Drivers expecting a clear St. Charles Avenue after the weekend Mardi Gras parades were met with a surprise slalom of orange-and-white obstacles Monday morning.
Since Friday, more than 400 barriers have lined the lake side of the Uptown parade route, from the Pontchartrain Expressway to Napoleon Avenue. They are part of the city’s enhanced security plan for Mardi Gras 2025 in the wake of the New Year’s Day attack on Bourbon Street.
The “vehicle mitigation system” was laid out on Friday, the night of the city’s first float parades of the season, and authorities say they’ll be in place through Mardi Gras Day — even while parades aren’t passing and the other side of St. Charles is open…