BATON ROUGE — Construction has started on a 1.3-mile sidewalk and bike path project along Goodwood Boulevard in the Broadmoor neighborhood.

City-Parish officials and District 6 Metro Council Member Cleve Dunn Jr. held a groundbreaking to kick off the Move EBR project, which runs from Airline Highway to Sharp Road.

The project will add new sidewalks on both sides of Goodwood Boulevard, along with bike lane restriping, pavement markings, signage upgrades and crosswalk improvements. Sidewalks will generally be 5 feet wide, expanding to 7 feet where they run adjacent to the curb.

New crosswalk striping is also planned near Broadmoor Elementary School and Broadmoor High School. The corridor serves more than 1,500 students and school staff and connects to about 2,000 Broadmoor residences.

Bobby Rayburn, a minister at Broadmoor Baptist Church, said the need is visible on the street every day.

"They're older adults, they're young adults, they're children. Not only do the children go to school, but, you know, the children that live in the neighborhood like to ride their bikes and walk with their families," Rayburn said.

Rayburn added that the project has been a long time coming for the community.

"I think it just creates kind of a way for people to realize how wonderful a community Broadmoor is," he said.

Fred Raiford, EBR Director of Transportation and Drainage, said the improvements go beyond just adding sidewalks.

"I think this community and the adjoining communities are going to be truly enhanced and be able to provide crosswalks, provide public access, provide access for the schools and everything that needs to be done to address that in the future," Raiford said.

The Goodwood project is designed to connect with other Move EBR projects in the area. Jason Crane, the Move EBR Deputy Program Manager, said Sharp Road is part of that broader plan.

"Sharp Road is a corridor project from Old Hammond Highway to Florida that will include some intersection improvements and a multi-use path," Crane said.

The project is also planned to link with future sidewalk work on Cora Drive. ProCivil Construction is the contractor, and Sustainable Design Solutions handled the engineering design.

Drivers should expect changes along Goodwood Boulevard as construction continues.