Proposed I-410

[cajun]

Yeah....the advocate is not supposed to have bias.

The reality is that those who want the loop are not going to start a parade in support of one. The advocate needs to do some actual reporting and interview both sides, because as usual one side is much louder than the other.

[richyb83]

It seems like people want the loop; just no where near them(NIMBY's). French Settlement leaders did not want it; my cousin in Livingston doesn't want it near him(it might?); Central labeled it the "Berlin Wall"; Brusly doesn't want the new bridge bec. it's next (too close) to the HS/Middle School at the old Cinclaire paper mill + little WBR doesn't need a 3rd bridge they say. Prairieville doesn't want it;(it's said officials like a route along Hwy. 42) Gonzales said it would ruin businesses along Hwy. 44.

Some will just have to deal with it.

The entire loop is said to take 8 to 10 years to complete; and Mayor Holden will be only be in office for 4-5 more. So my prediction is that Holden will get Phase I (southern by-pass); the rest would up to the next Mayor(s), with that I say "good luck to that".

*I borrowed Dan's loop route map from the previous post; then added my "red" southern bypass route. This will enable the NOLA Metro to evacuate in an emergency west to Lafayette, Houston ; avoiding the I-10/12 gridlock in BR.

You can bet the powers that be will want to run this "loop" as close to the Pinnacle Resort as possible; they will connect-the-dots with this route. Avoiding Spanish Lake/ Bluff Swamp should not be that big a deal;(look at the route just a couple miles south of Dan's). This will also take it closer to I-10 regional destinations Tanger Outlet Mall, Cabela's, Lamar/Dixon Expo Center. A bridge between Addis/Brusly would seem to make the most sense?

I don't want to even attempt to guess where the northern route might go. Dan's looks good to me; Livingston too. The Ascension route is a big ??? The loop will not go into SEBR and split thru Shenandoah/White Oak Landing.

[richyb83]

Will this Loop need Federal fund$ or not?? Sounds like the bigger priority is to upgrade the 10 miles of I-12 and the 8 or so? miles of I-10; rather than the 80-100 mile loop. I guess we will see.

3 GOP hopefuls wary of loop

Bruce also said toll revenue will provide at least 50 percent of the costs, and possibly 75 percent. He said projects to improve I-10 and I-12 will be needed even with construction of a loop.

Jenkins distributed three pages of road projects that he said need attention, including the widening of I-10 from Perkins Road to the I-10/12 split and I-12 from O

[buckett5425]

What really bother's me, is that these candidates think we dont a loop now, and should consider it later, in maybe 15 years. We need to build the loop now, if these candidates own estimations are that we will need the loop in 15 years, we need to start building it now to have it open by then. Instead, they will let traffic get worse, wait 15 more years to build it, and then we wont have a loop for 25 to 30 years. We can't wait anymore, we need to be progressive. They are right that we need to upgrade exisitng roads, but that wont solve our problems alone. The loop and upgradeing existings roads need to work hand in hand to provide the best possible solutions for the metro, and we need to get started now. I applaud kip holden for tackling this project. But someone needs to educate these politicians on how to get things done, not put them off.

Also, I am slightly annoyed that cities like Lake Charles and Shreveport, half the size of BR, have these nice loops(or half loops, lake charles, like shreveport, is actully considering compelting there "half loop" to make a full circle, and they need it bad, traffic is horrible on highway 171, the only arteiry from North Lake Charles) My point is, that they have gotten the federal and state government to pay for their interstates, even if that was some time ago. Now I know money is tight in the state, but this is a much desereved project that will benifit the metro and local and state economies. Is there no one willing to go lobby for the federal funds for this loop? Why should we have to pay a toll, can't we just pass another gas tax, we end up paying for it either way, but atleast this way its more convienant and we wont have to wait in line at toll boths, or slow down to go through "fast pass" booths. Plus, many people have a stigma against tolls. So i think for the loop to be truly succesfull, it needs to just be interstate.

[twstdndmntd]

Well I haven't been a huge fan of the loop but I haven't been opposed to it either. I do believe that the widening of 10 and 12 should be a top priority. I have been a bigger proponent of building a 2nd bridge across the river going from 10 to LA1. I think we should have an Interstate spur that is somewhere before Highland Rd and goes into Plaquemine, and goes north of 10 to 12. I don't have a problem with tolls, I think the toll should be placed on the new bridge. I mean NOLA has a toll on their bridge. The Central Thruway will be a nice piece of the bypass puzzle. Course if we are ranting, then let me rant about all of the fesibility studies. I think that is the stupidest piece of beauracratic red tape if I ever saw one. Do we really need to spend millions of our tax dollars for an out of state company to come here and tell us we have traffic problems and that 10 and 12 need to be widened. We can ALL tell them that, just pass the money back out to us.

