Crossing the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway

As part of my Train Odyssey 4, when I arrived in New Orleans after taking the AMTRAK "City of New Orleans" train from Chicago, I realized that I still had enough daylight remaining to check an item off my bucket list, namely to cross the world's longest bridge, the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway.
This video shows most of the crossing over and back, in the SUV that I rented near the trains station for about 2.5 hours, required to get from the car rental facility to the Causeway, drive it and back, and drive back to drop off the car before they closed for the day.

[@Rebel9668]

I remember riding across that causeway back in the 70's in the back seat of my folks '71 Charger. Out in the middle of it it seemed like we were in the middle of the ocean with no land to be seen in either direction.

[@Rebel9668]

@@jaxxonalaric4257 You're right, I don't care, lol.

[@Radi0he4d1]

It's insane. 15 minutes you ride and realize the bridge IS NOT ENDING

[@brookiebakerie]

I remember it as a kid in the 80s and I also remember not being able to see land on either end of the bridge from the middle.

[@kppr55]

They have their own Police Dept that patrols the bridge. Causeway Police and is commissioned by the State of Louisiana. They patrol the bridge 24/7

[@Sasfoot]

I could never drive over this. I've had lifelong acrophobia and it took me until my 20s just to be able to go over the Verrazano without my knees shaking. Even driving 2 miles over the Great South Bay Bridge wears me out, and that's a lower bridge like this one.

[@user-rz8bu6vl8x]

I have the same problem. If I know a bridge is coming up, I take the nearest exit! People laugh at me but it's not funny, didn't have a problem with bridges until I was in my 40's.

[@edeltresswallace6704]

I really enjoyed watching the video. I was born in Louisiana and there are so many places I have yet to see. This video was perfect considering the fact that I'm unable to physically travel at the moment. It was real enough for me bumps in the road and all and you covered it quite well. I have always wondered what the view was like actually driving over it, you took the guess work out of it for me...Thank you for the ride. Blessings to you .

[@ninawade3055]

I enjoyed your video and I don’t think I would like driving across Lake Pontchartrain Causeway, to long and to much water! lol

[@thandombelu9948]

Wow

[@lindsaymoore7232]

Hi Paul, what a great video. Gotta have a good car to cross this bridge! Nothing but a sea of blue. I'm catching up on all your videos now. Keep up the good work!

[@KSwst]

That was fun, THANKS.

[@jetspotter19]

thanks for posting, Youtuuba. very interesting, didnt know about that it existed. Quite the achievement to build a bridge that long. saves a bit of time than going all the way around. cheers!

[@pontiacGXPfan]

i couldn't deal with the prospect of driving over this

[@Therealhousewifeoftexas]

What a brave drive...thanks for your video!!! You were very entertaining with your commentary.

[@jFrosty2842]

After an accident, If drivers in the left lane move over to the far left and the drivers in the right lane move over to the far right. The emergency vehicles go up the middle. I have seen this done in Europe...it works if everybody corperates.

[@ArnoldStafford]

I don't know of I could drive it but would try

[@hamshackleton]

That older bridge would certainly exercise your shocks!

[@GLICKMIRE]

I don't know if this is still possible due to the light pollution, but during the mid 1960s, I would drive across at night and marvel at the distant lights popping into view as they came up from behind the earth's curvature.

[@ArtistGoodLefty]

The earth does not curve. You're talking your viewing perspective. It's like looking at utility poles in the distant. They seem low to the ground but are the same height. Earth is not a globe

[@trueduckcommander]

@@ArtistGoodLefty holy shit a flat earther in the wild. What a rare sighting

[@imnothere2206]

@@ArtistGoodLefty holy fuck a flat fuckin earther🌎

[@timothythomas2705]

I remember the first time I cross it in 1965. there was only one bridge. cross it again in 69, the second one just opened. cross many times from 76 to 79 when i lived down there.

[@faisalahmed1089]

Must’ve been unreal to cross it the first time

[@timothythomas2705]

@@faisalahmed1089 i was excited about it because my great grandmother talked about all week!

[@ArtistGoodLefty]

I watched a show and came back and he's still driving. No way I'd ever cross this lol

[@trinidasparacino601]

Alot of the bridges in Louisiana are made like that I'm guessing because of hurricanes they have sustain the windforce and the water that beats against it...but we always said get ready to get on the horse lol.

