New and improved Twin Span opens tomorrow

Drivers can once again cruise over the Twin Span. Dignitaries will snip the ribbon on a portion of the I-10 bridge across Lake Pontchartrain today and traffic will return tomorrow morning. The first new bridge will accommodate eastbound traffic; later this month, the existing eastbound bridge will be reconfigured for westbound traffic, allowing construction teams room to position barge-mounted construction equipment to finish the second bridge and the approaches. Completion of the second bridge is scheduled for mid- to late-2011. Work began in August 2006 to build a bridge across the lake that was heavily damaged by Hurricane Katrina. The storm surge knocked out 437 sections of the old eight-foot bridges and dropped 58 of them into the lake. The new structure is 30 feet above the water, with 12-foot shoulders and enhanced materials and construction techniques that should withstand future storms. The project — touted as the largest public works project in Louisiana history — cost $803 million. Boh Bros. Construction Co. and TKM Joint Venture are ahead of schedule; the first new bridge wasn’t slated to open until later this year.