[dan326]

http://www.2theadvocate.com/news/17528114.html

"Engineers unveiled the latest revised routes for the proposed toll-supported Baton Rouge loop on Thursday that reinstates the far northern corridor between Zachary and Baker.

At the same time, the new plan eliminates a proposed route for the northern bypass that would have run through Denham Springs and along Florida Boulevard and Airline Highway in East Baton Rouge Parish.

To the south, the latest plan eliminates a controversial corridor that would have run through Prairieville and Spanish Lake in Ascension Parish. At this point, it appears that the loop will cross the Amite River north of Port Vincent, run south of Gonzales and cross Interstate 10 near the old Sorrento rest area closed by the state a few years ago."

[BRPJ]

I agree with the northern most proposed portion of the loop... Baker isnt that far north...

But swinging the southern portion past Gonzales i dont agree with

[dan326]

BR loop taking shape

"The traffic loop around Baton Rouge is starting to take shape. Loop organizers have eliminated two of the northern routes and reinstated another that runs north of Baker and Central after having crossed it off in February. At Thursday's loop meeting, though, the most concern involved Iberville Parish."

http://media.swagit.com/s/wbrz/The_Advocat...igh.flash8.html

[twstdndmntd]

I'm over the loop. I've lost interest and concern. I think it's too big for what is needed, and I don't think it passes in the right areas, but that goes along with being to big.

[richyb83]

Well you may get your wish; I'm wondering if this thing will get built at all?? At least I-12 will be widened. But these two projects would come from seperate money$$$.

Basically the Loop should have been built 20 years ago before the population explosion from Livingston and Ascension. At the very least a southern by-pass should be built for emergencies/hurricane evacuations for NOLA Metro residents headed west missing the 10-12 split and the funnel of traffic headed toward the I-10 Miss. River bridge(as shown on post #202 in red).

Officials speak out against loop

Building the highway loop around Baton Rouge could be losing support. At least two elected officials from parishes hosting the loop have voiced concerns over money and other issues.

http://www.2theadvocate.com/wbrz/videos/26396689.html

*includes video

[BRPJ]

Well you may get your wish; I'm wondering if this thing will get built at all?? At least I-12 will be widened. But these two projects would come from seperate money$$$.

Basically the Loop should have been built 20 years ago before the population explosion from Livingston and Ascension. At the very least a southern by-pass should be built for emergencies/hurricane evacuations for NOLA Metro residents headed west missing the 10-12 split and the funnel of traffic headed toward the I-10 Miss. River bridge(as shown on post #202 in red).

Officials speak out against loop

Building the highway loop around Baton Rouge could be losing support. At least two elected officials from parishes hosting the loop have voiced concerns over money and other issues.

http://www.2theadvocate.com/wbrz/videos/26396689.html

*includes video

I'm not big on the total loop, i just think the southern portion should be built like others have expressed.

-need for hurricane evacuations from new orleans

-the suburban populations are dense on this side of Baton Rouge vs the northern side

I agree that the loop should have been built a long time ago, but that doesn't negate the need for another highway system today. We are just so behind in road projects that it makes it hard to decide what to do with the little money we have. Maybe if they only build the southern portion that wil save money and get the ball rolling faster, but i doubt that would happen becuase officials keep pressing to get the northern portion completed first. Can anyone explain to me why they are so hell bent on building the loop there first?

[yis2003yis]

im still all for it.....it can neva be to big....it was a time baton rouge didn't have really much of anything past essen ln.....whoever thought all that land would boom back in the days? Nobody ...so again...lets get it done now and we won't have to pay for it in the future.....they didn't do it back in the days...so we are paying for it now.....this city isn't getting smaller ..we are not just going to stop...we can only get bigger...so nip it in the bud now before things get to out of hand when we all are 60 and 70 years old..crying out ..things shole ain't like they use to be

