improvements—specifically with the bottleneck issue caused by the Washington Street exit.
According to WAFB, Congressman Garret Graves made the announcement that federal money for improvements will go toward establishing a new left exit for Washington Street after the current exit is closed down.
We made a commitment to get this bottleneck addressed and are excited that the resources are finally in place to fix this problem. This is a key step to solving some of the worse traffic in the nation. For too long, the people of South Louisiana have had to settle for talk. Today, we are getting action.
As of right now, the exit is the "only place in the nation where the interstate drops down to one lane" and this fix will eliminate that issue.
The money is actually going to improvements in the Lafayette area, but since state money has already been allocated to those projects the excess is being used in Baton Rouge for the bottleneck issue.
Lafayette's improvements include work at the I-10/I-49 interchange, adding a new lane, and "replacing pavement that hasn't been touched since 1960."
Let's just say the improvements in both cities are long overdue.
[via WAFB]
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