Interstate 49 in Louisiana

Interstate 49
Interstate 49
	I-49 highlighted in red
Route information
	Maintained by Louisiana DOTD
Length	247.219 mi (397.860 km) 244.021 mi (392.714 km) opened
Existed	July 1982–present
NHS	Entire route
Southern segment
South end	I-10 / US 167 / LA 182 in Lafayette
Major intersections	US 190 in Opelousas; US 167 near Opelousas; US 71 / US 167 in Alexandria; US 71 / US 165 in Alexandria; US 371 / LA 177 near Coushatta; US 84 near Mansfield;
North end	I-20 / Pete Harris Drive in Shreveport
Northern segment
South end	I-220 in Shreveport
Major intersections	US 71 from Gilliam to Hosston;
North end	I-49 at the Arkansas state line
Location
Country	United States
State	Louisiana
Parishes	Lafayette, St. Landry, Evangeline, Avoyelles, Rapides, Natchitoches, DeSoto, Caddo
Highway system
	Interstate Highway System; Main; Auxiliary; Suffixed; Business; Future; Louisiana State Highway System; Interstate; US; State; Scenic;

Interstate 49 (I-49) is an Interstate Highway that currently spans 244.021 miles (392.714 km) in a north–south direction in the US state of Louisiana. Currently, I-49 runs from I-10 in Lafayette to the Arkansas state line. I-49 greatly parallels the older US Highway 71 (US 71) corridor, and connects the state's two east–west Interstates at two of its metropolitan centers. Along the way, it serves the cities of Opelousas, Alexandria, and Natchitoches, intersecting several cross-state highways, such as I-20, US 190, US 167, US 165, and US 84.

I-49 was an intrastate Interstate Highway until December 12, 2012, when the designation was officially approved for an upgraded portion of US 71 in Missouri running from Joplin north to Kansas City. A southern extension of the route from Lafayette to New Orleans is planned along the US 90 corridor, when completed, I-49 will run continuous from Texarkana to New Orleans.