[all2neat]

im still all for it.....it can neva be to big....it was a time baton rouge didn't have really much of anything past essen ln.....whoever thought all that land would boom back in the days? Nobody ...so again...lets get it done now and we won't have to pay for it in the future.....they didn't do it back in the days...so we are paying for it now.....this city isn't getting smaller ..we are not just going to stop...we can only get bigger...so nip it in the bud now before things get to out of hand when we all are 60 and 70 years old..crying out ..things shole ain't like they use to be

Agreed.. I remember driving into Houston about 15 years ago with my dad and asking him why did they reconstruct I10 so wide in what at the time was the middle of no-where.. Well.. as you all have known for some time now Houston has grown a lot since then and now it's a very busy interstate in the city.. Point is, just because it's big now, doesn't mean it won't be justifiable in the not-to-distant future. True, it might promote some urban sprawl but I think most of that sprawl would happen reguardless so we just as well accept that we have to deal with that and plan for the future. I think now is the time when the land for the freeway gets bought for the right of ways, and even if we wait 15 years to actually develop it, at least the hard part is complete. Just because we approve the loop doesn't mean we build it all tomorrow.. I just think that buying the right of ways to the land is important before more homes get built on these proposed routes. I got an idea 10 years ago a few of the eliminated routes would have been approved because of new housing developments.

I do strongly urge though that on top of building the loop that I10 be constructed to 5 lanes in each direction from the New Bridge to Acadian, and 6 from Acadian to the 10/12 split... and 12 should be 4 lanes to O'Neil, and 3 lanes to it's joining again with 10 in Slidell.... 10 I think needs to be upgraded to 3 lanes from New Orleans with oversided shoulders for hurricane evacuations however the sad truth is that you have two fairly long bridges to contend with that will likely make this never happen... I think though minimally I10 should be widened to at least US61 / Airline Hwy.

On the topic of I12 I think that the Intersection with I45 is long overdue for reconstruction and should be replaced with the Texas style fly ramps.

[richyb83]

^4-lanes to O'Neal would be great! As it stands I-12 between Airline Hwy & Sherwood Forest Blvd clogs up entirely too much during rush hours!! 3 lanes to Slidell would be ideal; but extending Walker is imperative!

You right yis2003yis; BR has already waited too long; the Metro is not going to get smaller!!

Interesting to see if/how this loop unfolds; still another 4 or 5 years from starting?? It will be a BIG mistake if the 1st Phase goes for the northern-half of the loop...+will they really upgrade Hwy190 to Interstate standards?? I know Central does not want this "Berlin Wall" as they called it blocking their rural community into 1/2.

The southern by-pass should be 1st IMO;"a NO-brainer" for a few reasons; mainly for the western evacuation route for Metro NOLA! Building the northern route 1st will absolutely do nothing during a hurricane! Only Gridlock nightmares!

Officials say Loop project still on track

Officials expect to begin the next phase of the Baton Rouge Loop within days, with expectations that financing will be found for the long-discussed highway project. The initial financial analysis, which found that the project was feasible, was completed before the downturn of the bond market.

Bonds backed by toll revenue, additional public funding, and a private-sector partnership all need to come together to fund the Loop, he says. The Loop is expected to cost between $3.6 billion and $4.5 billion in 2008 dollars. The

[buckett5425]

I am 100% percent against the loop now. I have a lot of family in Austin and travel there often. Their new tollways have been open for a year and were the biggest waste of money. Nobody drives on them because they are over priced and they have done nothing to alleviate traffic. A city doesn't need a loop to be "notable" or to become prosperous. Baton Rouge is at a turning point and people(developers) have finally realized that there is a better way of doing things, than building 8 lane "boulevards" everywhere. Baton Rouge should concentrate on creating a sustainable city infrastructure and should be promoting density and more TND's(even though they arnt a solution to the problem because Perkins Rowe is still a drive to destination)

I just wish people would get out of their cars....we really dont need them. I recommend everyone watch "The End of Suburbia"...its a very interesting documentary about how eventually the suburbs will die out and become the slums as people begin to move back to downtowns.

[cajun]

I want a loop- but only the northern portion.

I do support a bridge in the Brusly area, though....freeway or not.

Either way, I don't want them to knock down half of the Perkins Road Overpass area to widen I-10. Anything to avoid that.

[all2neat]

Does anyone here realistically think this will get built.. Too many NIMBY, as usual. I think though adding an extra lane will be best.

[cajun]

If they can reduce the number of exits to avoid uncontrolled growth alongside the loop (which would totally throw off everything from a planning/traffic standpoint) and leave it open for through traffic, then it could work.

