Louisiana gets $6 billion over five years for roads and bridges

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Louisiana gets a taste of the $312 billion directed at rebuilding America’s transportation infrastructure, including $110 billion for roads and bridges. Each state gets a certain amount dictated by a funding formula. The money goes to the state for the governor, state Department of Transportation & Development and the Legislature to decide how to spend. The state will work with metropolitan planning organizations around the state to identify transportation needs and priorities, Cassidy said.

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“Just off the top of your head you could list the five biggest priorities for our state and whether it’s number one or number five we would agree on all five,” Cassidy said.

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He then began ticking off the five on his fingers: a new Interstate 10 bridge over the Calcasieu River in Lake Charles; expanding the I-10 bridge in Baton Rouge or building another bridge across the Mississippi River; broadening Interstate 12 to six lanes across the Florida and North Shore parishes; extending Interstate 49 south from Lafayette through the bayou country to New Orleans; and completing I-49 from Shreveport to Arkansas.

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Cassidy said he also got authorization for an Interstate 14 passing east to west through central Louisiana. Back in 2005, plans were drawn to run I-14 from Fort Stockton in far west Texas through central Texas between Waco and Austin past the U.S. Army bases in Leesville to Alexandria to Natchez, then through Mississippi and Alabama to Augusta, Ga.

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