Interstate issues

Most days we get on I-20 or I-49 and just zip across town or across the state to get where we're going.

But as two articles in Wednesday's paper will show, the path an Interstate highway takes is not always easy -- espeically in the beginning.

I-49 north to Arkansas will likely cut through the struggling neighborhood of Allendale here in Shreveport. Some think it will add life, others think it will just drive out what little life is left.

Then there's I-69, scheduled to connect El Dorado, Ark., (and eventually Mexico and Canada) to the Shreveport-Bossier area. But the highway folks have run into road blocks (literally and figuratively) in Webster Parish about dividing communities such as Growing Valley and crossing Bayou Dorcheat, which is on the state Natural and Scenic Rivers System.

Seem like people grumbling over nothing? Maybe until they talk about cutting through your back yard. The highways will be built, but it's up to us -- voters -- to help determine the details.

The other us involved would be journalists. Our job is keeping everyone else informed. I know I'm trying to do my best to let people know the issues. But sometimes it's tough keeping up.

So let me -- and everyone else -- know if you've got any thoughts on projected Interstate paths or otherwise. We're busy, but listening to you, following up on information -- and also filtering it -- are parts of our job.