If you’ve lived in New Orleans for more than a week, you’ve likely hit a pothole that could swallow a bike—or watched a perfectly good street get torn up for the fifth time in two years. Locals joke about “potholes big enough to throw a second line in,” but beneath the humor is real frustration.
So why are the streets this bad? And why does “infrastructure” always seem like a buzzword with no follow-through?
The truth is, it’s not just about bad weather or old pipes. New Orleans streets are the product of centuries of poor planning, political dysfunction, and structural neglect—and the consequences are hitting working people hardest.
1. Built on Water, Maintained Like It’s Not
New Orleans was built where the land probably said “don’t.” Most of the city sits below sea level, on a mix of soft delta clay, sand, and silt. That means every road, pipe, and slab of concrete is essentially balancing on mud.
To make things worse, the city relies on mechanical pumps to drain water—and those systems are often decades old and prone to failure. When heavy rains come (which they now do more often), water sits in the streets, breaking down pavement and soil. That constant sinking, cracking, and flooding wears roads out fast—and without regular maintenance, it snowballs into collapse.
2. Decades of Deferred Maintenance
New Orleans doesn’t fix problems—it patches them. Asphalt is dumped into potholes without repairing what’s underneath. Drainage canals get cleared after they’ve already backed up. Sidewalks go untouched for years. Some sewer lines are over 100 years old.
Why? Because infrastructure spending has never been a priority. Politicians campaign on fixing the streets, then reallocate funds when something flashier comes up—or when the money runs out. And when repairs do get made, they’re rarely inspected or followed up on.
3. Who’s in Charge? That’s a Trick Question.
Ask the average New Orleanian who’s responsible for fixing a broken street and you’ll get ten different answers—and they’re all technically right. The problem is, street infrastructure is split between multiple entities:
• The City of New Orleans
• The Sewerage & Water Board
• Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development (LaDOTD)
• Federal agencies like FEMA or the Army Corps of Engineers
This fractured responsibility means that nobody is truly accountable. One agency digs up the road to fix a pipe, another is supposed to repave it, and often… nobody follows through.
4. Environmental Racism and Unequal Investment
If you’ve noticed that the worst streets are often in majority-Black, lower-income neighborhoods, you’re not imagining things. For decades, infrastructure dollars have flowed toward wealthier, whiter parts of the city—while places like New Orleans East, Gentilly, and the Lower Ninth Ward are left with buckling roads, broken drainage, and empty promises.
This isn’t just about infrastructure—it’s about structural inequality. Black communities have paid taxes, voted, organized, and waited for decades—only to be told that there’s not enough funding for basic repairs. Yet somehow, there’s always money for Super Bowl bids and hotel tax breaks.
5. The FEMA Money Problem
After Katrina, and again after Hurricane Ida, billions in federal funding were earmarked for rebuilding. But FEMA money doesn’t fall from the sky—it comes with mountains of bureaucracy, cost-sharing requirements, and red tape.
The city has to front the money, get the work done, and then apply for reimbursement. That process can take years. In the meantime, many neighborhoods sit in limbo—half-dug streets, no sidewalks, and little communication.
6. Corruption, Contractors, and Cronyism
Let’s be honest—New Orleans has a corruption problem. Infrastructure contracts often go to politically connected companies, not necessarily the most qualified ones. Oversight is limited. Projects are delayed. Budgets get blown.
Even when streets are “finished,” they often have visible defects, poor drainage, or materials that don’t last. And when the problems show up again, the same contractors are brought back to fix what they broke.
7. Climate Change Is Speeding It All Up
More heat. More rain. More storms. Climate change is accelerating the decay of already fragile infrastructure. Hotter temps crack asphalt faster. Heavy rain overwhelms drainage. Hurricanes stretch public systems beyond their limits.
And the city isn’t adapting fast enough. In fact, many repairs are still based on outdated design standards that don’t account for today’s climate reality.
These Streets Tell the Story of a City Left Behind
New Orleans streets aren’t bad by accident. They’re bad by neglect, mismanagement, and design. They reflect a city where money moves to tourism zones before neighborhoods. Where contractors get paid before potholes get filled. Where climate resilience is discussed in press releases but missing in actual policy.
Fixing it won’t just take money. It’ll take accountability, equity, and real political will—the kind that puts residents first, not ribbon-cuttings or press conferences.
Until then, we’ll keep swerving potholes, watching the water rise, and asking the same question every New Orleanian knows by heart:
“How is this still not fixed?”
