Calcasieu Parish has about $33.6 million budgeted this year for road and bridge construction projects, including new construction, road overlays, intersection improvements and bridge replacement.

Tim Conner, parish engineer, said the projects are necessary to maintain roadways for the existing traffic, as well as prepare for anticipated growth and additional traffic as more industrial expansion projects get underway.

Improving a roadway or building a new one requires several steps before construction begins, all of which are part of a project’s estimated cost. They include acquiring right-of-ways, relocating utilities, engineering and development, wetlands permitting and, if the road is a state route, obtaining permits from the state Department of Transportation and Development.

New construction

One of the more expensive projects the parish has budgeted this year calls for building a north frontage road in Sulphur. The new roadway would begin at Ruth Street and extend west about 1.5 miles along the north side of Interstate 10.

Conner said the project could cost about $12 million, which includes concrete paving, installing underground drainage and sewer and water utilities. He said the project should go out for construction some time this year, and that right-of-ways are still being acquired. Design plans are finished, and permits from the Corps of Engineers have been acquired.

There are two scheduled intersection improvement projects in Ward 3, an area that includes south Lake Charles. One calls for crews to replace the traffic signal at the intersection of Nelson and Ham Reid roads with a roundabout. The estimated $1.5 million project will improve traffic flow and safety at the heavily traveled intersection, Conner said.

Design plans are “100 percent complete,” but Conner said the parish must acquire right-of-ways at two parcels before utilities can be relocated. He said construction could begin in the summer, but that depends on how long it takes to acquire the right-of-ways.

Cliff Brouhard, parish traffic engineer, said the eastbound, left-turn lane from Ham Reid Road onto Nelson Road is “causing a lot of issues,” especially during peak traffic times in the morning and afternoon. He said a roundabout will improve traffic over the short term and will accommodate additional traffic over the long term.

“Over the next 20 to 30 years, we’ll still be well within the capacity of the roundabout, so we won’t need any further improvements,” Brouhard said.

The parish also has plans to improve the Lake Street and Ham Reid Road intersection. There are plans for a traffic signal and additional turn lanes on Lake Street and Ham Reid Road.

Preliminary design work has been completed on the project, but because Lake Street is a state route Conner said the parish is awaiting approval of those plans from the state Department of Transportation and Development.

Another project would extend Pine Cone Drive in the Moss Bluff area from its intersection with Crawford Road east to Parish Road. Conner said Parish Road intersects with Gloria Drive, which ties into U.S. 171.

He said the project will go out for bids by the end of the year and has an estimated price tag of $2 million. He said the parish is also working with DOTD on intersection improvements at U.S. 171 and You Winn Road-Gloria Drive, including traffic signals.

Overlay projects

There are three major overlay projects budgeted this year. One calls for overlaying about 15 roadways, or 9.2 miles, in Wards 4, 5 and 7, or the Sulphur-Carlyss, Starks and Vinton areas. Conner said the project has an estimated cost of $2 million, and that bids will be advertised early next month.

Another project calls for overlaying 21 roadways, or 10.2 miles, in Wards 1 and 6, or the Moss Bluff and DeQuincy areas. The project has an estimated cost of $2.3 million, and bids will be advertised in early March.

The third project will include overlaying eight roads, or 8.8 miles, in Wards 2, 3 and 8, or the Bell City-Hayes, south Lake Charles and Iowa areas. The project will cost an estimated $2 million and, Conner said bids will be advertised by late March or early April.

Conner said the projects are staggered to allow local contractors to “get a piece of that overlay program,” and they are grouped in nearby wards of the parish.

“That way, a contractor is not having to go from the west side of the parish to the east side,” Conner said.

Bridge replacement

There are nine scheduled bridge replacement projects this year, an amount Conner said is “higher than normal.” He said the parish targets bridges that have seen “repetitive maintenance,” which can become costly over time.

“We are trying to target some of these roads that we’ve got some weight limit postings on them and bring them up to where they’ll handle heavier loads, especially with the industrial expansion,” Conner said. “It’s a good time to get those replaced.”

The bridges scheduled for replacement are: East Tank Farm Road in Ward 3; Currie Drive in Ward 4; Arthur Irwin and Jim Kent roads in Ward 6; South Old Hwy. 90 bridge in Ward 7; and Corbello, Parish Barn, River and Metzger roads in Ward 8.

Conner said the parish is waiting on design work to get finished, and officials are still working to acquire right-of-ways and permits from the Corps. He said construction on the bridges should begin “some time this year,” and that the projects will be staggered to make them more manageable with the number of contractors and parish resources.

Conner said every bridge will be replaced with concrete piles and bridge decks. He said some were built using timber, which has an average life span of about 25 to 30 years.

“We can get twice that life span out of concrete,” he said.

Conner said the work costs an estimated $150,000 per bridge span, and that bridges have an average of three or four spans each.

(American Press Archives)