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Concrete barriers eliminate shoulder on portion of I-10 East; will remain until 2027
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BATON ROUGE - The first signs of the I-10 widening project have appeared along the eastbound side of the interstate between the Washington Street and Perkins Road exits.
The Department of Transportation and Development installed concrete barriers in January. Since then, some drivers have raised concerns about what should happen if an accident or breakdown occurs with no place to safely pull over.
“The law is, move traffic if you can out of the travel lanes. So, you would go down to the next exit, or go down to the next area that there’s a shoulder," Rodney Mallet, a DOTD spokesperson, said.
If your vehicle is not drivable, Mallett suggests staying in place until help arrives.
“We do have MAP patrols that continuously patrol the area. They come upon those crashes from time to time and if you can’t move out of the travel lane, they will assist you as best as they can."
The concrete barriers are set up to separate construction workers and equipment from high-speed traffic on the interstate. Mallett says drivers will need to become accustomed to not having a shoulder for that approximately one mile stretch because the barriers will remain in place for the extent of the I-10 widening project.
“That is probably going to be about 2027," Mallett said.
According to DOTD, additional Motor Assistance Patrol trucks will be stationed in the area once major lane restrictions begin in about two years.
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