LAFAYETTE, La. (KLFY) – Right now, North St. Antoine Street merges into a frontage road near Interstate 10. But that will be changing soon.

The Lafayette Consolidated Government is planning to extend North St. Antoine.

“We’re actively acquiring rights of way through the private properties, some we have in hand already, others we’re trying to negotiate,” said LCG Public Works Director Mark Dubroc.

North St. Antoine Street will be extended starting just north of I-10 and ending at West Pont des Mouton Road. The extension will cost $12.6 million.

It will be a three lane road and include a boulevard with a median north of Moore Park. There will also be seven foot wide sidewalks that can be used as bike paths.

Dubroc said it will give the city another major north-south route and provide another access point to Moore Park.

“It’s to facilitate traffic in and out of Moore Park and to ease some of the burden on University as well as I-49,” he said.

Arthur Variet, Sr. of Carencro thinks the extension will be good for residents and businesses.

“Definitely going to help with traffic because I get stuck in it every morning and every evening and I think by having a third way of getting home it will be great,” Variet said.

LCG will have to get permits from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers which shouldn’t be a problem.

“We do have two major drainage crossings in that price tag, so that’s always an enhancement. When you can improve an existing drainage crossing and we will do that,” said Dubroc.

The project is expected to go out to bid late next year. It should take about two years to build the extension.