Are there any known issues in the area of I 10 between Beaumont, TX and Houston, TX? I am trying to route myself from Vicksburg, MS to Port Arthur, TX, and Streets & Trips wants me to go all the way to Houston, then double back on I 10 to Beaumont, then down to Port Arthur. It seems that S&T doesn't recognized any westbound exits off of I 10. I planned this route on S&T 2006 and transferred it to 2009. It did the same thing on 06 as it is doing on 09.

Just got Streets and Trips 2009 and just found this forum, but I have been using 06 for years and loved it, just wanted to update the maps.

That's interesting. I tried it in Mappoint 2009 and got the same results as you. That sort of bizarro routing is usually a result of an error in the map data. Whenever I see that I compare it to the same vintage Garmin maps as a sanity check(both Microsoft and Garmin use Navteq map data).

The Garmin 2009 map (using Mapsource and Mobile PC) does the routing correctly (drops off I-10 onto #73 to Port Arthur. So there appears to be something broken in both S&T and Mappoint rather than in Navteq's map data.

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Thanks for the reply. At least I now know that it's not just my installation. Over the past number of years there has been big time construction on that stretch of highway, that may have something to do with it.

We live in west Texas and drive to Florida a couple times a year; the last time was this last Christmas. I've gotten in the habit of avoiding the Houston to Beaumont stretch because it seems there is always construction (that doesn't always show up in the data updates). In the entire 1400-mile drive the worst part of the trip is Houston and Beaumont.

Westbound I now use US-90 from Beaumont to the Beltway and either down to I-10, or during rush hour I use the Sam Houston Tollway to completely bypass Houston. It's a much easier drive with little traffic except near Houston.

I don't know what the current road status is, but eastbound last Christmas we got off in Channelview for gas and something to eat and traffic on I-10 and the frontage road did not move at all for 45 minutes due to bridge work. At that point I used Sheldon Road, the last exit before you're trapped.

I'd go the scenic way:

Get off on LA-14 in Lake Charles, go a couple miles south to Steamboat Bill's on the right side for great inexpensive Cajun food, the use something like LA-27 (either one)to LA-82 to Port Arthur. I think the ferry at Cameron still runs. It's a little out of the way but a much nicer drive. The Sabine NWR is pretty.