Lafayette-based state senator Paige Cortez has introduced a bill that would raise speeding tickets on the Atchafalaya Basin Bridge by five times the current amount.

Currently, violators get hit with fines of up to $175 and up to $500 for subsequent offenses.

Cortez has proposed Senate Bill 435 that would raise first-time speeding fines to $875 on the 18-mile bridge. Repeat offenders would be hit with a $2,500 fine and up to 90 days of jail time if the bill passes.

Louisiana State Senate
Louisiana State Senate
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The speed limit on the bridge is 60 mph for cars and 55 mph for trucks.

Cortez wants to see 28 speed limit signs added to the bridge.

Also under the plan, eight sets of speed limit signs would be spaced equally on the eastbound side of the bridge and eight on the west side.

Additionally, six sets of "trucks right lane only" would be put on both the eastbound and westbound sides.

The basin bridge has long been a topic of discussion around south Louisiana. If you've passed on it once, you know that many do not obey the speed limit, yet we all get extremely frustrated when a crash shuts the bridge down for an extended period of time.

Perhaps steep fines would deter speeders and erratic driving on the bridge.

How about you -- do you think this is a good idea by our state senate or just a money grab?

[Click Here to Read Senate Bill No. 435 in Its Entirety]

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