Heads up, travelers!

Road work will impact I-12/I-59 interchange at Slidell Thursday (source: Times-Picayune)

This is what I live for...

Here's the gist of it - Thursday, September 8, 2011:

• I-12 EAST: Right lane closed at mile marker 85.5 - Left lane open but expect delays
• I-59 SOUTH: The ramp to I-10 eastbound will be CLOSED.

If you want to get to eastbound I-10 from I-59, the best way is to take the exit to I-10 WEST and turn around at one of the Slidell interchanges. I suggest Exit 265, Business US 190 - it's not quite as congested as Gause (US 190).

Closures start at 9 am and are expected to last til 2 pm.

LA 1088/I-12 interchange contract to be awarded this month

NOLA.com - Contract to be awarded this month for new I-12 interchange near Mandeville

It's about damn time, coming from someone who lives within walking distance of the area where roadwork will commence. We've been waiting for this interchange to be built for my entire life, it seems. It's always been pushed back. Just to keep waiting, and waiting, and waiting...

Now is the time. I ranted against a school being built on 1088 between I-12 and LA 36 back in February because of the lack of an interchange and the potential for a traffic jam right in front of my house. Of course, who listens to me? They opened it anyway. At least traffic's not so bad... yet.

Once they begin work on the interchange, it will become a nightmare. Why? Because they'll be improving LA 1088 to a divided highway in the process. This is still a good thing, as the added capacity for LA 1088 will be needed. It's not just for the locals - traffic in Mandeville proper will be able to shave about six miles from an eastbound trip on the Interstate over the current interchange at LA 59. It'll relieve that interchange of some traffic from the south and from the north (connecting to I-12 from LA 1088 shaves even more mileage over LA 36 West and LA 59 south to I-12 - though far fewer people live on parts of LA 36 that would benefit, and no one lives on that part of 1088 yet.) Problem is, traffic at that interchange is insane, and even 1/4 of that traffic would choke a two-lane highway.

But the process of widening 1088 would choke things up for a while even if they left the existing two-lane carriageway alone while they built one parallel.

Still, gripes aside, this is something that has been needed in the worst way for years and will relieve traffic all over the extended Mandeville area. Plus, it's an interchange I could photograph by walking... can't wait for that opportunity.

So, how will they fund I-49 South?

The Advocate (Acadiana Bureau) - I-49 task force debates funding

It's about time people started to try to figure out how to fund the thing, you know. So far, it's looking like tolls could be on the table. (Gack.) Obviously, there's also a need to obtain more support from the Legislature and Congress, to push the corridor as more of a priority.

First things first - tolls won't work. Ever. Not in Acadiana. The traffic volumes might be worth an Interstate, but they'll never support a toll road, especially in a part of the state that has none currently. The locals and the sugarcane farmers hate the idea of tolls. Tolling would be a non-starter. They could exempt some traffic from the tolls, but then that defeats the purpose of tolling the thing in the first place... especially if they exempt agricultural vehicles.

Still, they're considering multiple options. Good for them - you can't count on anything as a sole way to fund a project as huge as the I-49 southern extension.

Another option floated by the task force would be special tax districts along the corridor and an extra tax on gasoline along the route. I see many potholes in that approach. The most significant is that the "special tax district" would have to be statewide, otherwise people would start to dodge it by fueling in jurisdictions outside the tax district. I know I would. I don't know about you, but I can make it from Lafayette to New Orleans via the current US 90 corridor on about half a tank, and that's in an early 90's midsize Buick. My Civic could make the trip on less. That means I can gas up in Lake Charles, Alexandria, Baton Rouge or Slidell and dodge fueling on the corridor entirely. (Either that, or I could take I-10.)

Oops, I said that out loud. That's another problem with any usage- or consumption-based tax along the corridor, that being that I-10 is shorter, and in conjunction with I-12 is shorter still. With many tollways, you can get traffic that is simply aiming to go through the tolled route as well as the traffic that has to actually go somewhere along the toll road, and the other options suck as far as traffic or expediency goes. (See: Pennsylvania Turnpike.) The fact that Future I-49 is already bypassed by a superior routing for traffic bound for points east and west means that you don't get that traffic that would be going to/from, say, Houston or Biloxi (unless they originate/end locally), and therefore you can't get toll money from them.

