BATON ROUGE, La. — The Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development will conduct inspections on the Interstate 10 Mississippi River Bridge (Horace Wilkinson Bridge) in East Baton Rouge Parish beginning June 22. During this routine inspection, crews will examine the bridge to make sure it remains structurally sound to carry vehicular traffic.
These inspections occur every two years and are important, as this bridge carries over 100,000 vehicles daily. Typically, crews conduct the examination using underbridge inspection trucks and man-lifts, which require multiple lane closures. To cause minimal impact on traffic, crews will use a rope system to access most parts of the bridge. This method was used last year for inspections on the Crescent City Connection Bridge in New Orleans and proved to have significantly less impact on traffic, as well as provide a more thorough inspection of the bridge.
The rope system approach does not require lane closures, except for brief rolling closures to needed drop off inspectors and equipment twice a day. Rolling lane closures will be conducted on the following days:
- Mon., June 22 – Sat., June 27
- Mon., June 29 – Thurs., July 2
- Mon., July 6 – Sat., July 11
- Mon., July 13 – Sat., July 18
- Mon., July 20 – Sat., July 25
- Mon., July 27 – Sat., Aug. 1
- Mon., Aug. 3 – Sat., Aug. 8
A a portion of the bridge cannot be reached with rope access and will requires the westbound right lane to be closed from 4-11 a.m. Sat., Aug. 1; the eastbound right lane will be closed from 4-11 a.m. Sun., Aug. 2.
All bridge inspections are weather-dependent and may be rescheduled in the event of inclement weather. Exercise caution when traveling through work zone areas and be on the lookout for work crews and their equipment.
Motorists can access the latest updates on real-time traffic and road conditions using the 511 Traveler Information System by dialing 511 from their telephone and saying the route or region on which they are seeking information. Out-of-state travelers can call 888-ROAD-511 (888-762-3511).
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