PRAIRIEVILLE, La. (BRPROUD) – Drivers in Prairieville can now feel safe driving along the newly expanded La. Highway 42 as the Louisiana Department of Transportation & Development (DOTD) wraps up two decades worth of work Wednesday.
Traffic on La. 42 in Prairieville is flowing more smoothly thanks to a DOTD project. The 27-year road project has finally come to an end. The former two-lane road now has four lanes, a bike lane, and a sidewalk between Airline Highway and La. 44.
“I think this road is a real safety aspect to the parish with the divided medians, the sidewalks along with bike paths are really great,” said Senator Eddie Lambert.
DOTD spent more than 28 million dollars to make it all happen.
“Safety is paramount for us and I regret to tell you that last year three people died every day across the state of Louisiana,” said DOTD Secretary Shawn Wilson. “This is totally unacceptable and nothing we should be proud of as a state.”
Loretta Templet lost two family members after a car crash on this road. She is grateful the state has finally taken action.
“This is a dream come true. Their deaths will help save other lives,” said Templet.
Officials said this is only the beginning and there will be more road work to come later in the future.
“We are already in preparation for the new high school looking for traffic or patterns to change here and so we are trying to combat that with early designs and trying to be proactive on the front end as this area continues to change and continues to grow,” said Ascension Parish President Clint Cointment.
DOTD officials say this widening project is making the traffic flow in this area smoother, safer, and more convenient for drivers in this area.
