The Atchafalaya Basin Bridge , also known as the Louisiana Airborne Memorial Bridge , spans between Baton Rouge and Lafayette in Louisiana. It carries Interstate 10 over the vast Atchafalaya Basin, a sprawling wetland. This impressive pair of parallel bridges stretches for 18 miles (29 km) , making it the third longest bridge in the U.S. , the second longest within the interstate system, and the 14th longest globally. Construction began in 1971 , and the bridge opened to the public in 1973 .

