The Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development (LaDOTD) and the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) are proposing to construct a new location roadway in Northeastern Louisiana referred to as the Kansas Lane Connector. The Connector is the last segment of a five-segment project connecting the north side of Monroe to the east side of Monroe and Interstate 20. The entire project was proposed in the early 1970's. The other four segments of the five-segment project have already been constructed.
The proposed project would be a partially controlled roadway between US 80 and existing Kansas Lane to the south and US 165 and the Forsythe Avenue Extension to the north. The project is located partially in the City of Monroe and Ouachita Parish.
The Kansas Lane Connector will improve local area congestion and most importantly increase area-wide mobility and safety. The Connector will provide a roadway between the residential and commercial areas developing in northwestern Monroe and the residential, commercial office, retail, and industrial development in eastern and southeastern Monroe where currently none exists. The Kansas Lane Connector will offer a more direct and alternate route between these two rapidly growing areas while bypassing a currently congested intersection.
ARCADIS is managing the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS), which will examine the social, economic, and environmental impacts associated with the proposed new location roadway. The EIS will be prepared pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, FHWA regulations (23 Code of Federal Regulations [CFR] Part 771). The study area includes extensive wetlands, a bayou crossing, and impacts to a residential neighborhood. For these reasons, the public involvement campaign led by ARCADIS includes extensive coordination with local stakeholders. Additionally, the campaign offers a website, a toll-free hotline, and several public meetings as opportunities for the public to ask questions or voice their opinion about the project.