[@ines3171]

Youtuuba: Thank you for posting this magnificent bridge, The Lake Ponchartrain bridge. we live in Mandeville, once a while we visit New Orleans and for sure it is an adventure to cross this bridge.

[@gloriaannopperman2734]

Video was great! I have been on this Bridge with my hubby driving with our service dog Sugar Bear on my lap looking out. Needless to say Sugar Bear and I were uneasy doing so. She was on my lap looking on so Jerry could devote concentration on going over the bridge and driving! Was a beautiful site! Tx fan

[@virginiatolles1664]

The causeway is 23.8 miles across. The southbound bridge was built in 1956 following a fire that destroyed the wooden two-lane bridge that stood essentially where the 1969 bridge now stands. Between 1956 and 1969, the "new" bridge was two-lane. The turn-arounds are to ease the flow of traffic when accidents and breakdowns occur. Of course, Officer Krupke has been known to hang out there, too. On summer weekends, you'll see sailboats with colorful sails. In the early morning, you'll see fishermen in their john boats. Those boats, when moored in a strong wind, can rise six feet or more. Yes, the fisherman was in the boat, riding the waves and hoping for a good catch. No ocean liners on the lake, but you might see a barge and tug on occasion. Now, stop being so critical. Some of us like those concrete roadways with their expansion joints. They ride like bolted railroad tracks. Welded track really took a lot of the enjoyment out of rail travel. FOR BRIAN THERIOT - - Contact the Times Picayune newspaper archives. They should be able to help you.

[@btheriot]

I used to love riding the causeway as a kid, I didn't know of the pre-existing wooden structure, do you know where i can find pictures?

[@tedtalley2709]

The official length is as the marker proclaims at the end. 23.8 Miles. I grew up on the north side of the lake eight miles north of the bridge in Covington. I was there for the official ribbon cutting in August 1956 of the first span. I was six years old. After the ceremony, my parents and my older sister were among the very first people to cross it. And in my senior year in high school, the Covington High Band (I played trumpet) was there for the official and ceremonial first pile driving of the second span on the north side in spring 1968. The bridge has been transformative both sides, Jefferson Parish to the south and St. Tammany Parish to the north, but most of the major change has occurred on the north side which these days is generally referred to as The Northshore.

[@jakurdadov6375]

I am from Metairie. The first span was built before I was born, but I remember the opening of the second span. Perhaps you can answer a question. Amother poster claims there was a wooden bridge in about the same location as the existing concrete bridges. The claim includes a fire that destroyed the wooden bridge. I am an engineer. It is my belief that the two concrete spans were only economical because they are built of units mass-produced in a pre-cast yard on the northshore. I have trouble believing that it was economical to stick-build a wooden bridge for almost 24 miles. Do you have any recollection of a wooden bridge? I have never heard of it.

[@Bogieking78]

You could run a marathon race across the lake, would be interesting for sure if a bit cramped lol.

[@bc7634]

They actually used to back in the 80’s but went 13 out and back in...

[@FortGreeneSweet88]

I’m moving to New Orleans next week. I have to go to Mandeville for training and I’m scared to drive over this!!

[@MustangGuy112]

I remember cruising down here with my family when I was 5, I’m 13 now

[@louisg4845]

What is really cool about this bridge is the view you get while in a boat on the lake, You really get an appreciation for the curvature of the earth,, at water level it looks like one end of the bridge disappears into the water because you really only have line of sight at twelve miles. This was a weird view the first time I experienced this phenomenon 😮

[@MikeyScott5C]

If line of sight is only 12 miles, then regardless of the Earth being flat, or Spherical, wouldn’t the Bridge seem to disappear at a certain point around 12 miles?

[@louisg4845]

@@MikeyScott5C yea. It just looks really weird when you’re in the water maybe I’ll take a pic next time I am out there It

[@Brookesk1977]

It's funny you should mention the flat-earthers; I was thinking about that when you first got on the bridge from the other side. I was thinking, "hmm, if the world is flat, I wonder how those flat-earthers would explain the fact that you can't see the land on the other end of the bridge."

[@commiedoggo5440]

I have done that once and they replied with some dumb bs about refraction and how the hooberflab hides the jackhimoff

[@brianramirez8255]

atmospheric blockage. given a powerful telescope you can see all the way across. same with a laser. The laser can point straight across to the other side perfectly straight. Try it.

