Editing Interstate 59 (section)

==Route description==
{{More citations needed|section|date=October 2023}}
{{lengths table|length_ref=<ref name="FHWA"/>}}
|-
|[[Interstate 59 in Louisiana|LA]]
|{{convert|11.48|mi|km|disp=table}}
|-
|[[Interstate 59 in Mississippi|MS]]
|{{convert|171.72|mi|km|disp=table}}
|-
|[[Interstate 59 in Alabama|AL]]
|{{convert|241.36|mi|km|disp=table}}
|-
|[[Interstate 59 in Georgia|GA]]
|{{convert|20.67|mi|km|disp=table}}
|-
|Total
|{{convert|445.23|mi|km|disp=table}}
|}

===Louisiana===
{{Main article|Interstate 59 in Louisiana}}
I-59 spans {{convert|11.48|mi|km}} in Louisiana, the shortest distance in the four states through which it travels. The route begins at a partial [[cloverleaf interchange]] with [[Interstate 10 in Louisiana|I-10]] (exit&nbsp;267) and I-12 (exit&nbsp;85) at the northeastern corner of [[Slidell, Louisiana|Slidell]], a city in [[St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana|St. Tammany Parish]]. From this interchange, connections are made to [[New Orleans, Louisiana|New Orleans]] and [[Hammond, Louisiana|Hammond]], as well as [[Bay St. Louis, Mississippi]]. Heading north, I-59 has two exits serving the town of [[Pearl River, Louisiana|Pearl River]], where it begins a concurrency with [[U.S. Route 11 in Louisiana|US&nbsp;11]]. Immediately afterward, the highway crosses the West Pearl River and passes through an interchange with Old US&nbsp;11, a portion of the pre-Interstate alignment serving the [[Pearl River Wildlife Management Area]]. I-59 then travels through the [[Honey Island Swamp]] for {{convert|6|mi|km|spell=in}} before crossing the main branch of the [[Pearl River (Mississippi–Louisiana)|Pearl River]] into Mississippi.<ref name="GMaps">{{google maps |url = https://www.google.com/maps/dir/30.300387,-89.743377/30.4625839,-89.6948921/@30.3838107,-89.7318916,21099m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m2!4m1!3e0?hl=en |title = Overview Map of I-59 in Louisiana |access-date = May 14, 2017 }}</ref><ref name="P52E 2012">{{cite map |publisher = [[Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development]] |title = St. Tammany Parish (East Section) |url = http://wwwsp.dotd.la.gov/Inside_LaDOTD/Divisions/Multimodal/Data_Collection/Mapping/Parish%20Maps/St_Tammany_East.pdf |author = Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development Office of Multimodal Planning |date = February 2012 |access-date = May 14, 2017 }}</ref><ref name="D62 2012">{{cite map |publisher = Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development |title = District 62: Official Control Section Map / Construction and Maintenance |url = http://wwwsp.dotd.la.gov/Inside_LaDOTD/Divisions/Multimodal/Data_Collection/Mapping/District%20Maps/District_62.pdf |author = Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development Office of Multimodal Planning |date = February 2012 |access-date = May 14, 2017 }}</ref>

===Mississippi===
{{Main article|Interstate 59 in Mississippi}}
{{see also|Interstate 20 in Mississippi}}
[[File:I-20 East I-59 North - US11 US80 MS19 To US45 - Red Hot Meridian (26953469657).jpg|thumb|left|I-59 cosigned with I-20 in Mississippi; other cosigned routes are listed on the shields of the next sign]]
In Mississippi, I-59 continues to run parallel with US&nbsp;11, traversing mainly rural areas but going through or bypassing the towns of [[Picayune, Mississippi|Picayune]], [[Poplarville, Mississippi|Poplarville]], [[Hattiesburg, Mississippi|Hattiesburg]], [[Moselle, Mississippi|Moselle]], [[Ellisville, Mississippi|Ellisville]], [[Laurel, Mississippi|Laurel]], and [[Meridian, Mississippi|Meridian]].

