Caddo commissioners vote 9-1 to go on record as supporting completion of I-49 inner-city connector

SHREVEPORT, La. (KSLA) — The public could learn the preferred alternative route for the Interstate 49 inner-city connector in Shreveport by the end of December.

Caddo commissioners got that news the afternoon of Thursday, May 20 while hearing public comments and discussing whether to go on record as supporting completion of the approximately 3.6 miles of highway as soon as possible.

Resolution 45 was adopted on a vote of 9-1 with two commissioners being absent.

Funding for the project has become more necessary as more businesses and industries locate in Caddo Parish and the surrounding area, the commission’s resolution notes.

That need has become more imperative because Amazon has announced plans to open a distribution center in Caddo, which Resolution 45 says will significantly increase 18-wheeler traffic needing interstate access.

The inner-city connector, which has been on the drawing board for years, would be an approximately 3.6-miles segment to connect I-49 at Interstate 20 in Shreveport with the recently completed segment of I-49 north of Interstate 220 in Caddo Parish.

The initial feasibility study and environmental inventory was completed in 2010. So the Louisiana highway department let the project enter the planning and environmental stage. At the end of Stage 1, an environmental impact statement will be presented to the Federal Highway Administration and the Transportation Department for approval.

Caddo commissioners were told Thursday that a draft of the environmental impact statement is expected to be released by the end of December. That’s when the preferred alternative route for the connector will be released and the project will be opened up for public comment.

Below is the agenda for the commission’s meeting:

Below is an interactive map of Stage 1 of the I-49 inner-city connector (last updated in February 2016):

Copyright 2021 KSLA. All rights reserved.