[@ArtistGoodLefty]

You actually proved flat Earth. Lol.

[@ArtistGoodLefty]

Here you go. Proof kzbin.info/www/bejne/eYLJqaeJq9Blaac

[@ArtistGoodLefty]

@@commiedoggo5440 kzbin.info/www/bejne/eYLJqaeJq9Blaac don't even trying mate. Earth is flat

[@christinemahon4217]

This is a nope bridge

[@mhopper9329]

You can turn those lights on/off using the dome light switch in the cab.

[@nicnak2502]

6:47 yes he does!

[@CentralTexasRailJetProductions]

Good stuff! Thanks for sharing!

[@jakurdadov6375]

Notice there are no shoulders on either span. How harrowing was it to drive 24 miles on the original span with opposing traffic only inches away and nowhere to go to avoid a head-on collision?

[@lilbitnawlins6854]

I just want to correct a comment on the video because I work for Enterprise at the Airport. You can rent and return vehicles 24 hours a day/7 days a week there. For the few hours the Enterprise counter is closed, all businesses is conducted at the National counter that's available 24 hours.

[@youtuuba]

Lol Bit Newline, in the video I did not mention the airport's Enterprise hours, or their after hours provisions. I was talking about the Enterprise rental facility that is a couple blocks from the train station.

[@lilbitnawlins6854]

@@youtuuba Sorry about that, I must have missed what you said because I was reading what was typed on the screen. There I read airport which prompted me to reply. Didn't realize you meant by the train station. Guess I assumed you came down by train and was heading back up by plane.

[@youtuuba]

@@lilbitnawlins6854 , Nope, I had a hotel close to the train station and needed to be back at the station by 6AM the next day.

[@Kris-yi6fm]

I rode over this causeway in the early 80's. It was a long ride.

[@deanw194]

One direction (southbound) was built in 1956 and the other direction (northbound) in 1969. There are 9,500 pilings used in both bridges.

[@SteveCarras]

Close to 10,000.

[@kenrosser8160]

The tow trucks are maned 24 hours every day of the year are removed only during hurrcanes.they drive in to faceing traffic to move cars off the road..

[@captainsworld1986]

If I ever do get a chance to cross that bridge, my two biggest fears are traffic backing up on either side and I have to go potty, and my car breaking down and I have to go potty.

[@maxinegayle6523]

Would love to drive on it. With an expert tour guide of course

[@j_mofab]

Driving on this during the day wouldn't phase me but a night drive is a different scenario.

[@TheShape--xt6pk]

Ngl i only came because of the james bond game "everything or nothing" on the ps2 were there's a mission were your ride a motorcycle over this bridge.

[@22michaelbradley]

I went over that bridge my 7th grade year I was freaked out because I all saw was water

[@robertogarcia288]

I can’t imagine driving on this bridge, when is raining, windy and you can’t see anything 😳

[@calsouth03]

That sounds like the perfect setup for a lovecraftian horror story

[@SteveCarras]

Fog, thunder, lightnng, hurricane, tornados..(OK, none of the last down there, but hurricane..)

[@michaelblair5566]

I drove this back in 2004, the year before Katrina.

[@gartrellliddell3806]

They had to replace certain portions of it after Katrina if I remember correctly..

[@KristiBranstetter]

They are called expansion joints.

[@living4christ]

in 1964 United flight 1304 a DC-8 crashed in lake Pontchartrain.

[@GoodMusicManiac999]

At some point I believed the car was about to spread its wings!

[@qorymij37]

Imagine turning the wrong way and going on that bridge to waste 20 minutes

[@cynthiafeagin5185]

South Louisiana is very. different from northern Louisiana around Shreveport la.

[@GLICKMIRE]

Did you happen to notice if there was cell phone coverage all the way across?

[@robertmccoy9515]

Rode this backin the 90s in my Ford Ltd. Lol

[@cynthiafeagin5185]

Wow amazing

[@zf8385]

I can't swim, so that wasn't fun at all crossing. It was a long time ago, but Never again!

[@SteveCarras]

36:50 They weren't..soutbhound is 1956, northbound 1969.

[@cynthiafeagin5185]

The bouncing possibly also CV caused by the heat and humidity.

