DOTD hopes to ease the pain of local drivers and part of the plan involves a new configuration starting Monday evening.

Rodney Mallett of the DOTD said, “we are changing the rules of the game in the middle of the game.”

DOTD provided details about the new configuration below:

There will be a new lane configuration on the La. 1 southbound Intracoastal Waterway Bridge in West Baton Rouge Parish beginning this evening, March 25. As preparation continues on emergency girder repairs, after 6 p.m. tonight the left lane will be closed from the bottom of the bridge to the midway point of the bridge where the traffic will switch back to the left lane. Traffic will continue in one lane across the bridge as has been the case since a truck damaged a girder on the bottom of the bridge last Tuesday. The change in configuration is because the contractor working on the joint repairs has finished in the closed right-hand lane and will now be working on the upslope of the left lane in the southbound direction while emergency repairs continue in the right lane. DOTD estimates that by Friday all of the joints on the southbound approach will be finished. The department will continue to maximize the unexpected closure of a lane to ensure that the total repair of this bridge, as originally intended happens as soon as possible. We continue to try and find ways to ensure safe conditions and reduced congestion.

The DOTD hopes these changes will help hurry the process of finishing the joint repair project.

In the meantime, DOTD pointed out that the hope is that the rubber mats help a lot.

The Louisiana State Police is helping DOTD with this project.

When the traffic backs up on the Interstate, it is considered a safety issue and LSP said at this time troopers will block LA 1 Southbound in order to clear I-10.