And even then, there's a (State) Constitutional ban that stops local entities from levying a gasoline tax. It'd take legislative action to override that problem, and the Legislature's never liked local-option gas taxes. That sure as hell ain't changing with Guv'nuh Bobby "No Taxes EVAR!!1" Jindal pulling the strings.

These are all inventive options, mind you, but the old standby is still out there: state and federal funding. It's how we normally make Interstates around here. The only problem with that option currently is that the state is damn near broke, considering all the cuts the Governor is saying we need to make to state programs. The Feds ain't in much better shape, multiple stimuli and bailouts on demand aside.

All that said, work is still proceeding slowly along the corridor. Several overpasses built in St. Mary and Iberia Parishes over the past decade are bringing the corridor closer to Interstate standards. An overpass is currently being built at LA 675 in Iberia Parish, and stim funding is paying for an interchange to be built elsewhere in Iberia. The governor's proposed putting about $10 million in the budget for another overpass in St. Mary. These areas aren't the real hangup - the real hangup that I've seen so far from traveling the highway would be the area from Raceland east to about Marrero, covering Des Allemands, Paradis, Boutte and other places along that routing. Some of it is so cramped, bypassing part of the route may be inevitable - which will definitely make the state coffers bleed as a lot of it would need to be elevated.

In all, progress is slow on the Future Interstate. It's going to take time. Middle ground must be found - not only a source of funding, but a good source of funding that will fit the circumstances of the routing itself.

Some miles down, about seventy to go

The Advocate - I-12 work to begin

...And so it begins. The end is near for the daily gridlock at LA 3245 (O'Neal Lane) and Interstate 12. Work will begin to widen I-12 to three lanes from O'Neal Lane to just east of Pete's Highway eastbound, and from 4-H Club Road to O'Neal westbound. The hardest bit will most likely be widening the bridges crossing the Amite River - as they stand right now, they are only two lanes wide with absolutely no shoulders to speak of. I'm hoping they add some shoulders with those new travel lanes.

The project is slated to be complete by Thanksgiving 2011, meaning traffic will exceed the work done by the day after Thanksgiving 2011. Going only that far will do nothing but move the daily gridlock from O'Neal over to Denham Springs. The rest of I-12 to the east will continue to be perpetually overloaded with truckers who think they're driving Ferraris, career women weaving from the acceleration lane to the #1 lane at 90mph while fixing their makeup and sipping coffee, and unsafe vehicles carrying their nonsecure loads at ten miles under the speed limit.

In other words, this is where I again advocate for the entirety of I-12 to be widened to no less than three travel lanes in either direction. Don't get me wrong, this is a good start. I'm just saying that while this work is going on, we as a state should be putting together what's needed to widen another segment afterward.

Warning: Very Profane Rant.

Times-Picayune - State vows I-12 link in St. Tammany will be built

You vow, huh? Ain't you been vowing to get the damn interchange built for years now? I seem to remember that it was supposed to be built in the '90s as part of the LA 3241 project. As a standalone, it's been pushed back several times in the last few years alone. I'd still be willing to wait even now if waiting for that highway was an option. But at a time like this, it's not optional anymore. There's a school going up soon, a high school that will choke a "minor secondary highway" to the point of being absolutely useless. Ten miles of peaceful driving will soon become ten miles of brain-numbing gridlock.

There's plenty of problems with that scenario. First off, LA 1088 isn't "minor" or "secondary" to the people who live on it. It's our lifeline to the rest of the world. As it is, I have to go way out of my way to get anywhere now without having to pass through a damn school zone. I'm sure others here feel the same way, they're just too scared of getting lynched by the pro-family morons to make a peep. There's also the fact that any traffic coming in from the west or south have to go through a residential neighborhood to get to that school, until the interchange is built.

Seriously, what the hell are you idiots at DoTD smoking? Do you bastards remember how badly LA 59 was choked in the 90's having to support a high school, and how much it worsened when the junior high opened up next door? Those kind of schools, a two-lane highway simply can not do the job. Even a two-lane highway with a turning lane of some kind can't handle it. High schools in this area require four lanes at minimum to ease any impact on traffic.

Remember, you not only have to deal with bus traffic, car traffic from parents dropping their kids off and more car traffic from faculty going to work daily, you also have to deal with hundreds of stupid teenagers trying to get in there at the last possible minute because they overslept. You hope they were cramming for exams, but they were probably either getting high or getting laid. Most likely, both. The teenagers around here are far from being angels, after all. (I speak from personal experience.)

