Meeting discusses future of new bridge over the Mississippi River

BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) - Members of the Capital Area Road and Bridge District met Monday, Sept. 26, to discuss the latest developments on plans for a new bridge over the Mississippi River.

A new study revealed about 126,000 cars and trucks cross the current I-10 Bridge each day, and around 80% of those drivers are local, according to a representative from Atlas Technical Consultants.

A new bridge is expected to carry about 24,000 a day. Leaders say this research emphasizes the impact of a new bridge on the Capital Region.

“We saw a need to validate for the public effective progress, and I think this summarizes what that looks like,” said DOTD Secretary Shawn Wilson.

One takeaway from the study revealed that a new bridge would save more than 1 million hours of travel time per year.

“When we say there’s a positive benefit to the whole network, this is what we’re referring to,” said Kara Moore with Atlas.

A decision has not been made about the location of the potential bridge, but officials have chosen three options within Iberville Parish to serve as a possible site.

If the federal agency in charge signs off on the project, they could narrow down a decision by the summer of 2024.

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