Louisiana Highway 98

From the west, LA 98 begins at a junction with LA 97 (Evangeline Highway) and LA 1123 (Des Cannes Highway) west of Iota, a small town in Acadia Parish. The route heads due east as an undivided two-lane highway on Des Cannes Highway through rural farmland, broken briefly by a wooded area on either side of Bayou des Cannes. LA 98 follows West Kennedy Avenue into Iota and intersects LA 91. The two highways zigzag through town concurrently, south onto Frey Street, southeast onto Duson Avenue (the main street), and southwest onto 5th Street. About 0.5 miles (0.80 km) beyond the local high school, LA 98 turns due east onto St. Joseph Avenue and heads out of town.[2][3][4]

LA 98 crosses the Acadiana Railway (AKDN) line at Maxie and zigzags briefly onto LA 13, connecting with Crowley to the south and Eunice to the north. For the next 11 miles (18 km), the highway takes a winding course southeastward through Roberts Cove and into the city of Rayne.[2][3][4]

In Rayne, LA 98 intersects LA 35 just north of that highway's interchange with I-10 (exit 87), connecting with Lafayette to the east and Lake Charles to the west. LA 98 turns south and overlaps LA 35 through the diamond interchange, where the roadway is briefly widened to a divided four-lane capacity. Once the highway leaves the commercial corridor situated near the exit, the median is discontinued as LA 35 and LA 98 proceed south along what is locally known as The Boulevard. After about six blocks, LA 98 turns east onto Jeff Davis Avenue and returns to two-lane capacity while LA 35 continues ahead toward the downtown area situated along US 90.[2][3][4]

Shortly after exiting the Rayne city limits, LA 98 turns north onto Grand Prairie Highway and crosses back over I-10 without intersecting it. After passing through Arceneaux, LA 98 resumes its eastward course at Castille and crosses LA 95 at Mire, north of Duson. The highway has a brief concurrency with LA 343 that ends at a T-intersection marking the boundary of three parishes: Acadia, Lafayette, and St. Landry.[2][3][4]

LA 98 continues due east into Lafayette Parish and intersects LA 93 at a roundabout located north of Scott. The route follows Gloria Switch Road into the sprawling, rural city of Carencro, located adjacent to the larger city of Lafayette. LA 98 intersects LA 182 (North University Avenue) then begins to straddle the line between the two cities. Shortly after making two 90° turns, LA 98 passes through a diamond interchange with the concurrent I-49/US 167 at exit 2. The highway continues east for another 4.4 miles (7.1 km) until reaching its terminus at a T-intersection with Sawmill Highway, a local road.[2][4][5]

LA 98 has several functional classifications over the course of its route, as determined by the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development (La DOTD). It is classified as an urban principal arterial in Carencro and an urban minor arterial in Rayne. Outside of these cities, the highway ranges from a rural major collector through the Iota area to a rural local road over the lightly traveled portions near Maxie and Mire. Daily traffic volume in 2013 peaked at 18,500 vehicles in Rayne and 7,000 through Carencro. The rural portions of the route generally averaged less than 3,000 vehicles daily with a low of 970 reported between Maxie and Roberts Cove.[6] The posted speed limit is generally 55 mph (90 km/h) in rural areas, reduced to between 30 mph (50 km/h) and 45 mph (70 km/h) through town.[2]