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Regular Session, 2011 ENROLLED
SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 127
BY SENATOR ALARIO
A RESOLUTION
To urge and request the Department of Transportation and Development to prioritize the
replacement of the Leo Kerner/Barataria Bridge in Barataria, Louisiana.
WHEREAS, the Leo Kerner/Barataria Bridge in Barataria, Louisiana is the sole
land-based connection that the residents of Barataria have to the rest of Jefferson Parish; and
WHEREAS, the Leo Kerner/Barataria Bridge has an outdated design where the
middle raises and rotates for ships, making the bridge vulnerable to damage from barge and
boat strikes; and
WHEREAS, several collisions with the vessels have caused closure of the bridge for
repairs in recent years, including, most recently, the closure of the bridge for repairs after
a barge struck the bridge on May 31, 2011; and
WHEREAS, the bridge received a $400,000 facelift in 2008, which also required a
temporary closure of the bridge; and
WHEREAS, the bridge is slated to eventually be replaced by a $72 million vastly
updated structure which will greatly reduce the frequency of the need to shut the bridge
down for repairs; and
WHEREAS, the replacement of Leo Kerner/Barataria Bridge will provide much
needed and much delayed relief to the residents of Barataria, Louisiana; and
WHEREAS, it is urgent that the Department of Transportation and Development
issue the notice to proceed to start the final design of the new bridge.
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Senate of the Legislature of Louisiana
hereby urges and requests the Department of Transportation and Development to prioritize
the replacement of the Leo Kerner/Barataria Bridge in Barataria, Louisiana. SR NO. 127 ENROLLED
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BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be transmitted to the
governor of the state of Louisiana and the secretary of the Department of Transportation and
Development.
PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE