St. Tammany Parish has many thriving communities and great schools making the parish a great place to live. The popular parish is now facing traffic concerns with its growing residential population. I-12 became a major concern after four people were killed in a multi-vehicle crash on I-12 at the Louisiana 21 overpass in May of 2018.

U.S. Senator John Kennedy expressed his concern saying, “The widening of Interstate 12 is critical to public safety. After the Memorial Day weekend fatalities, I started working with state and local leaders to convince Secretary Chao that this funding was necessary to save lives.”

The project received a $25 million federal grant from the U.S. Transportation on December 6, 2018 to complete the project. Along with the federal grant, St. Tammany Parish will provide $7 million and Louisiana will provide $5 million.

“This is a huge win for all of us – the St. Tammany community and the people who travel this interstate,’’ St. Tammany Parish President Pat Brister said Thursday. “To see that the federal government has chosen to support our mission in making our interstate system safer by awarding this $25 million BUILD Grant, reinforces the necessity of this project. We can’t wait to get started.”

Described as a dangerous bottleneck, the section of I-12 that runs through western St. Tammany Parish will be widened. The state will add lanes to I-12 from Louisiana 21 to Louisiana 59 which include the congested area between Louisiana 21 and the Tchefuncte River.  The bridge over the Tchefuncte will have three lanes and an auxiliary lane going each direction.

“These resources will go toward critical infrastructure projects in Louisiana that will create jobs and support economic growth. Widening I-12 will eliminate unsafe bottlenecks in St. Tammany Parish, and a new bridge and roadwork connecting South Lafourche Airport, Highway 1, and Port Fourchon will facilitate industrial traffic and improve highway safety,” said U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy.

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