The Louisiana Department of Transportation & Development (LaDOTD) announced that Calcasieu Bridge Partners (CBP) will build a new I-10 Calcasieu River Bridge. CBP is a joint venture composed of infrastructure developer Plenary Americas US Holdings, with Sacyr Infrastructure USA and Acciona Concesiones S.L. serving as design-build partners.
The project will be built through a public-private partnership.
The plan is to construct a new eight-lane bridge over the Calcasieu River with three travel lanes and one auxiliary lane in each direction, along with a tolling center. Once traffic is on the new bridge, the existing bridge will be demolished.
The new span will be lower and less steep, with more lanes, full shoulders, and roadway lighting.
CBP will manage and oversee construction, maintenance, and operations of the new bridge.
According to LaDOTD, funding will be supplemented with $800 million from a variety of federal and state sources.
The existing bridge was built in 1952, and according to LaDOTD, it is beyond its useful life.
The construction of the $2.1 billion bridge could start as early as 2024, and is anticipated to finish in 2031.
