WBRZ - Baton Rouge

ASCENSION - After a two-year delay, the Department of Transportation and Development will pick a company to widen Highway 73 from two to three lanes between Interstate 10 and Airline Highway.

The total cost of the project is $15-million to $20-million of state money. The project hit a snag while the parish and the state ironed out who was paying for what. Ascension Parish will pay for a $3-million sewer system which will be built through the corridor.

DOTD recently blacktopped portions of Highway 73 due to pot holes and troubled areas which cost taxpayers $45-thousand. The overlay is a temporary fix until the widening begins.

DOTD anticipates the 16-month project to begin in the fall.