Belle Chasse Bridge: Suspended Tolls, Lawsuit, and Legislation

Tolls on the Belle Chasse Bridge are suspended. Governor Jeff Landry and the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development halted collection on October 2, 2025, citing four contract violations by the private operator, and as of mid-2026 no tolls are being charged while litigation and negotiations continue.¹

Why the State Suspended the Tolls

Tolling began on May 14, 2025, and complaints started almost immediately. Residents enrolled in the local discount program reported being billed at the higher non-resident rate, and drivers described administrative fees that dwarfed the tolls themselves.²

Less than five months later, Landry and DOTD Secretary Joe Donahue sent Plenary Infrastructure Belle Chasse a formal letter suspending tolls and citing four contract violations:³

Settlement on the northeast bridge approach had exceeded allowable limits as of September 18, 2025.
Plenary had disrupted utility services to nearby properties for prolonged periods, in some cases longer than three years.
The contractor failed to provide DOTD with timely, accurate, and complete tolling oversight information.
Plenary placed non-renewal flags on driver and vehicle registrations for alleged toll violations.

The state gave Plenary ten days to submit a remediation plan. A Plenary spokesperson said publicly that the company was “compliant with its contract.”⁴ The suspension has held since.

What the Tolls Were Before Suspension

The rates and rules matter because the underlying concession agreement is still in place, and any resumption would fall back on those terms. Collection runs through GeauxPass, an electronic system that reads a barcode sticker on the windshield and bills the account automatically. Drivers without a GeauxPass are photographed and invoiced by mail at a higher rate.⁵

Plaquemines Parish residents with a GeauxPass pay a discounted rate of $0.26 per crossing for a standard passenger vehicle. That resident rate is fixed and exempt from annual inflation adjustments, though the concession agreement still schedules it to rise from $0.25 in year one to $0.60 by year 30.⁶⁷ Non-resident rates start higher and increase annually with the Consumer Price Index, with a minimum yearly bump of one penny and six cents every five years.⁸

Several users cross free when they carry a valid GeauxPass: law enforcement, emergency, and fire department vehicles; disabled veterans; school buses and mass transit vehicles; and organized groups of Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, and Camp Fire Girls with at least 15 members.⁶ Louisiana National Guard members get 90 free trips per month; firefighters get 40.⁸

The fee structure is where much of the anger has focused. Credit card payments carry a 3 percent processing fee. A missed toll triggers a $25 administrative fee, plus an additional $5 late fee on delinquent notices and a $2.64 charge for mailed invoices.⁸ Checks, e-checks, money orders, and PayNearMe retail payments avoid the credit card fee, though in-person retail may add its own convenience charge.⁶

The Class-Action Lawsuit Over Billing

On October 14, 2025, four Plaquemines Parish plaintiffs — Vic Palazzo, John Helmers, Anthony Frankovich, and Bywater Base Camp Services — filed a class action in the 25th Judicial District Court against Plenary Infrastructure Belle Chasse, Plenary Louisiana Tolling, toll technology vendor Kapsch Trafficom USA, and DOTD.⁹

The complaint alleges residents were hit with fees never disclosed when the bridge was developed and that the billing system routinely overcharged them. Palazzo reported being billed the $25 administrative fee 18 times in a single day, totaling $1,600. The plaintiffs allege that between the tolling launch and the filing, the defendants collected roughly $6.8 million in administrative fees against only $5.1 million in actual tolls, which they characterize as a breach of contract and a violation of state law. The suit seeks class certification, a declaration that the fees are illegal, and full reimbursement for overcharged users.

Plaquemines Parish Government filed its own suit against the state and Plenary Louisiana Tolling on December 15, 2025, after negotiations broke down. The parish said it was seeking a “fair and equitable agreement” and told residents not to expect changes to the toll suspension while the case proceeds.²

Legislative Attempts to Kill the Tolls

Lawmakers have pushed on two fronts. In June 2025, the Louisiana House passed HR 220, directing DOTD to study the Belle Chasse deal, evaluate making GeauxPass interoperable with other states’ toll systems, and file monthly and annual toll revenue reports by January 2026. State Representative Jacob Braud estimated at the time that Plenary’s daily fines for construction delays would total roughly $5 million by January 2026.¹⁰

In the 2026 regular session, Braud went further. His bill would have created a state fund that retained 20 percent of oil and gas tax revenue generated by Plaquemines Parish, projected at about $12 million a year, and used that money to buy the bridge back from Plenary at an estimated cost of $100 million to $200 million. The House approved it 99-0. The Senate Finance Committee let it die when the session ended on June 1, 2026. Braud and State Senator Pat Connick have said they plan to reintroduce the effort.¹¹

Where Things Stand for Drivers

The bridge itself is fully open, carrying four lanes of LA 23 traffic since March 16, 2025.⁵ No tolls are being collected. The state and Plenary remain in dispute over the concession agreement, the class action and parish lawsuits are pending, and no buyback legislation has become law. Plaquemines Parish has said it will limit public comment while its case moves forward.¹

If tolling resumes under the existing agreement, the rate structure above is what drivers should expect. If you already received a violation notice or administrative fee during the May-to-October 2025 window, the class action seeks reimbursement for that period, and eligibility would depend on class certification and the outcome of the case. Demolition of the old Judge Perez Bridge and decommissioning of the Belle Chasse Tunnel are scheduled to be completed by the end of 2026.¹²

1
Plaquemines Parish Government. Belle Chasse Bridge Tolling Update
2
WDSU. Plaquemines Parish Belle Chasse Bridge Tolls Lawsuit
3
Fox 8. Governor Says Contract Violations Led Belle Chasse Toll Suspension
4
Fox 8. Legislation Aims to End Belle Chasse Bridge Tolls Permanently
5
LADOTD. Belle Chasse Bridge Full Opening Announcement
6
Belle Chasse Bridge. Tolling Information
7
Louisiana Legislative Auditor. Belle Chasse Bridge and Tunnel Replacement Project Audit
8
LADOTD. Frequently Asked Questions
9
Plaquemines Gazette. Palazzo Files Class Action Lawsuit Against Toll Bridge
10
WDSU. Louisiana Lawmakers Address Belle Chasse Bridge Concerns
11
Fox 8. Belle Chasse Bridge Toll Bill Dies in Louisiana Legislature
12
Belle Chasse Bridge. What to Expect