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Trip from Estelle, LA to New Orleans, LA

Compiled and reviewed by the US Trip Planner planning team at COD Solutions Oy · Last reviewed Apr 19, 2026 · Editorial standards

Drive Time

20m

Distance

12.9 mi

21 km

Drive Score

8/10

Great drive

Same Day?

Yes, doable

Fuel Cost

$2

one way

EV Charging

Good

8 stations

Best Time to Leave

Save up to 6 min
4 AM
0h 18m ★
6 AM
0h 20m
8 AM
0h 24m
10 AM
0h 21m
12 PM
0h 21m
3 PM
0h 22m
5 PM
0h 24m
8 PM
0h 19m

Estimated drive times based on typical traffic patterns. Actual times may vary with weather, construction, and real-time conditions.

place in Jefferson Parish, Louisiana, United States

Estelle, LA

Wikimedia Commons

Trip Overview

Embarking on this short 12.9-mile journey from Estelle to New Orleans, LA, will take approximately 20 minutes of driving time. The route primarily utilizes the Westbank Expressway, Barataria Boulevard, and Pontchartrain Expressway, with 57% of the drive being on highways. Given its brevity, this trip is perfectly suited for a single day, requiring no overnight stays. The estimated fuel cost is a very reasonable $2, making it an economical option. This drive offers a mixed driving experience as you transition from one part of Southeast Louisiana to another, heading into the vibrant heart of New Orleans.

Main Roads

Road Distance Duration
Westbank Expressway 5.8 mi 7m
Barataria Boulevard 3.2 mi 5m
Pontchartrain Expressway 1.6 mi 1m
Crescent City Connection 0.6 mi <1m
Ames Boulevard 0.5 mi 1m
South Claiborne Avenue 0.4 mi <1m
Tulane Avenue 0.3 mi <1m
Oklahoma Drive <0.1 mi <1m
Longest stretch: Westbank Expressway — 5.8 mi, about 7m

Turn-by-Turn Driving Directions

Step-by-step road directions between Estelle, LA and New Orleans, LA.

1

Start on Oklahoma Drive

466 ft · 22 sec · Oklahoma Drive
2

Turn right onto Ames Boulevard

0.5 mi · 1 min · Ames Boulevard
3

Turn right onto LA 45

3.2 mi · 5 min · Barataria Boulevard
4

Turn right onto Westbank Expressway

0.2 mi · 30 sec · Westbank Expressway
Use the right lane.
5

Take the ramp

0.2 mi · 31 sec
Toward US 90 Business East: Harvey Canal Bridge
6

Merge onto US 90 BUS

5.5 mi · 7 min · Westbank Expressway
Use the straight / slight left lanes.
7

Continue on US 90 BUS

0.6 mi · 57 sec · Crescent City Connection
8

Continue on US 90 BUS

1.6 mi · 1 min · Pontchartrain Expressway
Use the straight / slight right lanes.
9

Take the exit

0.2 mi · 26 sec
Exit 13B Toward US 90 East: Claiborne Avenue Use the straight / slight right lanes.
10

Turn slight right onto US 90

0.4 mi · 43 sec · South Claiborne Avenue
11

Turn right onto Tulane Avenue

0.3 mi · 41 sec · Tulane Avenue
12

Arrive at destination

Tulane Avenue

Heads-up: tricky spots

5 of 7

5 decision points cluster between mile 0.1 and 12 — GPS handles the exact turns, but know they're coming. Your lane choice matters more than the turn itself.

4
0.1 mi into trip | ~0m in | Ames Boulevard

Turn right onto Ames Boulevard

Navigation decision point

5
3.8 mi into trip | ~7m in | Westbank Expressway

Turn right onto Westbank Expressway

Lane positioning matters here

Use the right lane.
4
4 mi into trip | ~7m in

Take the ramp toward US 90 Business East: Harvey Canal Bridge

Navigation decision point

Toward US 90 Business East: Harvey Canal Bridge
5
4.3 mi into trip | ~8m in | US 90 BUS / Westbank Expressway

Merge onto US 90 BUS / Westbank Expressway

Merge point - match speed before joining. Lane positioning matters here

Use the straight / slight left lanes.
7
12 mi into trip | ~18m in

Take the exit toward US 90 East: Claiborne Avenue

Exit ramp - move to the correct lane early. Lane positioning matters here

Use the straight / slight right lanes. Exit 13B Toward US 90 East: Claiborne Avenue

Fuel & Cost

Regular Gas

$1.95 one way

$3.90 round trip

$3.84/gal 25.4 MPG avg 5 kg CO2
Fuel Type $/gal One Way Round Trip
midgrade $4.21 $2.14 $4.28
premium $4.56 $2.32 $4.63
diesel $5.61 $2.85 $5.70

No toll roads detected on this route.

Drive Cost (one way)

Fuel

$2

Estimated CO2 emission: 4.5 kg one way. Prices: EIA weekly data, 2026-04-13.

Driving Electric?