In case you've forgotten about all this, feel free to drop by any time. The gridlock's still there, all those years later.

At the least, though, LA 59 has an interchange at I-12 that helps relieve some of the traffic. LA 59 North past the Interstate is a breeze even during school zone hours. Ah, but LA 1088 doesn't. It needs it before anyone even thinks of opening a damn high school. Yes, I'm also talking to you, St. Tammany Parish School Board.

What makes you think some of us want a gridlock and beaten sheep factory on our highway anyway? (Calm, calm... I will not be a NIMBY, I will not be a NIMBY...)

Fact remains, at the moment, the roads in the area of that new school can't possibly support it. Aside from being a lonely two-lane highway, there are no lights... in fact, there's nothing nearby. The nearest Sheriff's substation is about 12 minutes away. 12 minutes is a lot of time for mischief and mayhem. It's a ton of time if someone gets hurt or worse. There's no services nearby - if you run out of gas or overheat your car, you're mega-screwed. In fact, that school's almost begging to become an unofficial annex of Lacombe (which is the crackhead and crime capital of the parish).

They may as well call it Lacombe North already.

At the least, can't they hold off opening the thing until there's an interchange, so a residential neighborhood can be spared a lot of headaches, unnecessary emissions and noise? More importantly, so my sanity can be spared? Some of us like being able to start the day with a few miles at max speed before hitting Congestion City, after all.

They can't and they won't, naturally. Delays are only tolerable so long as a school isn't affected. "Think of the children," after all. I say to hell with the damned children already. "Why" is a matter for a different post entirely, probably on the Livejournal.

Anyway.

So I'm putting any of the politicians who have any chance of getting either the school delayed or the interchange sped up on notice here - if you open that school sooner than an interchange is built and we suffer here due to it, you're not only getting a no vote from me, but from others. There are more than just me who think as I do, and I will rally them. Me personally, if it's you versus Charles Manson in the next election, I'll vote for Manson just to spite you. If it's you versus Satan himself, then I'm wearing my "Satan (next election year for your seat)" button proudly. I don't care if your next opponent's a thief, a serial killer, or if they eat babies. You will become the greatest of all evils in my eyes. I'll do everything in my power to put them over and shut you down.

Build the interchange first before you even think of overloading our highway system, or you will find out how bleak your careers are in the face of an angry voter with no life. I don't care if you in Baton Rouge have to use some of the one-time surplus this year... I don't care if you have to use it all, every last dime. Get this thing done, pronto!

P.S. - You should have never re-paved the section of 1088 north of I-12, DoTD. It would have been nice to make all those "elite" idiots lose their suspension for a year or two on that road. :P

One step closer to a wider LA 21.

Wider Louisiana 21, bridge getting closer

About time we got back to roads around here, eh? The scope of the project is as follows: Two two-lane carriageways (four lanes total) with a 24-foot wide median, six-foot wide sidewalks along two new two-lane bridges across the Tchefuncte, a six-foot wide sidewalk along the northbound side, and full shoulders on both carriageways. This will be between LA 1085 (Bootlegger Road) and 11th Street in Covington.

Now, it's nice and all. That part of LA 21 has suffered over the years from overdevelopment and the traffic that follows. The shoulders are a definite plus - that stretch used to have them, except for the bridge, but the three-laning last decade eliminated those. The sad fact is that four lanes won't be enough, by a longshot. Six will be needed for traffic to even resemble decent flow.

This is another example of development exceeding the fixes. Someone around here seriously needs to rethink this thing.

Impending Baton Rouge chokepoint...

The Advocate - Project on I-10 to begin

Vague title, but the section in question is the one immediately east of the I-10/I-12 split in Baton Rouge, from said split to Siegen Lane, an underutilized stretch of highway (compared to I-12, itself seeing frequent congestion) that can still prove to be a headache. At only two lanes but servicing a growing commercial area, it's hitting on "underpowered" at times.

The construction should ease things through the area as each direction of I-10 will be widened by one lane. The overall project begins Monday and is slated to take about three years, costing $86.2 million.

Last month, a $100 million contract was signed for widening of part of Interstate 12. That work should begin in February, to widen eastbound I-12 from O'Neal Lane in Baton Rouge to just east of Pete's Highway in Denham Springs, and westbound from just west of 4-H Club Road to the aforementioned O'Neal. That project will last until around Thanksgiving in 2011...