I'm still for the loop, and provided it continues to serve it's purpose, I'll always be for it.

[buckett5425]

I happened to check out the loop website today, http://www.brloop.com/Brloop_splash_files/...mpPlan_Final.pd, and found that they finally updated some things. While I have stated I am against the loop, I am impressed with how they are undertaking the project. The updated website has some great info and ideas, i recommend that everyone check it out!

I dont think that link worked, but go to www.brloop.com and click on the "click here" link at the bottom left of the page

[cajun]

^you left off the "f" in the .pdf address. The link works otherwise.

I was just thinking today about how much of a nightmare it would be when they have to widen or replace I-10 and I-110 through town.

That would certainly be much easier if the loop was in place so they can re-route or detour through traffic. I honestly think that the loop would be used as a commuter highway for northern Livingston parish (Watson, etc).

Maybe the whole thing can be a freeway with tolls just on the bridges.

What I am noticing about the new loop routes is that far, far too many exits/on-ramps are proposed. That's just going to create traffic problems. This is a loop, we don't want to make the same mistake that Atlanta and Houston did with their loops and promote too much development.

I do like the idea of a bike trail around the whole thing and some green space. That is a GREAT idea.

I also think the northern section needs to hug the city boundry as much as possible, while the southern section has a little more freedom to dip farther south since it's primarily going to be meeting a huge amount of growth over the next 10 years in that region and it's going to be an evac route.

[richyb83]

Stay in the loop:

A public meeting for the environmental phase of the Baton Rouge Loop project will be at 4 p.m. Thursday at the BREC Tennis Recreation & Fitness Center on Independence Boulevard. This is the first meeting on the second phase of the project, which involves assessing the impact of a single corridor on residents and the environment.

http://www.businessreport.com/archives/dai...009/mar/18/877/

[cajun]

saw in the paper that this loop is supported by over 80% of the local residents.

Looks like it's going to be unlikely that it doesn't happen.

[buckett5425]

I have to say I'm glad this project will "pay for itself" and repay all the public money used in building it. Its going to be a huge waste if BR builds this thing. All the signs are showing, that over the next couple of decades, people are going to begin moving back to city centers, and that the idea of the American house with the big yard are over. I read the other day that a Harvard study suggested that by i think 2050 there is going to be a 22% housing surplus in the burbs, simply because people wont want to buy houses out there. BR's time and money could be so much better spent on building a public transportation system, and then promoting dense development around transit stations, then the rest will fall into place. I understand that we already have this ridiculous road infrastructure, and we should continue to utilize it. But, we dont need to build a loop that is really only going to promote more suburban development, which is simply unsustainable. We do not want to be the next ATL or Houston, or a better comparison would be Austin. Having a loop doesn't show a cities prowess, having a great downtown does, and even ATL doesn't have that, they just have tall buildings randomly placed around the city...

[cajun]

Buckett, urban sprawl will happen as long as people can afford it. Sprawl exist in Atlanta because the city doesn't provide the services that the suburbanites demand and because land is much more affordable in the suburbs.

There's no stopping it. While Baton Rouge may see an influx of yuppies and old folks in the inner cities, I can guarantee you that people with children are going to flock to the best school districts.

Until Baton Rouge proper does something about the leadership in the school system, then change will never happen. What you might eventually see is other neighborhoods breaking off from the district, but that's the best hope that it has. If that happens, the yuppies will simply stay in town when they have children instead of moving out.

I hope that this loop has as few exits as possible with very controlled growth along the corridor. Only then will the loop actually serve as a loop, which is a way to get thru traffic off the I-10/I-12 corridor. I also hope that it is accompanied with another item that Baton Rouge desperately needs: a new bridge over the Mississippi River and a new bridge over the Amite.

I don't see people moving closer to their employers by staying in the cities. I see their employers moving closer to their employees. I think for Baton Rouge, that is the trend for the next several decades, with few exceptions.

[richyb83]

The northern stint of the loop (1st phase?) will do absolutely nothing for I-10...and that's Traffic coming from the west (Houston/Lafayette) going to NOLA and vice-versa ; still La's largest population center....the southern extent should be a "no brainer" esp. with Hurricane Evacuation Route...when will the Northern half of this Loop start 2011??? Going to take at least 4 years to complete w/upgraded bridge?? So that puts the Southern section (Ascension-WBR) starting in maybe 2015??? Til then traffic will continue to funnel into the vaccuum at the 10/12 split...guess better late than never??