I-10's westward run through Louisiana's Capitol city is a fairly typical one as urban freeways go, until it reaches the downtown area. Approaching downtown, I-10 through traffic (the main east-west road for the Gulf Coast region) suddenly heels a SHARP left turn at the I-110 interchange and ascends onto the Mississippi River bridge to much smaller Port Allen, LA and on towards Lafayette, Lake Charles, Texas and beyond. The main interchange for Port Allen itself is an interesting flattened 'Catherine Wheel' design that could make a worthy HFotW target in its own right. Coming in from the west and descending from the bridge, I-10 traffic meets an even 'Y', with I-10 taking the sharp right and traffic to northbound I-110 taking the sharp left.
North of the interchange, I-110 passes through a maze of on and off ramps, many on the left (in a manner similar to I-90/94's run through downtown Chicago), before passing through grinding right and then left curves (just off the map) on its trip to the city's north side.
An interesting additional feature are the feeder ramps between the bridge and Nicholson Drive (LA 30), two blocks from the riverfront. Also interesting is that this interchange overlooks 'Expressway Park', a small neighborhood playlot.
This bridge is a true 'choke point' in the USA's highway network, as there is no truly satisfactory alternate for the heavy through traffic here. One could take US 61/190 (Airline Highway) across the river and LA 1 (Alexander Drive) back to I-10 as an emergency detour here, but that routing involves surface street driving. *I Advocate*: Developing an 'even' 3di bypass of Baton Rouge, including a new Mississippi River bridge, to provide that needed redundancy.
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Just follow this sign to make your OWN great signs!!!! |
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This page © Michael G. Koerner |
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