I-49 Shreveport to Baton Rouge? (New Orleans, Lafayette: 2015, dangerous, vs)

[loves2read]

We need to drive with pets (dog and cat) from DFW area to south of Sarasota FL in July
We have driven to DisneyWorld and Tampa area before and gone I-20 Birmingham then to Hattiesburg into FL and caught I-75

my husband wants to use I-49 and go south to Baton Rouge to I-10 and stay on it
he says the driving will be faster/better than using the state highway in MS

the last time we drove DFW to Monroe LA and before that to FL using I-20 the road surface was very rough/noisy and trucks were really bad...
I know you get trucks on any interstate but the road surface was unusually noisy

looking for someone with some first hand experience using I-49--
what condition is it in
are there some decent rest stops that are like parks vs using truck stops/convenience store stops to walk the dog...
she is pretty good traveler so we can go 4-5 hours at least between stops...

we know any way we go we will be spending at least one night on the road--
we don't want to make it in one fell swoop...

so any insight on north/south routes as to which is in better shape currently would be appreciated...

[Innotech]

I49 south to Lafayette is a decent road. Some nice parks and rest stops up there. Between Lafayette and Baton Rouge on I10 is mainly a swamp and an 18 mile bridge so be sure to break before heading east out of Lafayette. I10 is a pretty bad quality highway and there are lots of trucks so be careful but you should be fine.

[annie_himself]

I-49 is pretty rough, I would leave DFW early enough to make it to Mobile or Tallahassee to rest.

[Klassyhk]

I-49 is smooth and there is at least one nice rest stop that I remember. The scenery is boring but the drive is smooth. It was built more recent compared to the other interstates or highways in the state of Louisiana. You may actually enjoy the long bridge across the swamp, I sure do. You'll hit it outside of Lafayette going to Baton Rouge. If you decide to take a side excursion to New Orleans, you'll hit another long bridge across the Atchafalaya swamp. The swamps areas are some of the most interesting parts of driving through Louisiana to me.

[Klassyhk]

Originally Posted by annie_himself

I-49 is pretty rough, I would leave DFW early enough to make it to Mobile or Tallahassee to rest.

This would be much too far to travel to rest. Heck, it takes about 2 hours to get from DFW to Louisiana. Then to drive through Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and then into Florida is about 10-12+ hours depending on traffic and how fast they're driving. To drive that far to "rest" would have them exhausted! If they've come that far they might as well keep driving until they reach their destination in that case.

[BeenThereDunThat]

Dallas to Shreveport is 187 miles on I-20 and I make this drive about 3X a month. It takes me about 3 hours from I-49 junction to Stemmons & Market Ctr / Wycliff if there's not any traffic stoppage due to wrecks, etc.

I-49 is a good interstate but a boring drive. I believe speed limit goes up to 75 MPH once you get past Stonewall south of Shreveport. You can take a quick stop in Natchitoches near Hwy 6 exit and go to McDonalds or Burger King and let your dog out as long as you have a leash...there's enough "space in the back of the parking lot for Fido to do their thing.

Then Alexandria.... and then Lafayette where the I-10 junction is... again...a boooring drive but the highway is good.

[hdwell]

Just remember one thing OP. Washington. Its a speed trap. Slow down there to the speed limit or below which is 75. The town cops love to paper up the speeders.

Also OP, make your rest stop from DFW either Tx or La at the border. There won't be another one until said by BTDT at the hwy 6 interchange on 49. Its not a real rest stop but will suffice.

[annie_himself]

Originally Posted by Klassyhk

I-49 is smooth and there is at least one nice rest stop that I remember. The scenery is boring but the drive is smooth. It was built more recent compared to the other interstates or highways in the state of Louisiana. You may actually enjoy the long bridge across the swamp, I sure do. You'll hit it outside of Lafayette going to Baton Rouge. If you decide to take a side excursion to New Orleans, you'll hit another long bridge across the Atchafalaya swamp. The swamps areas are some of the most interesting parts of driving through Louisiana to me.

The Atchafalaya is between Lafayette and Baton Rouge. The one going to New Orleans is the Pontchartrain Spillway.

Originally Posted by Klassyhk

This would be much too far to travel to rest. Heck, it takes about 2 hours to get from DFW to Louisiana. Then to drive through Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and then into Florida is about 10-12+ hours depending on traffic and how fast they're driving. To drive that far to "rest" would have them exhausted! If they've come that far they might as well keep driving until they reach their destination in that case.

I don't like to stop much so if I'm traveling that far I don't like to stop unless were going to sleep. Ten to twelve hours isn't much for me.

[annie_himself]

Originally Posted by ull2015

I10 between Lafayette and Baton Rouge is a very dangerous stretch of highway. The road for the most part is okay but when you go across the basin bridge(18-20 miles long) drivers tend to speed and big trucks that are supposed to be confined to the right lane don't listen half of the time. Be careful and slow down. The worst that could happen is you end up in traffic backed up on the bridge that has no real exits for 20 miles. So gas up and use the restroom just in case. (I am not over exaggerating I promise)

Kind of nice scenery though going through the swamp and over all the water though.

Some drivers drive fast. Anyone who knows better avoids State Police radars and tends to stay below 65mph.
The scenery is fascinating, second only to the Manchac Swamp Bridge.

[Rosinante]

Why the OP would take 20 to Birmingham and THEN through Hattiesburg is a mystery to me. Better to take I-65 south to Mobile.

Whether the trip is taken via 20 to Birmingham or 49 to 10 through Baton Rouge, it's not a very enjoyable trip. I haven't driven on 20 between Shreveport & Monroe in a good many years, but it was in bad shape back then. I would hope they've fixed it since then.