Interstate 49

Interstate 49 is proposed to run from Kansas City, Missouri, to Lafayette, Louisiana. The portion from Shreveport, Louisiana to Lafayette, Louisiana is completed. The I-49 corridor is part of the ISTEA/NHS High Priority Corridor 1. For more information on this corridor, go to Andy Field's page by clicking here. US 71 is four-lane divided from Kansas City to Joplin. There are several at-grade section that will need to be upgraded. Missouri has just completed a new section from US 60 at Neosho to I-44 at Joplin. My guess is that this road, plus the Carthage bypass and I-44 from Joplin from Carthage will carry the I-49 shields. In Arkansas, US 71 is four lanes from the Missouri border to the southside of Fayetteville. A short section in Bella Vista is at-grade, and will most likely need to be bypassed. The section of US 71 between Fayetteville and Mountainburg is under construction. This section will contain Bunyard Tunnel under the Boston Mountains near Winslow. The section betwen Mountainburg and Alma is completed and signed as Arkansas 540 (a disconnected extension of I-540?). From Alma, I-49 will be routed south from the I-40/Arkansas 540 interchange to run east of Ft. Smith. There is some controversy on the routing from here, as homeowners do not want to lose their property. Around Texarkana, I-49 is expected to be routed west of town in Texas. Whether this will contain the current US 59 freeway west of Texarkana will remain to be seen. From Texarkana, I-49 will basically parallel US 71 to Shreveport.

Here is a very rudimentary map I made showing the approximate location of the new Interstate in purple. The proposed exits are shown as well.