First look at Sharon Weston Broome's proposed roads tax

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The first look at Mayor Sharon Weston Broome's proposed Better Transportation and Roads tax shows 43 projects costing $540 million to widen roads, to create better traffic light synchronization and to build sidewalks and subsurface drainage.

Metro Council members will vote Wednesday afternoon on whether to introduce Broome's BTR tax plan for a future debate in September about placing it on the November ballot. Though Broome's desire for the tax proposal became public last week, Wednesday afternoon was the first time the list of projects became available.

The city-parish is planning 23 projects to expand the capacity of well-traversed roads. Combined, those projects are estimated to cost $361 million, with $30 million going toward "regional infrastructure improvements."

Some identified include Perkins Road between Pecue Lane and Siegen Lane; Wax Road and Magnolia Bridge between Sullivan Road and Greenwell Springs; Mickens Road between Hooper Road and Lanier Drive; Tiger Bend Road from Jones Creek Road to Antioch Road; Jefferson Highway at the Bluebonnet Boulevard and Corporate Boulevard intersections; and Lee Drive between Highland Road and Perkins Road.

In other places, the city-parish has seven projects planned to make existing corridors easier to travel with light synchronization, sidewalks and bike paths. The projects should cost $100 million.

Some of the places identified for those projects include Groom Road between La. 19 and Plank Road; Florida Boulevard; Terrace Avenue; and College Drive.

The city-parish also has identified 11 projects that will repair roads, ditches, lights, curbs, landscaping and sidewalks. The projects are expected to cost $40 million.

Among those are Elm Grove Garden sidewalks between Blount Roud and Rosenwald Road; Mullen Drive sidewalks from Honey Drive to Perkins Road; Sherwood Forest Boulevard sidewalks from Coursey Boulevard to I-12 west and multiuse paths from I-12 to Old Hammond Highway; a South Harrell's Ferry Road multiuse path from O'Neal Lane to Woodlake Drive; and 72nd Street sidewalks between Scenic Highway and Plank Road.

The city-parish is also asking to spend $35 million on traffic light signal upgrades and fiber connections for better synchronization, along with $5 million to improve advanced traffic management.

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