2022 Regular Session ENROLLED
SENATE BILL NO. 435
BY SENATORS CORTEZ, BARROW, BOUDREAUX, BOUIE, FESI, FIELDS,
HENSGENS, JACKSON, MILLIGAN, FRED MILLS, MIZELL,
PEACOCK, POPE, PRICE, STINE, TALBOT AND WOMACK AND
REPRESENTATIVES FREIBERG, LARVADAIN AND PIERRE
1 AN ACT
2 To enact R.S. 32:57(J) and 268, relative to the Louisiana Highway Regulatory Act; to
3 establish the Atchafalaya Basin Bridge as a highway safety corridor; to provide for
4 camera safety devices; to provide relative to traffic regulations; to provide relative
5 to speed limits; to provide relative to driving on the right side, overtaking, and
6 passing; to provide for signs; to provide for penalties; and to provide for related
7 matters.
8 Be it enacted by the Legislature of Louisiana:
9 Section 1. R.S. 32:57(J) and 268 are hereby enacted to read as follows:
10 §57. Penalties; alternatives to citation
11 * * *
12 J. If a person operating a motor vehicle violates the provisions of this
13 Chapter while on the Atchafalaya Basin Bridge, the fine shall be two times the
14 standard fine imposed. For purposes of this Subsection, the Atchafalaya Basin
15 Bridge shall mean the Atchafalaya Elevated Expressway designated by Act No.
16 793 of the 1989 Regular Session of the Legislature as the Louisiana Airborne
17 Memorial Bridge.
18 * * *
19 §268. Atchafalaya Basin Bridge; highway safety corridor; camera usage; signs
20 A.(1) The legislature finds and declares that the Atchafalaya Basin
21 Bridge shall be identified as a highway safety corridor based on data analytics
ACT No. 426
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1 that have identified this segment of highway as a high collision crash zone
2 resulting in severe injury and fatality due primarily to driver behavior such as
3 speeding, aggressive driving, impairment, and distracted driving.
4 Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, including R.S. 32:267 et
5 seq., the Department of Transportation and Development shall take all steps
6 necessary to implement the provisions of this Section.
7 (2) The legislature further finds and declares that the department shall
8 implement measures to reduce safety risks to both law enforcement and
9 individuals driving across the Atchafalaya Basin Bridge including but not
10 limited to the implementation of camera safety devices and installation of
11 additional signage.
12 (3) For purposes of implementation of this Section, the Atchafalaya Basin
13 Bridge shall mean the Atchafalaya Elevated Expressway designated by Act No.
14 793 of the 1989 Regular Session of the Legislature as the Louisiana Airborne
15 Memorial Bridge.
16 B.(1) The department shall install camera safety devices on the
17 Atchafalaya Basin Bridge. The department may consult with the Safety
18 Corridor Advisory Group to determine the quantity, placement, duration of
19 use, and operation of the cameras. The department may monitor the cameras
20 or may contract with a third-party to monitor the cameras. The department
21 may determine whether the cameras should be utilized continuously or only
22 during certain hours.
23 (2) The department shall establish a process for identification of motor
24 vehicles traveling in excess of the posted speed limit, issuance of warnings and
25 citations, and collection of fines.
26 (3) The department shall adopt policies and procedures for the issuance
27 of citations and the collection of fines authorized pursuant to this Section in
28 accordance with the Administrative Procedure Act.
29 C. The department shall place the following signs, in compliance with the
30 standards set forth in the Manual of Uniform Traffic Control Devices, on the
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1 Atchafalaya Basin Bridge:
2 (1) Signs placed at the eastbound entrance of the bridge and signs placed
3 at the westbound entrance of the bridge that state "Safety Corridor, Fines
4 Doubled for Speeding and Other Violations". The department shall design the
5 color, size, and shape of the signs in a manner that safely alerts and informs
6 drivers that they are entering a highway safety corridor. The department may
7 place additional signs designed pursuant to this Paragraph along the bridge as
8 necessary.
9 (2) Eight sets of speed limit signs equally spaced on the eastbound
10 portion of the bridge and eight sets of speed limit signs equally spaced on the
11 westbound portion of the bridge.
12 (3) Six sets of "Trucks Right Lane Only" signs equally spaced on the
13 eastbound portion of the bridge and six sets of "Trucks Right Lane Only" signs
14 equally spaced on the westbound portion of the bridge.
15 D. Nothing in this Section shall be construed as precluding any police
16 officer from enforcing traffic laws on the Atchafalaya Basin Bridge. However,
17 no person shall be subject to a citation issued pursuant to this Section if a
18 citation for the same offense was also issued by a police officer.
19 E.(1) There is hereby created in the state treasury a special fund to be
20 designated and hereafter referred to as the Atchafalaya Basin Bridge Safety
21 Fund, hereinafter referred to as the "fund".
22 (2) Any monies collected as fines pursuant to R.S. 32:57(J), as a result of
23 traffic camera safety device data, shall be deposited into the fund.
24 (3) Subject to legislative appropriation, monies in the fund shall be used
25 first to fund the department's expenditures necessary to carry out the
26 provisions of this Section. Thereafter, at the conclusion of each fiscal year, any
27 unexpended monies in the fund shall be divided equally between the parishes
28 of Iberville and St. Martin and shall be remitted to entities or organizations
29 within each parish in the same proportions as fines collected by the parishes
30 when traffic violations are issued by a law enforcement officer.
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1 (4) All unexpended and unencumbered monies in the fund at the end of
2 the fiscal year shall remain in the fund.
PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
GOVERNOR OF THE STATE OF LOUISIANA
APPROVED:
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