La. 1 toll bridge ready for traffic
A new toll bridge over Bayou Lafourche in Leeville opens Tuesday, marking the first phase of the $1.4 billion Louisiana Highway 1 Expressway. The project ultimately will consist of 19 miles of new elevated roadway from Golden Meadow to the Gulf of Mexico. (Rendering courtesy Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development)
The joint venture of Traylor Bros/Massman Construction began construction on the project in 2007.
“The opening brings a sense of tremendous community accomplishment in that we are addressing a very critical vulnerability in our ability to access the Gulf of Mexico,” said Henri Boulet, executive director of the La. 1 Coalition, which has worked for more than a decade to replace the highway.
“We feel the road, by providing access to 18 percent of the nation’s daily crude oil needs, … serves as national, critical energy infrastructure,” Boulet said.
The new bridge uses the GeauxPass, a new statewide open-road toll tag system that allows drivers to pay tolls without slowing or stopping at cash toll booths.
Drivers can use the GeauxPass on the La. 1 bridge and the Crescent City Connection. Drivers may also make single-trip toll payments at designated retailers along the La. 1 corridor.
The toll is part of a creative funding solution for the La. 1 bridge that will raise enough money to allow the state to retire in 31 years a combination of $136 million in revenue bonds and a federal Transportation Infrastructure Finance Innovation Act loan that helped finance the project, Boulet said.
Also covering the cost of the $358-million first phase is $144 million from the state and $78 million from the federal government.
“The tolls were central to the project,” Boulet said.
The Leeville bridge itself costs $161 million, while $141 million will cover the construction of six miles of elevated La. 1 roadway between Leeville and Port Fourchon, currently under way and scheduled for completion in 2011.
The bridge is built to withstand a 100-year storm event, with pilings extending 100 feet into the ground, and meets U.S. Coast Guard clearance regulations of 73 feet.
“It should allow for smoother transportation, safer and more cost effective,” Boulet said.
The open-road tolling system will operate with an electronic, overhead gantry that will automatically deduct the toll from prepaid accounts by reading transponders attached to drivers’ windshields.
The state had sold about 1,000 GeauxPass transponders as of late June, and will start charging tolls July 27, two days after the Grand Isle Tarpon Rodeo, said Mark Lambert, spokesman for the state Department of Transportation and Development. Only southbound travelers will be charged.
Open-road tolling is noted for its benefits of reducing emissions, conserving fuel and easing traffic congestion.
Tolls will range from $2.50 for two-axle vehicles to $12 for six-axle trucks, with discounted rates for Grand Isle and Port Fourchon residents.
Transponders are sold for one-time fees of $12.50 for non-removable stickers and $32 for removable plastic cases.
The toll bridge replaces the 37-year-old mechanical lift bridge, which typically stops road traffic up to 20 times a day to accommodate passing shrimp boats and tugs in the bayou.
Boulet said the mechanical lift bridge will be torn down over the next 120 days without harming the environment.
The coalition is still securing funding for the remaining phases of the 19-mile project, which addresses a four-lane section from Larose to U.S. Highway 90, portions of La. 1 from Golden Meadow south to Leeville, upgrades at Grand Isle, and additional lanes from Golden Meadow south to the port. The work is to be completed in three phases at a total cost of about $1 billion.
