Lafayette, St. Martin Stretch Of I-10 Widening Underway

The Department of Transportation has broken ground on a project to widen a 7 mile section of Interstate 10 from I-49 to the Atchafalaya Basin.

DOTD Secretary Shawn Wilson says they are replacing the original pavement and widening it to three lanes. He says this will increase the interstate’s capacity for the 60,000 people who drive this stretch of highway every day.

“I’m very excited to see this progress. For a chance Louisiana is getting in front of the congestion and gridlock that could occur on interstates,” Wilson said.

Wilson says the $124 million project is funded through state dollars and federal grant known as FASTLANE.

He says this widening project should alleviate congestion in the Lafayette area and lead to a smoother ride for a very important highway.

“I-10 is an internationally significant corridor that moves freight from Long Beach, California, all the way down to Miami, and it something that is going to continue to grow,” Wilson said.

Wilson says construction will begin in May, and the project is expected to take two years to complete.

“We’re going to ensure that there’s two lanes of traffic at all times in each direction with minimal closures because of critical construction points in the phasing of this project,” Wilson said.