DOTD plans to fix U.S. 190 drains in Eunice

Drains with sharp drop-offs on U.S. 190 in Eunice will be altered to make them more vehicle friendly, Bill Olivier, state Department of Transportation and Development district engineer administrator said.
We are trying to work on that situation,” he said.
The plan is to build a frame that fits over the grate so the grate can be set to a higher elevation, Oliver said.
“I won’t say they will be flush, but they won’t be a deep hole. It will be something you can drive over,” he said.
Eunice Police Chief Randy Fontenot said he has heard complaints but there is no documentation on damages linked to the drains, he said.
Another complaint about the road is about its width and claims of wrecks.
Mayor Scott Fontenot said, “I know they’ve had people lose mirrors on that road. They have had tires busted.”
When people call City Hall to complain about the road, they are directed to the transportation department, he said.
“There is really nothing we can do to a state road,” he said.
Oliver said work on the drain fix will start in about “a week or so.”
“We are going to build a couple of those (frames) and try them out and see which ones works best, he said.
An earlier effort involved welding a frame on site. “It was just going too slow and too costly. It  would have taken us 50 years to do what they were doing,” he said.
There are 20 to 25 drains on U.S. 190 in Eunice targeted for the work, he said.
“We are not going to leave it alone until we get done this time,” he said.
Mayor Fontenot said the problem drains are from Martin Luther King Drive to 12th Street on U.S. 190 (Laurel Avenue).
Another concern made on The Eunice News’ Facebook page is the conversion of the road from four to five lanes caused a dangerous driving situation.
Oliver said the conversion reduced the severity of wrecks.
“We are doing this on many roads,” he said. Where you have a four-lane undivided roadway those are some of the worst roads we have for accidents and this is nationwide.”
The center turn lane results in a 30 to 50 percent reduction in crashes, he said.
There may be more incidents involving broken mirrors, he said.
“We have less of the T-bones where people turn left...” he said.
A road in Abbeville was converted from two lanes to three lanes and there was a 70 percent reduction in injuries, he aid.
The center lane also makes turning onto the road safer, he said.