.svg) Louisiana Highway 82 | ||||
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 Route of LA 82 highlighted in red | ||||
| Route information | ||||
| Maintained by Louisiana DOTD | ||||
| Length | 142.87 mi[1] (229.93 km) | |||
| Existed | 1955 renumbering–present | |||
| Tourist routes |  National Scenic Byway: Creole Nature Trail | |||
| Major junctions | ||||
| West end |  SH 82 at Texas state line east of Port Arthur, TX | |||
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| East end | Vermilion–Lafayette parish line southwest of Youngsville | |||
| Location | ||||
| Country | United States | |||
| State | Louisiana | |||
| Parishes | Cameron, Vermilion | |||
| Highway system | ||||
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Louisiana Highway 82 (LA 82) is a state highway located in southern Louisiana. It runs 142.87 miles (229.93 km) in a general east–west direction from the Texas state line east of Port Arthur to the Vermilion–Lafayette parish line southwest of Youngsville.
The route parallels the coastline of the Gulf of Mexico for the majority of its length. On its eastern end, LA 82 becomes a north–south route as it turns away from the coast toward the Vermilion Parish city of Abbeville, located along LA 14. Connections are made here to the U.S. Highway 90 (US 90) corridor along Bayou Teche as well as the Lafayette metropolitan area via US 167.
LA 82 serves as a vital route for both the area's oil and gas as well as seafood and fishing industries. It is also the only east–west route spanning the coastal portions of Cameron and Vermilion parishes. This sparsely populated area in the southwestern part of the state contains a string of small settlements and communities located along natural ridges in the vast marshland, known locally as cheniers. LA 82 connects several of these cheniers, allowing them access to the cities of Port Arthur on the west and Abbeville on the northeast. The only other land-based routes to the area are via LA 27, which loops around Calcasieu Lake providing an important connection to Lake Charles, the largest city in southwestern Louisiana. LA 82 also passes through Cameron, the seat of Cameron Parish, where it runs concurrent with LA 27 for several miles. LA 82 and the communities along its path have survived despite their vulnerability to storm surge, which caused extensive damage most recently by Hurricanes Rita and Ike.
The highway passes through a wide variety of surroundings. Besides the coastal marshes, LA 82 traverses inland prairies, rural farmland, and the longest stretch of sandy beach in the state. Several navigable waterways and industrial channels are encountered along the way, including the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway. Four are crossed by way of movable bridges and another, Calcasieu Pass, is crossed at Cameron by toll ferry. The area's distinctive abundance of wildlife is reflected in the highway's designation through Cameron Parish as part of the Creole Nature Trail, an All-American Road in the National Scenic Byways Program.