What’s up with that

Q: Can’t the city-parish simplify the intersection of Coursey Boulevard at Airline Highway?

A: Yes, they can, and they are—sort of.

One of the most daunting driving tasks in the city is crossing the intersection of Coursey Boulevard and Airline Highway.

Heading south, right after a traffic light at Cedarcrest Avenue, Coursey transforms from a two-lane road into a five-lane conundrum, replete with work-weary commuters who just want to get home—but many of whom who have no idea which lane will get them there. If you’ve been there, you no doubt remember feeling confused your first time.

The city-parish’s chief traffic engineer, Ingolf Partenheimer, knows the stress all too well. His team is working to improve it. “One of the things we’re doing is re-striping, moving some signs and putting in some overhead signs,” Partenheimer says. “We want to try and make it (so) that the drivers have no chance of misinterpretation.”

Neel-Schaffer, a privately owned engineering firm, helped with the construction phase in 2001. This intersection has become a headache for them as well.

When asked, the folks at Neel-Schaffer declined to comment because they are now tangled in a lawsuit regarding that very intersection.

However, the traffic engineers haven’t had many issues or complaints, Partenheimer says. They aren’t going to push the panic or patrol-car button yet. But they are working to alleviate the constant commotion.

“We’re trying to improve on this in an engineered way so the cops don’t have to be there,” he says. “As traffic engineers, it’s marked correctly. However, there’s some driver confusion we need to take care of.”