Baton Rouge, La. – July 19, 2023 – Mayor-President Sharon Weston Broome and the MOVEBR program management team released proposed plans for the College Drive Corridor Enhancement Project at a public open house held at the Westdale Heights Academic Magnet (WHAM) School Tuesday night. 

To keep traffic moving on College Drive, the new plans incorporate best practices in access management to modernize the street and proactively manage access points for vehicles to the commercial businesses adjacent to the street. 

“In addition to adding capacity to some of our roads, building new sidewalks and multi-use paths, and revamping our entire traffic signal system, the MOVEBR program is also making improvements to some of our major corridors.” Mayor Broome said.  

One feature employed in the new design is a “backage” road, which is a service road behind existing fast-food businesses that will allow customers to line up for drive-through service without impeding the traffic on College Drive. 

In addition to getting traffic moving, public safety was a major factor behind the design of the College Drive improvements. Studies consistently show that well-managed roads are often 40 to 50 percent safer than poorly managed routes.

“Change is always hard,” Mayor Broome acknowledged, “but the improvements designed by the MOVEBR program will make College Drive more efficient for everyone. We anticipate better traffic flow, fewer crashes, a better shopping experience for businesses and customers, and easier access for area residents.” 

For those unable to attend the public open house, information about the College Drive Corridor Enhancement Project is available at https://movebr.brla.gov/form/college-dr-corridor-enhancement-project-page.