US Department of Transportation provides loan for construction of LA-1/LA-415 connector bridge
BATON ROUGE – The United States DoT announced a loan for the Louisiana DOTD to fund a bridge connecting LA-1 and LA-415, making both roads accessible without the need to get on the Interstate.
The 2.6-mile roadway would be four lanes and include bridges over the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway.
West Baton Rouge Parish President, Riley “Peewee” Berthelot, said he has been pushing for this project since he took office in the early 2000s. Discussions about the proposed roadway have been ongoing for decades.
“When West Baton Rouge made their master plan in 1962, they had a bridge at the 415 and it was going to head south after that. And then in 1989 the state DOTD did a feasibility study… I picked it up in 2002 and we started doing some work on it and stuff,” said Berthelot.
“The project is critical to improving resiliency and enhancing safety by providing a direct connection and evacuation route for areas south of I-10,” said USDOT Deputy Transportation Secretary Polly Trottenberg. “The new access west of LA 1 will also support regional economic growth for residents and businesses in this rural area.”
Construction on the LA 415 connector project is anticipated to start in late 2025 or early 2026. The project is projected to reach substantial completion in late 2028.