[@donjoevillacorta2790]

Imagine driving at night. I wonder how many cars had gone over the bridge. You must take pre caution and be very careful in these roads. These fast drivers thinking they're so good at driving, one second weofmf move could cause not just your life but an innocent life. Be careful y'all.

[@edcortes5764]

Just so happens that assuming a clear day and no other obstructions, which you have on the video, one can see an object (in this case, the shoreline across the lake) 12 miles away, which is half way over the Causeway.

[@ArtistGoodLefty]

Because Earth is flat and no globe

[@1946mau]

Think off the poor sods who have to cross that bridge everyday 🙈🙈. Bloody nightmare no thank you

[@Mikeluvschelsea]

It's really not long at all it takes 30 to 35 min to cross top speed is 65

[@electricjed]

Eric Church's Knifes of New Orleans brought me here

[@deanw194]

The lake is 65 feet deep and there is a channel for salt water ships.

[@xxhoneyxx1654]

Ginormous and dilly dallying. His Vocab is up

[@lisethomas2930]

I seen it @ the end of an old movie I just watched. The Haunted Mansion

[@michellemartin3401]

That is not a lake that is a freaking ocean! It's just like you are driving on an ocean it's like you are driving to the end of the world. God is awesome.

[@jaylenyoung2632]

It is a lake where I live we have the Great Lakes

[@theplanetruth]

The causeway is over 20 miles long. It’s at the same elevation above water all the way across. That’s level. Flat. Water-level.

[@nicnak2502]

I get what your saying;)

[@EmersumBiggins]

The only reason I looked at this video is because I knew the most annoying cab driver on the globe had dropped his stupid opinion on flat earth here😂

[@melebx]

Have they thought about a speed boat to get across.

[@McFarmerNuggets]

I been to The Lake Pontchartrain my 12s in Summer of 2019 🎉 and The Causeway Build in 1920s to Mid 1950s Southbound Late 1960s and Early 1970s and Destroyed by Hurricanes in born 2006 the 1st Hurricane Gustav 2008 | Hurricane Issac 2012 | Hurricane Harvey 2016 | Tropical Barry in 2019 and Tropical Cristobal 2020 | Hurricane Ida 2021 and The Snow back in December of 2007 Since I was 1 yr Old We have Snow and 2017 About 11 Years Old December 2017 Snow ❄️ and Waterspout Tornadoes and The Causeway is 24 Miles Long 😂😅 as the Hurricane Camille Not To South Louisiana 😂 And Mouth of River There have Hurricane Camille back in 1969 and I do Videos Sometimes mite Sit Back of my Van Driving to Causeway 😂 and Mandeville | Madisonville 😢and My Conclusion In the Future I going Find You on I follow on KZbin

[@Desine419]

I have 2007 chevy hhr would you drive that on the causeway

[@lindapowers4929]

Have you done the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel?

[@youtuuba]

Linda Powers, no I have not taken it. I did not even know that it existed, so thanks for pointing this out to me. I have taken the Chesapeake Bay Bridge (much further north) a number of times. The surprising thing to me is that none of my friends in that area have mentioned this bridge/tunnel to me, and many of them know of my love of bridges. And since I was just a few miles from the bridge-tunnel's south end in the last days of September 2019, I could have crossed it easily while there. Guess I will have to make a mental note to visit this when I am next in the area.

[@GreensRams]

If you ever take the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnell, be careful. Police everywhere. They strictly enforce the 55 MPH limit. I just put the car on cruise and take in the ride, passing about 6-10 cop cars along the way radaring.

[@AD-hq2uz]

@@youtuuba I've crossed it is a pricey toll but a beautiful view.

[@katherineroberts5698]

Ms. Powers I went to college in The Tidewater/ Hampton Roads area. I been over that bridge several times, my dad was driving. Now I am older 51 years young. 😁I am like what was my dad thinking and doing. Call me scary I wouldn't drive that bridge myself. 😂 Sending you positivity.

[@musicfanhawk4523]

Curious what is the speed limit on there? This was interesting, I have been very curious about this for quite some time. Good video. Thanks for posting.

[@nomad91910]

I think there was a 65 sign posted at the start of the bridge Also at 9:26

[@josephmorganr.mitchell2985]

45 on on and off ramp. 65 elsewhere. 55 if raining. Everyone does 80 ish left lane during rush hour.

[@barbnahoumi65]

Do they have commuter boats across Lake Pontchartrain? I think that I would prefer that to driving.