About $1 in charging · 0 stops · 60% less CO2

Vehicle Type kWh Stops DC Fast Home Charge
Average EV 3.9 0 $1.35 $0.62
Efficient EV 3.2 0 $1.13 $0.52
EV Truck/SUV 5.2 0 $1.81 $0.83

Gas CO2

5 kg

EV CO2

2 kg (60% less)

This trip is well within single-charge range for most EVs. No charging stops needed if you start fully charged.

DC fast charging avg $0.35/kWh. Home charging avg $0.16/kWh. US grid CO2: 0.39 kg/kWh.

Travel Intel

Current conditions at both ends of the drive.

Forecast as of Apr 18, 2026

Origin

Estelle, LA

Late night in Estelle on Sunday

Local time

4:58 AM

CDT

Current temp

64°F

Unavailable

Live forecast

Destination

New Orleans, LA

Late night in New Orleans on Sunday

Local time

4:58 AM

CDT

Current temp

67°F

Partly Cloudy

S 5 to 10 mph 0% chance Live forecast

Time zone

Same local time

Origin and destination are on the same clock, so arrival timing is easier to judge at a glance.

Temperature spread

3 degrees warmer at arrival

A meaningful temperature swing is a good cue to rethink layers, water, and how soon you want to arrive.

Road read

20m on the road

The weather snapshot is not static. If you are leaving later, give both cities one more quick forecast check before departure.

Weather data from the National Weather Service. Conditions may change; check closer to your travel date.

What kind of drive is this?

This drive presents a mixed driving profile, blending highway speeds with more local road conditions. You'll encounter stretches on major arteries like the Westbank Expressway, which forms the longest uninterrupted section at 5.8 miles. The highway share of 57% indicates a significant portion of your travel will be on faster-paced roads. As you progress, expect the character of the route to shift, transitioning from the expressways to potentially busier surface streets as you approach your New Orleans destination. This variation keeps the drive engaging without being overly demanding.

57% highway, the rest on surface roads — varied driving throughout.
12 navigation steps total — most of the decisions cluster near the start and finish.
Longest single stretch: 5.8 mi on Westbank Expressway.

How Hard Is This Drive?

4/10

This route mixes highway mileage with some local-road sections near the start or finish. There are only a few real navigation decisions along the way. The trickiest moment comes around 0.1 miles in near Ames Boulevard.

Driving Effort 4/10

Easy - simple navigation with a manageable amount of wheel time

Balances navigation complexity with total wheel time.

This is a straightforward 20m drive. You will face about 7 decision points, but nothing that requires special attention if you follow navigation.

Where does it get tricky?

The main spots that need attention: at 0.1 miles (Ames Boulevard): Navigation decision point; at 3.8 miles (Westbank Expressway): Lane positioning matters here; at 4 miles: Navigation decision point.

About the Cities

Arriving in New Orleans, LA

Full guide →

Way down yonder in New Orleans (French: La Nouvelle-Orléans), you'll find the roots of jazz and a blossoming culture that is unlike anything else on Earth. Here, the laid-back atmosphere of the riverfront South has mixed with French sophistication, Spanish style, and African-American energy to create something greater than the sum of its parts. "NOLA" is the largest city in Louisiana and one of the top tourist destinations in the United States. "Laissez les bons temps rouler" is what they say here in the Big Easy, and you too can "let the good times roll" with a cool stroll down Bourbon Street, a hot Dixieland band, and even hotter Creole cuisine. Mardi Gras may be the city's calling card, but that's just one day out of the hot and muggy year in New Orleans. Go ahead, take a riverboat down the Mississippi, munch on some beignets, and watch the Saints go marchin' in.

City content from Wikivoyage (CC BY-SA 4.0) and Wikidata (CC0).

Who Is This Route For?

Weekend Trip

Doable as a same-day drive at 20m. Total distance: 12.9 miles.

Family Friendly

Moderate complexity with 0 natural rest stops along the way.

Solo Traveler

20m drive, comfortable solo distance.

EV Driver

0 DC fast chargers along the route. Coverage: unknown.

First-Time Driver

Mostly highway driving (57%). Straightforward navigation.

Scenic Drive

Mixed highway & surface route profile with national parks nearby.

Frequently Asked Questions

The longest stretch is about 5.8 miles on Westbank Expressway. The full list of main roads is in the Roads section above.

Yes. At under 2 hours behind the wheel, this works well for families — plan one quick stop if you have younger kids.

The main spots that need attention: at 0.1 miles (Ames Boulevard): Navigation decision point; at 3.8 miles (Westbank Expressway): Lane positioning matters here; at 4 miles: Navigation decision point.

Yes — New Orleans Jazz National Historical Park. See the National Parks section for detour distances and tips on detours.

Yes. A round trip is manageable in a single day if you plan a break at New Orleans, LA before heading back.

How this page is built

Compiled by the US Trip Planner planning team at COD Solutions Oy from open government datasets — OSRM over OpenStreetMap for geometry, EIA for fuel prices, and NPS for national parks. See our methodology for refresh cadence and limitations.

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