BATON ROUGE, La. – Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development (DOTD) Interim Secretary Sherri LeBas led a ceremony today to mark the completion of the Ambassador Caffery Parkway South Extension from Lafayette to just south of Broussard.

 “The new Ambassador Caffery extension will provide much-needed relief to the more than 47,000 people who travel the existing Ambassador Caffery Parkway each day, and the more than 40,000 people who travel on U.S. 90 just south of Broussard,” said LeBas. “Additionally, this $43.9 million project will not only help drivers’ commute-times but will foster economic development for the area.”

The new roadway extends Ambassador Caffery Parkway (La. 3073) by approximately six miles from Verot School Road (La. 339) in Lafayette to U.S. 90 just south of Broussard. It consists of a four-lane boulevard with a raised grass median and turn lanes at major intersections along the route. 

Currently, 47,492 people travel on Ambassador Caffery Parkway each day, and 40,247 people travel on U.S. 90 just south of Broussard. U.S. 90 is used by residents who commute from Broussard to Lafayette for work. The completion of the extension of Ambassador Caffery will help to ease congestion along this heavily-traveled corridor by providing an alternative route, in addition to providing an alternative route during hurricane evacuations or any incidents that may require redirecting traffic to routes other than U.S. 90 or U.S. 167.

Construction on the project began in late fall 2007 and will be completed nearly a year ahead of schedule. Gilchrist Construction Co. of Alexandria was the contractor for the $43.9 million project, and the DOTD project engineer was Jeff Faust.

-30-

www.dotd.la.gov