ST. LANDRY PARISH — For years, Matthew and Jessica Roberts have been pushing for repairs on Copper Road — a bumpy, potholed stretch of roadway they say has made daily life difficult and even dangerous.
“Since before COVID,” said Jessica, they’ve been documenting concerns, making calls, and asking for help. But to date, they say their concerns have fallen on deaf ears.
The couple travels Copper Road every day, but driving it is no easy feat. The couple also has two children who are new drivers and fear for their safety while navigating the road.
“Some of these potholes are a foot deep and three feet wide,” said Matthew. “When you drive on it, you have to weave back and forth.”
Jessica didn’t hold back either.
“This is dangerous,” she said. “Frustrated is the biggest word for us because we have tried all avenues when it comes to getting it fixed.
One of the most pressing issues for the family? Mail delivery.
“The road is so bad, we were told that it’s damaging the mail trucks, so our mail doesn’t get delivered,” Matthew added.
KATC asked Bellard about the mail issue, but he said he hadn't heard anything from the post office. He added that if there is usually a problem, the post office notifies parish officials — but in this case, he never received a call.
Their personal vehicles haven’t fared much better — the couple says they’ve already spent money repairing damage caused by the road conditions.
Despite repeated calls to parish officials, they say they've received little more than vague responses.
“On the work order that is online, it says surveyed and completed — but they haven’t done anything,” Matthew said.
Then, on Tuesday morning, they finally saw crews arrive. Fresh asphalt was poured into the potholes — but the couple says the temporary patch doesn’t go far enough.
“Look at this,” Matthew said, pointing to one section. “This is what they fixed today. If I put my foot in this, it moves so imagine if car passes through this."
Bellard acknowledged the poor conditions and says he's aware of the road after many calls to his office.
“This road has been like this for a while, and of course, it’s an old road,” he said.
Bellard says the parish has heard the complaints and is preparing to take permanent action. However, Mother Nature has caused delays.
“Last month in this area, we had 6.8 inches of rain,” Bellard said. “And I am not going to do any overlay in the rain, nor with the threat of more rain.”
When the weather clears, he says the road repairs should take about two days to complete.
The total project cost is estimated at $89,000, and Bellard says it remains on schedule — weather permitting.
Still, for the Roberts family, time is running out.
“We plan to move,” said Matthew. “We will move because we pay taxes here, parish taxes."
"And we have been just getting the full runaround and we are appreciative but its the length of time we had to wait for this," said Jessica.
KATC reached out to the United States Postal Service. A spokesperson confirmed that mail delivery had been suspended on Copper Road due to road conditions that posed a risk to drivers. However, service resumed Tuesday after the temporary fixes were completed.
