 Interstate 55 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 I-55 highlighted in red | ||||
| Route information | ||||
| Maintained by Louisiana DOTD | ||||
| Length | 66.086 mi[1][a] (106.355 km) | |||
| Existed | 1960–present | |||
| Tourist routes |
| |||
| NHS | Entire route | |||
| Major junctions | ||||
| South end |  I-10 in LaPlace | |||
| North end |  I-55 at Mississippi state line north of Kentwood | |||
| Location | ||||
| Country | United States | |||
| State | Louisiana | |||
| Parishes | St. John the Baptist, Tangipahoa | |||
| Highway system | ||||
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Interstate 55 (I-55) is a part of the Interstate Highway System that spans 964.25 miles (1,551.81 km) from LaPlace, Louisiana, to Chicago, Illinois.[2] Within the state of Louisiana, the highway travels 66 miles (106 km) from the national southern terminus at I-10 in LaPlace to the Mississippi state line north of Kentwood.[1]
The route is located in the southeastern portion of Louisiana and parallels the older U.S. Highway 51 (US 51) corridor. While passing through the city of Hammond, I-55 intersects two of the state's major east–west routes, I-12 and US 190. It also serves the smaller city of Ponchatoula, as well as the towns of Amite City and Kentwood.
I-55 is a major highway through the New Orleans metropolitan area, the city being located 20 miles (32 km) east of the junction between I-10 and I-55. It also serves as an important hurricane evacuation route for the region. I-55 was opened in several stages beginning in 1960 with a bypass of Ponchatoula and Hammond. The southern 23 miles (37 km) of I-55, consisting of a twin-span viaduct through the Manchac swamp, was completed in 1979 and is one of the longest bridges in the world.
- ^ a b "La DOTD GIS Data". Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development. September 2015. Retrieved May 2, 2017.
- ^ a b "FHWA Route Log and Finder List / Table 1: Main Routes of the Dwight D. Eisenhower National System Of Interstate and Defense Highways as of December 31, 2016". Federal Highway Administration. February 22, 2017. Retrieved May 2, 2017.
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