On the heels of the announcement that the I-10 river bridge project will be partially funded by tolls, Calcasieu Parish Police Jury President Chris Landry said he and others are disappointed motorists will have to pay part of the tab. He said there’s no doubt whatsoever that the bridge is needed….
“And the bid came back a lot higher than what they were expecting, and the bad thing is the toll issue. Nobody wants to pay tolls and I don’t think people in Lake Charles are any different than people anywhere else in the country,” said Landry.
The project is estimated to have a two-point-one-billion-dollar price tag and $800 million of the project will be funded through various government sources. Landry said the estimated tolls range from $2.50 per auto to $12.50 for a large truck with a toll tag, and without a tag $3.75 per car and $18.73 for a semi.
“Hopefully we’re going to continue to work on it before it’s done and maybe they can get a handle on it, and they won’t be quite as high. They’re up there,” said Landry.
Because I-10 goes from one end of the country to the other, Landry believes more federal funds should go towards the project. State Transportation receives funding for roads in bridges via the state gas tax, which Landry believes is not enough.
“They don’t have near enough money to do what needs to be done, but all of that needs to be fixed,” said Landry.
The tolls would be in effect for 50 years until the project is paid off.
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