As a result, Baton Rouge's eastern end will be a little trickier to get through for the next couple of years. Two alternative routes, US 61 (Airline Highway) and US 190 (Florida Blvd.) will see a lot more traffic as a result of both I-10 and I-12 seeing work. Seeing as few alternatives exist... good luck.

Christmas present turned Mardi Gras throw

Times-Picayune - New and improved I-10 is still months away

I wonder who screwed up here. The fix is most certainly not in, unlike most other situations across the lake. In this case, the asphalt wasn't started in time, so now it'll have to wait until after the winter months. Don't know why the hell they couldn't have surfaced it with concrete, but what's done is done, and we'll have to wait a few more months for the Causeway Blvd. chokepoint.

Rebuilding and redesigning the interchange between I-10 and Causeway is the next step in the process to upgrade I-10 to more modern standards and capacity. Yay.

Speaking of Causeway... bonus coverage!

Times-Picayune - Causeway storm-surge fix poses challenge for Corps of Engineers

Here, the idea is to raise the southern approaches to the Causeway to about 16 feet or so, as part of the ongoing project to strengthen the area's protection against storm surge, in this case by raising the levees. The trick is, the approaches kind of suck as it is, considering all the traffic that uses the bridge on a daily basis.

While there is room in the median to move the lanes around, and the existing approaches shouldn't have to be messed with much, it's still going to be the kind of headache that rivals most hangovers.

So far, the project is hopefully able to begin in 2010, sometime between late spring and early winter, but it's not possible to pin a clear date on it do far in advance.

Either of these projects will prove to be a nightmare for traffic for years to come. As always, I suggest going out of the way, mostly because I avoid the Causeway like the plague anyway. 24 miles over water with no shoulders... makes me nervous.

Post #100

Today, there was an accident on the still-under-construction replacement Twin Span bridges. A bridge girder broke, and ten workers plunged into the lake. Nine of them were recovered safely... but one died.

We sometimes forget just how dangerous this work can be. They're all busting their asses out there trying to get this bridge built as fast as possible, so that commuters have a safe option that can hopefully survive the next hurricane better. Although safety and technology have improved over the years, we haven't come along far enough to completely eliminate the risk of serious injury or death during a job such as this.

My condolences, and I'm sure the condolences of my readers as well, go to the worker's family.

TIMED is BROKE!

Times-Picayune - Portion of gas tax may pad program

Since 1989, Louisiana has had the TIMED program, a set of vitally-needed highway and bridge projects, funded by 4 cents of the gasoline tax (out of the total 20-cent tax). Some are done already, and others are in progress. (As in "shovels have been turned" or "lanes have been closed".)

However, two major projects remain on the TIMED list... a new bridge crossing in New Orleans along Florida Avenue... and this thing:

...Lemme tell you, since TIMED passed, this thing has been held up for one reason or another. For a long time, it was due to environmental impact. Lately, it's been because nobody can decide on a concrete routing. Now TIMED is broke because people aren't driving. Go figure. Of course, if people can't afford gas, they don't drive, which means they don't fill their tanks and less gas is sold. Louisiana's gas tax is static - they charge the same tax rate whether a gallon of gas costs forty cents or four dollars. It doesn't help that the cost of upgrading the Huey Long Bridge in Jefferson Parish is running way over projections due to a general increase in cost for, oh, everything since Katrina hit.

There's also the matter of the federal highway trust fund possibly being cut by $200 million or so due to a new formula for funding being considered by federal officials.

Anyway, the Wise Ones in Baton Rouge are figuring they can funnel another 3 cents from the gas tax to get these last few TIMED projects done. There's some other voodoo economics they're looking into, such as using money collected from the vehicle sales tax to go into roads, and possibly getting their hands on some of the surplus as well. There's also the possibility of taking $50 million from employee benefits. (I got a better idea... take some of it from the higher-ups' salaries!) They've already cut close to 400 jobs to try to save money as it is, so you know the belts are getting very tight up there.

TIMED's problems are only a drop in the bucket compared to the state's transportation woes as a whole. $14 billion construction backlog, you say? Yeah, you heard me right. I'll say this much... they're going to need some more potent voodoo for the books than what they're doing/proposing/imagining if they want to finish getting any of these projects done.

