Mandeville, La (WGNO) — Saint Tammany Parish leaders joined representatives of the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development to cut the ribbon Wednesday morning on a new tunnel for the Tammany Trace.
The Trace stretches for more than 30 miles through Covington, Abita Springs, Mandeville, Lacombe and Slidell. It’s a popular way for people to enjoy jogging, bicycling and other activities. But it also crosses a couple highways along the way.
Wednesday’s ribbon cutting celebrated a new tunnel that solved the dangers of one of those crossings. Until now, people who used the Trace in the Mandeville area had to wait for a break in the traffic to cross Highway 59.
The City of Mandeville helped organize the construction of another tunnel along the Trace, that one under Highway 190.
The new tunnel goes under the highway. Construction started more than two years ago, and was delayed by multiple spikes in the pandemic and Hurricane Ida.
The tunnel cost $3.5 million to build and includes a pump system to drain water after rain storms.
