There’s an infrastructure crisis in Baton Rouge that needs to be fixed. With particularly poor walking paths and nearly no bike lanes on the major streets, a simple walk around the neighborhood shows how much help the city really needs.
The city’s bike paths may have already reached a panic point. In 2015, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention released a study ranking Louisiana third highest in cyclist mortality rates from 1975 to 2012, with one-third of people dying in accidents. However, those numbers have gone down since 1975, though not by nearly as much as many other states. The larger issue in East Baton Rouge Parish, in particular, is there are only 13 biking lanes in the entire parish. The scarier problem is some of the larger streets don’t have any, such as Lee Drive. It’s disturbing that of the almost 2700 miles of Baton Rouge streets only 27.6 have actual biking lanes — a whopping one percent.
For comparison’s sake, New Orleans, the most populated city in Louisiana, has bike lanes along some of its longest and busiest streets. The famous Saint Charles Ave. which runs from Lee Circle to Tulane and Loyola Universities has shared biking lanes. There are more examples within New Orleans of its improvement, and Baton Rouge desperately needs to follow the lead.
The walking paths are not any better, especially in the areas surrounding the University such as the Tigerland area. The best walking route is near the road, often littered with trash and debris from car crashes and common floods. The problem becomes particularly treacherous when considering how many people go to Tigerland or live in that area. While the University itself does a good job with offering the bus that can bring people to and from those areas, a problem arises when the bus is down or it is too late at night. It is simply not safe for students to walk in that area.
The safety is not only about the inadequacy of the walking paths but the inadequate lighting leading to a sketchy and dark walk back to campus. The city of Baton Rouge should be prioritizing the safety of its citizens by providing adequate walking paths, both safe and clear of debris.
Baton Rouge must begin to change these conditions. With the 100 million dollar surplus of money the conditions are too poor to continue as they are. Louisiana needs to use that money to start construction projects within Baton Rouge. It is the responsibility of the state to keep its citizens safe.
Louisiana’s state capital has to do a better job of protecting its citizens and setting an example for the rest of the state. Baton Rouge needs these infrastructure improvements to operate as a fully functional city.
Miles Jordan is a 19-year-old liberal arts sophomore from New Orleans, Louisiana.
