Louisiana Highway 181 (LA 181) is a state highway located in central Louisiana. It runs 4.22 miles (6.79 km) in a north–south direction from LA 115 in Lone Pine to U.S. Highway 71 (US 71) in Cheneyville.

Louisiana Highway 181 marker
Louisiana Highway 181
Route of LA 181 highlighted in red
Route information
Maintained by Louisiana DOTD
Length4.216 mi[1] (6.785 km)
Existed1955 renumbering–present
Major junctions
South end LA 115 in Lone Pine
Major intersections I-49 south of Cheneyville
North end US 71 in Cheneyville
Location
CountryUnited States
StateLouisiana
ParishesEvangeline, Rapides
Highway system
  • Louisiana State Highway System
LA 180 LA 182

The route connects the small town of Cheneyville in southeastern Rapides Parish with Interstate 49 (I-49) and points along rural LA 115.

Route description

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From the south, LA 181 begins at an intersection with LA 115 at a point known as Lone Pine in northern Evangeline Parish. LA 115 heads east toward Bunkie and south toward St. Landry. From this intersection, LA 181 proceeds north along Cheneyville Road. 0.6 miles (0.97 km) later, after curving to the northeast, LA 181 crosses into Rapides Parish.[2][3][4]

1.6 miles (2.6 km) across the parish line, LA 181 passes through an interchange with I-49, which connects to Alexandria on the north and Opelousas on the south. LA 181 continues northeast for another 1.4 miles (2.3 km), where it enters the town of Cheneyville on Greenwood Avenue. Immediately after crossing the Union Pacific Railroad (UP) tracks, the route ends at an intersection with US 71 (Front Street). US 71 parallels I-49 northward toward Alexandria and heads southeast toward Baton Rouge.[2][5][6]

The route is classified as a rural minor collector by the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development (La DOTD) with an average daily traffic volume of 620 in 2013.[7] It has a posted speed limit of 55 mph (90 km/h), reduced to 45 mph (70 km/h) entering Cheneyville and 35 mph (55 km/h) as it approaches US 71.[2] LA 181 is an undivided two-lane highway for the majority of its route, widening briefly to a divided four-lane highway through the interchange with I-49.[2]

History

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In the original Louisiana Highway system in use between 1921 and 1955, the modern LA 181 made up the northern portion of State Route 271.[8][9] Route 271 was designated in 1928 by an act of the state legislature.[10] It roughly followed the present route of LA 115 from LA 106 west of St. Landry northward along Bayou Cocodrie to Lone Pine.[3][8] From there, it continued along the present route of LA 181 to US 71 in Cheneyville. Here, it made a jog southeast onto US 71 then north through town across Bayou Boeuf, ending at Bayou Road.[5][9] The route was originally projected to continue northward to Echo,[10][11] but no such roadway was built in the pre-1955 system.[9][12]

La 181—From a junction with La 115 at or near Lonepine north to a junction with La-US 71 at or near Cheneyville.

— 1955 legislative route description[13]

LA 181 was created with the 1955 Louisiana Highway renumbering following the portion of former Route 271 from Lone Pine to Cheneyville.[13] Its route has remained the same to the present day.[3][5][14][15]

Future

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La DOTD is currently engaged in a program that aims to transfer about 5,000 miles (8,000 km) of state-owned roadways to local governments over the next several years.[16] Under this plan of "right-sizing" the state highway system, the entire route of LA 181 is proposed for deletion as it does not meet a significant interurban travel function.[17][18]

Major intersections

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ParishLocationmi[1]kmDestinationsNotes
EvangelineLone Pine0.0000.000  LA 115 – Bunkie, St. LandrySouthern terminus
Rapides2.234–
2.396
3.595–
3.856
  I-49 – Alexandria, OpelousasExit 56 on I-49
Cheneyville4.2166.785  US 71 – Alexandria, Baton RougeNorthern terminus
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "La DOTD GIS Data". Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development. September 2015. Retrieved May 17, 2017.
  2. ^ a b c d "Overview Map of LA 181" (Map). Google Maps. Retrieved July 21, 2013.
  3. ^ a b c Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development, Office of Multimodal Planning (February 2012). Evangeline Parish (PDF) (Map). Scale not given. Baton Rouge: Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development. Retrieved July 21, 2013.
  4. ^ Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development, Office of Multimodal Planning (February 2012). District 03: Official Control Section Map, Construction and Maintenance (PDF) (Map). Scale not given. Baton Rouge: Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development. Retrieved July 21, 2013.
  5. ^ a b c Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development, Office of Multimodal Planning (February 2012). Rapides Parish (East Section) (PDF) (Map). Scale not given. Baton Rouge: Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development. Retrieved July 21, 2013.
  6. ^ Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development, Office of Multimodal Planning (February 2012). District 08: Official Control Section Map, Construction and Maintenance (PDF) (Map). Scale not given. Baton Rouge: Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development. Retrieved July 21, 2013.
  7. ^ "La DOTD GIS". Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development. 2013. Archived from the original on October 16, 2013. Retrieved July 25, 2013.
  8. ^ a b Louisiana Department of Highways, Traffic and Planning Section (1950). Evangeline Parish (Map) (January 1, 1955 ed.). Scale not given. Baton Rouge: Louisiana Department of Highways.
  9. ^ a b c Louisiana Department of Highways, Traffic and Planning Section (1947). Rapides Parish (South Section) (Map) (January 1, 1955 ed.). Scale not given. Baton Rouge: Louisiana Department of Highways.
  10. ^ a b "Act No. 294, House Bill No. 791". State-Times. Baton Rouge. July 31, 1928. p. 10B.
  11. ^ Louisiana Highway Commission, Photo-Map Department (c. 1930). Rapides Parish (Map) (c. June 1931 ed.). Scale not given. Baton Rouge: Louisiana Highway Commission.
  12. ^ Louisiana Highway Commission, State Wide Highway Planning Survey (1937). Rapides Parish (South Section) (Map). Scale not given. Baton Rouge: Louisiana Highway Commission.
  13. ^ a b "Act No. 40, House Bill No. 311". State-Times. Baton Rouge. June 18, 1955. p. 4B.
  14. ^ Louisiana Department of Highways, Traffic and Planning Section (1950). Evangeline Parish (Map) (January 1, 1958 ed.). Scale not given. Baton Rouge: Louisiana Department of Highways.
  15. ^ Louisiana Department of Highways, Traffic and Planning Section (1956). Rapides Parish (South Section) (Map) (January 1, 1958 ed.). Scale not given. Baton Rouge: Louisiana Department of Highways.
  16. ^ "Right-Sizing the State Highway System" (PDF). Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development. April 2013. p. 3. Retrieved July 25, 2013.
  17. ^ Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development, Office of Multimodal Planning (March 2, 2017). Right-Size the State Highway System: Evangeline Parish (PDF) (Map). Scale not given. Baton Rouge: Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development. Retrieved June 25, 2017.
  18. ^ Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development, Office of Multimodal Planning (March 2, 2017). Right-Size the State Highway System: Rapides Parish (East Section) (PDF) (Map). Scale not given. Baton Rouge: Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development. Retrieved June 25, 2017.
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