Traffic stopped Wednesday at the Perkins Road Interstate 10 overpass.That’s because construction workers barricaded off the area to begin the city-parish project to repair the worn down bridge.A landmark to the Baton Rouge area, the overpass is most known for being a part of the annual St. Patrick’s day parade route and is historical to the neighborhood, said Public Works drainage and bridge engineer Jim Ferguson.About 10 years ago, the city-parish realized the bridge could be dangerous for cars, and the department began discussing plans to repair the overpass, said Ferguson, who is directing the project.The bridge dates back to 1937, and about 15,000 cars pass over the bridge each day, he said. After having public meetings, the Department of Public Works decided the overpass did not need to be torn down and completely rebuilt, and plans were made to rehabilitate the structure instead.”If you replace the bridge, it has to be brought up to new standards,”Ferguson said, explaining the city would have to widen the lanes and put sidewalks on the overpass.The construction project began Wednesday, and construction time is between 140 and 150 days, putting the project on track to be completed by August.”The decision was made to rehabilitate [the bridge] instead of replaceit … to keep its historic nature and keep the landmark in the area,” Ferguson said.Coastal Bridge Company LLC is contracting the $3 million project.Tough the bridge is owned by the city-parish, the state is administrating the contract through federal funds, Ferguson said.The repairs will include jacking up the spans that shifted after 72 years of travel and then repairing the caps, he said. The top of the bridge will include a new overlay.Devon Overall, Coastal Bridge Company engineer said the bridge was originally built on a fault, which caused the 20 spans underneath the bridge to shift, Overall said.The detour route includes turning onto South Acadian Thruway, cutting through Hundred Oaks Avenue and then back onto Perkins Road.”Just the bridge itself is closed,” Ferguson said.Though signs were placed along the road notifying motorists the bridge is closed, all the businesses in the area remain open, Ferguson said.David Remmetter owns Chelsea’s Cafe, which is located directly beside the overpass. He said Wednesday the restaurant is operating normal business hours.”I think we’re going to be OK,” he said.Construction workers left room for customers to park in the lot Wednesday, he said. Though some of the restaurant’s parking lot is no longer accessible because of the construction, additional parking space is available in the area, he said.The lunch crowd was normal on the first day of the construction, Remmetter said.Other businesses in the area expressed similar optimistic views Wednesday about the construction at the overpass.Cliff Boulden, general manager for Bet-R-Store supermarket, said the construction workers were putting up the fence, and the detour wasn’t going to affect the business.”I’m getting more positive,” Boulden said. “We have a lot of loyal customers.”Though the store managers can’t tell if the construction will affect business hours yet, they are remaining hopeful, Boulden said. He said the detour may increase business because drivers have to cut through the road where the supermarketis located.Bien Le, owner of Tre Bien, a yoga studio, expressed similar feelings.”It seems like the people in the neighborhood are very loyal,” Le said. “I’m sure they will go out of their way to come here.”While the construction will have short-term negative effects, overall the project will be good for the entire community, said Mark Peirce, The Royal Standard furniture store owner.”[We’re] very fortunate to have extremely loyal customers who will continue to shop in the area,” he said.—–Contact Joy Lukachick at [email protected]