DOTD announces LA 1 update
Tuesday, March 12, 2019 at 9:19:33 AM
West Baton Rouge Parish- Today, the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development announced the latest update on the LA 1 Intracoastal Bridge joint repairs. Over the weekend, crews completed the joints they were repairing and removed all of the steel plates from the main travel lanes, with the only remaining plates covering the joints between the northbound lanes.

Beginning today, Tuesday, March 12, the plates were installed once again with rubberized road ramps placed on them. The rubberized ramps assist motorists with a smoother transition on and off the plates, which are being used to cover the bridge joints that were removed and to reduce congestion created by travelers slowing down to approach the plates. The steel plates have been placed to avoid lane closures and keep two lanes open during peak travel times.

Last week DOTD and the contractor, JB James Construction, announced plans to begin implementing traffic mitigation measures on the Intracoastal Bridge to assist with a smoother transition and address traffic congestion. These measures include:

• A width reduction on the steel plates covering the holes in order to contain the plates to one travel lane. This will allow drivers to travel in one lane without having to travel over the plates.

• Offering the contractor an extra shift of work time previously not available on Sundays so they can work with a lane closed from 7 p.m. Saturday night until 4 a.m. Monday morning.

• Limiting the number of joints that can be removed at one time to six until we determine the impact of the changes.

Crews are working on the joints on the northbound side of LA 1. Alternating lane closures will continue nightly from 7 p.m. to 4 a.m.

Currently, six joints have been completed out of the 57 that will be replaced along this stretch. This bridge repair project began in February. The department will release an estimated completion time as the project proceeds under the parameters that are being implemented.

Call 511 or visit 511la.org for additional travel information. Out-of-state travelers may call 1-888-ROAD-511 (1-888-762-3511). Motorists may also monitor the LA DOTD website at http://wwwsp.dotd.la.gov, by selecting MYDOTD, or by visiting the DOTD Facebook and Twitter pages.