And they need to get done soon... 20 years is too long to wait, and we're still waiting.

More tolls in Texas?

Dallas Morning News - Toll lanes may get I-35E up to speed for Dallas, Denton

Disclaimer: I've only passed through Dallas a few times in the past.

So, I got extremely bored and decided that since nothing was blog-worthy here, I'd look around. So here, I'm taking in Texas. Go figure.

I've only traveled on a small stretch of IH 35E in the past, but from what little I saw, it's definitely not high on my personal "to clinch" list, mainly due to the traffic. It could use a bit of work. (Okay... Biggest understatement ever.) Widening would definitely help matters. They've even been planning to do it for 20 years now.

Problem is, right now, the price tag for it is a staggering $2.9 billion.

Other problem is, at the moment, only $535 million is set aside so far for it. That's just barely over 1/6th of the cost. So, they're considering making up the difference with tolls. Basically, a "design-build" project - employ a private contractor and possibly use private investments to cover the difference, then toll the stretch until the private investment is repaid.

Normally, Yours Truly is rabidly anti-toll, especially on existing roadways. However, it appears at the moment that only the new lanes would be tolled. New general-use lanes and frontage roads would be added, alongside the toll lanes. I'd almost consider this a recipe for disaster, but the plans seem solid enough for me to hold off on calling shenanigans on this thing.

Time's going to tell on this, of course. Nothing's been finalized yet. Right now, the story is mainly focusing on the hypothetical, on what a U.S. Rep, the Deputy Secretary of Transportation, and Texas DOT officials say needs to be done.

It does need to be done, though. Yes, it needs to be done as soon as possible. While there may be another way that hasn't been explored fully enough, using the design-build approach may end up being the only way. The price will only keep spiraling upward, and the freeway's not getting any less congested in the meantime.

So whatever they are going to do, they need to do it quickly.

Lane closures announced in relation to Huey Long Bridge widening

Times-Picayune - Huey Long bridge work to bring long-term lane closures

TIMED overview and information on this project


View Larger Map

Here's the gist of it. The right lanes of the bridge will see closure for as long as 60 days in the foreseeable future due to a widening project. There will be tow trucks stationed on the bridge in case of breakdowns. If an emergency requiring evacuation occurs (such as a hurricane), the barriers closing off the right lane can be removed within 48 hours. The speed limit will be 35mph along the bridge while these closures are in effect.

They're pulling out all the stops on this one. Got to admire that.

Work needs to be done badly on this bridge, though. It's narrow, and it's a little flimsy. It's a tough old bridge, don't get me wrong, but its design is way out of date, especially for a main artery. The work (a TIMED project) will likely modernize it.

In the meantime, plan an alternate route until they get these closures out of the way. I-310 and Business US 90 (I-910/Future I-49) utilize the closest bridges.

Covington: LA 21 widening in the works

Nola.com - Widening of LA 21 to begin in the fall

So it appears another badly-congested stretch of a major highway is going to get an inadequate fix. LA 21 south of Covington is going to be widened from three lanes (one travel lane in each direction and a turn lane in the center) to four (two travel lanes in each direction plus a median). If you check the map on the link, you'll see that the widening is only slated to go as far northeast as Marigold Drive. That's about a mile short of the place that desperately needs widening - the Tchefuncte River bridge at the edge of Covington's city limits. It's only two lanes, and even with trucks diverted to alternate routes, it still carries way too much traffic for (essentially) a two-lane highway. Even with the bridge approaches only having one travel lane in each direction (and the turn lane), it still manages to become a chokepoint as it sheds the turn lane.

This is just another symptom of LaDOTD and the Parish Government not knowing how the hell to think ahead. Instead of thinking ahead, they only think about the now, if that! If there's an average daily count of 50,000 on a road with the capacity for 10,000, they'll only build the capacity up to 50,000. Then immediately after construction, traffic counts leap again to 75,000 on a road built for 50,000. (Not actual numbers in the preceding two sentences.) So they're stuck needing even more capacity on a brand new surface and configuration. It happened with US 190 directly north of I-12 when it was widened from 4 lanes to 6. It was congested badly before, and the new configuration still can't quite cope with the traffic levels. It's also the case with the ongoing work on US 190 in Mandeville. At the western end of the roadwork, US 190 goes in a one mile stretch from four lanes + median to three lanes, to TWO lanes across an old bridge, back to a proposed four lanes + median. They left a chokepoint in the plans intentionally because they couldn't build a second bridge across Bayou Chinchuba for whatever reason.

