(The Daily Advertiser) – A state project to widen Interstate 10 from Lafayette to Breaux Bridge will be let out on bid in September.

The plan is to widen I-10 to six lanes from near the Interstate 49 interchange in Lafayette to the Breaux Bridge exit in St. Martin Parish, according to William Oliver, district engineer administrator, Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development.

Along eastbound I-10, an extra lane will be added in the median from Lafayette to Breaux Bridge, with a concrete barrier installed between eastbound and westbound lanes.

From Henderson to the Atchafalaya Basin bridge, the interstate will not be widened, Olivier said,

Concrete on existing lanes of I-10 also will be replaced.

The stretch of I-10 that crosses the Atchafalaya Basin, where many serious and fatal traffic crashes have occurred, snarling traffic for hours at times, will not be widened. That would involve acquiring environmental permits and could lead to additional crashes, Oliver said.

Plans are to maintain two lanes of traffic during construction and to work on the approach to the Basin bridge on weekends.

The project is estimated to cost between $100 and $125 million. The state is applying for a Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act grant to help pay for the project, Deidre Druilhet, DOTD spokesperson, said.