[@youtuuba]

I don't think there are ferry boats, etc.

[@johnanderson2432]

That return trip looked brutal! Now that you have done it once, would you do it again?

[@youtuuba]

John Anderson, it was not a trip I would like to do on a daily basis. Once was enough for me, just to have been on it, but if I were in the New Orleans area again and needed to cross the lake (as opposed to driving around it), I would certainly do it again.

[@oxy3196]

Some people drive across everyday for work it’s not bad if u grew up in this area and have to go across it alot

[@bunnyman6321]

​@@youtuubaHow deep is the lake?

[@youtuuba]

@@bunnyman6321 , have you tried Wikipedia?

[@bunnyman6321]

@youtuuba No. Wikipedia stuff don't be accurate. Anybody can post on there.

[@keypenny]

Enterprise, sucks canal water, period !

[@AYouTubeChannelwithNoName]

What car is this?

[@Mikeluvschelsea]

Nissan biggest suv is a armada

[@kathyrussell1902]

No rest area? They need to go to bathroom

[@GLICKMIRE]

Looks like cell phone towers at 10:23 and 16:26 in the video.

[@emsa5034]

Am I stupid for not knowing lakes could be this big

[@youtuuba]

em sa, do you really want an answer to that? Seriously, Lake Pontchartrain is indeed big, but I guess you never heard of the Great Lakes........

[@cindylou3205]

Distracted driving if I ever saw it. Dash cam is fine because you aren't messing with it, but you were, almost continuously. As bad as cell phone if not worse. Not cool.

[@youtuuba]

Amanda Banana, if I am distracted, it is because I am narrating. When I take these videos from a car, I never look through the viewfinder or at the camera screen, and in fact the camera is not even in front of my face or in my line of sight. I hold it to one side if my head, next to my ear. I have good muscle memory, and the camera is set to a generally wide angle, so even if I hold it slightly misaligned, I usually still get the scene I want. I do a lot of editing later, including zooming and cropping to make the image include only what I want in it. Those areas where I aimed wrong are edited out so you never see them. So not very much distracted, and indeed I find that simply having a conversation with another person in my car is much more distracting than using my camera technique. Also, I am pretty good at swiveling the camera 90 degrees to shoot out the side windows and then rotate back. If it does not work, you never see the bad spots due to my editing. And no dash cam can get the views I manage this way. So don't make a lot of underinformed assumptions about my driving. Do you ever see me drift out of my lane, or tailgate, or fail to signal? I drive safely because my technique works.

[@orangepower1975]

@@youtuuba i don't doubt your judgement, but if it were me, there would be no way i could hold that camera in 1 hand and drive with the other for that long, even with short rests. I'd be nervous driving that bridge with BOTH hands on the wheel lol.

[@maedero05]

Momentious highway, monotone US highway achiefment, as it is ! New Orleans, highlites would be more interesting like Jazz scene around Bourbon street and the riverside with the old river steam boats !

[@youtuuba]

Maedero05, you are missing the whole point. I rarely visit places, or do things, or make videos solely for benefiting viewers on KZbin. Instead, I do whatever I am going to do to suit my own interests, and document those on video, then share that with KZbin viewers. Furthermore, this is not a travel channel, so I don't have a quota or obligation to make videos of a general travel nature; tons of other channels make those kinds of videos. You can easily find videos on New Orleans, but few channels have anything like my detailed train videos, museum walkthroughs, bridge crossings, and the like.

[@maedero05]

@@youtuuba Thank you for your explanation, never wanted meant to create any hard feelings.! Kind regards,

[@engrownhare2427]

You would appreciate it more if you went over it. It's a magical feeling when you are at the middle of the bridge and can't see either end of it or really any surrounding land even.

[@EmersumBiggins]

I’m surprised that only one flat earth seagull has flown over the comment thread and sh*t some stupid. Leave it to Travis “Ubercaste” to be the one😂

[@johnconnolly6011]

Why are u driving with one hand? This is as bad as texting. Buy a holder or something.

[@youtuuba]

John Connolly, why are you writing your comment in 'texting' style when this is not a text message? That is just plain rude and insulting to anyone who tries to read the stupid crap you wrote.

[@Thenorthelect]

Undeniable proof the earth is flat!

[@nicnak2502]

Absolutely 🙌