Getting back to LA 21, the rest of it, all the way to 11th Street in Covington at least, will also see widening, including the bridge. That'll take another two to three years, meaning the chokepoint will be worse in that span than it already is. Why not just do it all in one fell swoop?

We wonder why our roads are rated so low nationally, well... this is a prime reason for it.

Indiana: Protests mar ribbon-cutting for I-69 extension

AP (via Indianapolis Star) - Protests, celebration frame I-69 work

Since, eventually (read: most likely not within my lifetime), I-69 is supposed to run through Louisiana, I've looked at the entirety of the progress needed for the route. Surprise, surprise. Anti-freeway forces have been responsible for holding it up a lot just within Indiana. Not just on the extension going on now, but on the proposed (and abandoned) in-city routing of the existing route as well. So right now it ends at a 3di. What a disgrace. (Only the ending at a 3di part, though. They could have routed it along part of the I-465 loop (as they did with I-74) to end at another 2di, I-70.)

...Anyway.

"Police officers arrested more than a dozen protesters Monday as they blocked the entrance to an asphalt plant that will supply materials to build the 142-mile highway linking Evansville and Indianapolis. The protesters, who will be charged with trespassing and resisting arrest, had bound themselves with chains, police said."

The anti-freeway movement is alive and well in Indiana, but we all knew that, right? However, you'd think Mississippi's DOT was running this project, because at this point it is going to go through even with vehement opposition. Even with the environmental impact, a judge has said that those impacts don't constitute a violation of law. In essence, a big fat "Nothing you can do, bugger off already" to the opposition.

As a result, the project will be starting soon, and the stretch that I figured would be one of the last to get done will instead be getting off the ground very soon.

Ah, the hopelessness-inspiring inevitability of it all...

Another DOT faces troubles with projects

Denver Post - Asphalt deficit gives CDOT a bumpy ride

For those of you who may or may not know, after Katrina hit, I moved out to Colorado for a year or so. I still keep an eye on the old homestead, and this disturbs me.

I posted a few weeks ago about Mississippi getting hit with a shortage of funding, and how that may affect their future projects. Now, another DOT is getting hit, but for a different reason. Projects on I-25, among others, are being hit by an asphalt shortage.

"A shortage of liquid asphalt is occurring, in part, because oil refiners are concentrating on producing more profitable finished products from crude oil, such as diesel fuel, said Tom Peterson, executive director of the Colorado Asphalt Pavement Association.

Refiners also are processing more light crude petroleum, which produces less asphalt than heavy crude, Peterson said."

So we can blame the speculators for more than making the cost of a fillup run more than a week's food. We can also blame them as the roads collapse underneath us. Demand's still pretty damned high for gasoline and diesel, so of course something's going to get reduced. In this case, it's asphalt. As well, a special polymer CDOT requires is also in a shortage due to increased demand around the world and a disruption at two European factories that make the stuff.

In short, this is only the beginning. Some DOTs are shifting more to concrete paving because of the shortage and price of asphalt. In some cases, it's becoming more practical to use it. Soon, others may not even have a choice in the matter.

Harrison Co., MS: US 90 work on schedule

(Sorry, but I prefer the CA-style US Highway shield to the standard-issue one - T.)

Sun-Herald - Coast's Christmas gift may be a new US 90

A couple of days ago, I posted about MDOT putting new projects on ice due to high oil prices throwing a monkey wrench into the budget. I had pointed out then that ongoing projects were unaffected by the funding crisis so far, and good thing for that.

US 90 is being resurfaced for 27 miles in Harrison County, in four stages. Before Katrina, it could have used some work. I haven't driven US 90 since the storm, as the bridge between Bay St. Louis and Pass Christian was still under construction while I had a working car. Still, I can imagine the storm made things much worse.

It's slated to be complete in December, so there's only six more months to endure the delays. Fun... In all seriousness, though, it's necessary, and it's a good thing to see that this necessary project will continue on to completion. Even with the condition it used to be in, it was a sweet drive, both because of the scenery and the road design. The repairs will make it even sweeter.