For its length in Mississippi, I-59 either [[concurrency (road)|runs concurrently]] with, or runs close to, [[U.S. Route 11 in Mississippi|US&nbsp;11]]. Between the towns of Pearl River and Picayune, US&nbsp;11 travels concurrent with I-59. The highway also has concurrencies with [[U.S. Route 98 in Mississippi|US&nbsp;98]] in Hattiesburg; [[Mississippi Highway 42]] (MS&nbsp;42) just north of Hattiesburg; [[U.S. Route 84 in Mississippi|US&nbsp;84]] and [[Mississippi Highway 15|MS&nbsp;15]] in Laurel; and [[U.S. Route 80 in Mississippi|US&nbsp;80]], US&nbsp;11, and [[Mississippi Highway 19|MS&nbsp;19]] in the Meridian area.{{citation needed|date=October 2023}}

A notoriously sharp [[Reverse curve|S-curve]], at milepost&nbsp;96 in Laurel, was the subject of a large reconstruction project that began in 2006. Those sharp curves were the legacy of an overpass over the [[Southern Railway (U.S.)|Southern Railway]] on a town bypass with design dating from before the Interstate Highways, and they featured a {{convert|40|mi/h|km/h|adj=on}} speed limit, one of the lowest anywhere on the Interstate Highway System. This work was completed in 2009.<ref>{{cite news |url = https://www.wdam.com/story/11113804/laurel-s-curve-renamed-reopened/ |title = Laurel S-Curve renamed, reopened |last = Richardson |first = Ontario |publisher = WDAM-TV |date = September 11, 2009 |access-date = September 27, 2020 }}</ref>

Just west of Meridian, I-20 joins I-59 and these two highways continue together for {{convert|153|mi|km}}, across the border with [[Alabama]] to and through Birmingham. The exit numbers are given as those of I-59.{{citation needed|date=October 2023}}

At 4:00&nbsp;pm on August&nbsp;27, 2005, for the first time in its history, the southbound lanes of I-59 were temporarily redirected northward to accommodate evacuation for [[Hurricane Katrina]]. This was a previously agreed to joint plan by the states of [[Mississippi]] and [[Louisiana]] called [[contraflow lane reversal]]. The program began at the Louisiana–Mississippi state line and continued {{convert|21|mi|km}} north to [[Poplarville, Mississippi|Poplarville]].{{citation needed|date=October 2023}}

===Alabama===
{{see also|Interstate 20 in Alabama}}{{Main|Interstate 59 in Alabama}}
{{Unsourced section|date=October 2023}}
[[File:I20I59Birmingham.JPG|right|thumb|I-59/I-20 approaching I-65 in downtown Birmingham]]
I-59 and I-20 travel together for about 40&nbsp;percent of their route through Alabama, passing northeast through Tuscaloosa before finally parting ways in eastern Birmingham.

In Birmingham, many wrecks and accidents occur near the crossover interchange of I-20/I-59 and I-65 (commonly called "Malfunction Junction"). On two occasions, 18-wheelers crashed and burned fiercely enough to melt the support beams of overpasses. Beginning in eastern Birmingham, I-59 continues on its own northeast, passing by [[Gadsden, Alabama|Gadsden]] and [[Fort Payne, Alabama|Fort Payne]] in the foothills of the [[Appalachian Mountains]] before entering [[Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia]].

I-59 from Gadsden at milemarker&nbsp;182 to Stephen's Gap at milemarker&nbsp;193 had degraded over the decades since it was opened into a rough concrete highway. Between 2010 and 2014, a construction project called "Project&nbsp;59" took place between Gadsden and Fort Payne. This project consisted of reconstructing the Interstate Highway with unbonded concrete (without any space cracks) as well as modifications to the width and vertical clearance of the bridges and overpasses in the segment.

===Georgia===
{{Main article|Interstate 59 in Georgia}}
I-59 has a short trek through Georgia, with only three exits before ending at I-24 several miles west of [[Chattanooga, Tennessee]], in [[Wildwood, Georgia]]. The entire route of I-59 in Georgia is named '''Korean War Veterans Memorial Highway'''. I-59's southbound location is marked Birmingham instead of Gadsden in Georgia. Gadsden is the next city that I-59 southbound is traveling to right before the route reaches Birmingham. For services, I-59 has no direct access to the Georgia Welcome Center, instead I-59's Georgia Welcome Center is located in [[Trenton, Georgia|Trenton]]. Drivers must take I-59 Trenton exit&nbsp;11 to get access to the Georgia Welcome Center. Within Georgia, it carries unsigned designated as '''State Route&nbsp;406''' ('''SR&nbsp;406''') for internal [[Georgia Department of Transportation]] (GDOT) purposes.<ref>{{cite book |author = Office of Transportation Data |publisher = Georgia Department of Transportation |title = Interstate Mileage Report (438 Report) |year = 2003 |url = http://www.dot.state.ga.us/DOT/plan-prog/transportation_data/400reports/2003/dpp438_2003.pdf |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20060218010013/http://www.dot.state.ga.us/DOT/plan-prog/transportation_data/400reports/2003/dpp438_2003.pdf |archive-date = February 18, 2006 }}</ref>