New Larose bridge in works to replace pontoon path

The Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development is expected to take bids in late June for the construction of a new five-lane lift span bridge crossing Bayou Lafourche in Larose. It will replace the current pontoon bridge located near Holy Rosary school and the Lafourche Gazette office.

The new bridge will be located at the intersection of Louisiana Highway 1 and Louisiana Highway 657 (Larose Link) that connects to four-lane Louisiana Highway 3235. On the east side of Bayou Lafourche, the bridge will be located at the intersection of Louisiana Highways 308 and 657.

Once the bridge is complete, motorists traveling south on Highway 308 will be able to drive straight across Bayou Lafourche after coming off the Larose overpass and then either turn onto La. 1 or go straight to La. 3235.

Construction on the $8 million project is expected to begin in the last quarter of this year and is expected to be completed in two to three years.

The five-lane lift span is one of several ongoing bridge projects.

At a cost of $400,000, the new grading should soon be installed on the west Larose and Lockport lift bridges. New cables are also being installed on the lift bridges in Golden Meadow, Galliano and Larose.

The Larose lift bridge is closed during daytime hours so that new housing can be installed. The original housing was damaged by Hurricane Katrina.