Mississippi: Oil prices may kill non-maintenence roadwork

Sun-Herald: Road building may hit dead end

This story just proves how much oil prices are throwing everything into chaos these days. In this case, the costs of building new roads is becoming too prohibitive. Because of this, widening projects on MS 26, MS 43, US 11 and MS 603 are being delayed or are otherwise in jeopardy. I've driven parts of all four of those (albeit pre-Katrina), and they could use some work, indeed.

The MS 57 widening, the Vancleave bypass and the first phase of a connector from I-10 to downtown Gulfport aren't being axed, since they already have the funding in place. Only new roads and widenings seem to be threatened with the axe at the moment.

If it's happening there, how long will it take for other states to feel the crunch and have to belt-tighten?

LA: Road chief says program bankrupt

The Advocate (Baton Rouge): Road Chief says program bankrupt

(from article)

Louisiana’s road-building agenda will suffer because a special program for 16 projects has gone bankrupt, state Transportation Secretary William Ankner said Thursday.

In addition, the state’s list of highway projects is under new pressure because gasoline tax revenue that helps pay for the work is down 7 percent, Ankner said.

The decrease in gasoline taxes stems from less driving amid higher gasoline prices, he said.

“It will probably carry forward in future years,” Ankner said of the revenue dip.

Ankner made his comments to the Joint Transportation Committee and in an interview afterward.

It all centers around a package of projects approved by voters in 1989, the Transportation Infrastructure Model for Economic Development, or TIMED. Instead of managing this themselves, LaDOTD hired an outside firm to manage these projects. (Outside management's screwed up the Road Home, too.) Now the costs have spiraled far above what they would have originally been, partially due to inflation of course, but also due to the impact on prices from hurricanes and the rising costs of steel and concrete, as well as a dearth of firms that actually do bridge work.

As a result of this, the Transportation Secretary is saying that it might take diversions of $66 million a year from the fund for other road improvements to keep the TIMED projects afloat.

Ironically, gas prices are proving to be a double whammy for the funding. Not only does the higher cost of fuel cause the prices of materials to go up, but the prices are causing people in Louisiana to buy less gas, meaning less revenue from the gas tax to go directly into funding.

The roads in the state are degrading steadily, and many have been neglected for too long. For every Future I-49, LA 1 corridor and I-10 Twin Span replacement, there's a main highway through a small town in such bad shape that the town would be better serviced by a gravel road, or a two lane highway straining to carry more cars than a six lane highway can capably handle. We need our roads fixed, plain and simple.

The money's not going to be coming in so reliably from the fuel taxes as fuel prices rise and more people buy less to conserve their own money, so there's got to be other sources of funding. Maybe instead of the Legislature voting themselves a fourfold raise for part-time work, they should put that money towards the highways. Also, Louisiana gets a good bit of money from oil development, and the high price of oil is actually a boon to the state budget. Maybe we could put some of that toward the roads, too.

Until then, we might as well get comfortable at the bottom. We'll be here a while.

You knew this was coming... plus RARE black and white LA highway shield!

The time you, my two readers, have all feared... it has come to pass. I went out today, and while the primary reason was to go buy cigarettes, I had an ulterior motive as well... I took pictures. Pictures of sines, of roadwork and termini of my current locale... a place called Mandeville. Be very afraid. Yuppies and MFFYs will devour your soul here.

The pictures were all taken with a disposable 35mm camera, so I apologize now for a lack of quality. We can't all be rich.

Here's the promised B&W Louisiana highway shield (click to zoom):


Click here for all the pics from today... I've provided descriptions there, but if I screwed up a description, let me know by posting a comment here on the blog.

This was worth the front page?

It's such a pain to walk lately, I swear. Anyway, I saw this in the Times-Picayune yesterday:

End is in sight for I-10 construction in Metairie

Of course, the online version of the article is wrought with the usual trolls, but some of the replies are spot on... OK, they're finishing it on time. Problem is, it could have been done in a LOT less time if Louisiana knew the first thing about scheduling highway repairs. Other cities in other states can get roadwork similar in magnitude done in less time. Even with the fact that New Orleans doesn't have a true local freeway bypass (I-12 doesn't count, I-610's western terminus is past the roadwork, and the Causeway requires one to go through at-grade intersections), I'm sure the same work could have been done in other states, in a similar situation, much faster.

Then again, maybe I'm just so annoyed about the traffic over there that I'm grasping at straws.