Gravel road improvement project set for Jeff Davis Parish
JENNINGS — A $350,000 gravel road improvement project is expected to get under way soon in rural Jefferson Davis Parish.
It’s part of a parishwide road improvement project that will include about 73 miles of rural roads, said Police Jury President Donald Woods.
“This means we are going to get some rocks on our roads that need it,” Woods said. “We are trying to fix up some of the weak spots and keep them in shape.”
Roads for the project will be prioritized by the parish’s road foreman and supervisor.
‘They are the ones that know which ones are the worse roads,” Woods said.
About 438 loads of gravel will be used on the project, which will be split among the parish’s three road divisions. Each division will receive about $116,000 for gravel, Woods said.
“This way everybody in each division can use it for projects on their roads,” he said.
Money for the gravel project is being funded by a road sales tax approved by voters in 2006.
Police jurors have also added a bridge on Powell Road in Elton to a funding request as part of the state Department of Transportation and Development’s Federal Off-System Bridge Replacement Program.
The parish does not have funds available to replace the bridge and is asking the state for help, Woods said.
Replacing a single bridge can cost up to $1 million, which the parish does not have, he said.
Bridges on Mouton Road near Thornwell and West Division at the end of Touchet Road in Jennings were previously included in the funding request for the state project.
The Powell Road project replaces the Abell Road bridge — which was not approved — west of Welsh, Woods said.
The state has $50 million available for bridge repairs and replacement projects statewide.