to
Update
is a city in Tangipahoa Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 5,180 at the 2000 census. Ponchatoula calls itself the
. It is part of the Hammond Micropolitan Statistical Area.
Ponchatoula is located at (30.439162, -90.442507) and has an elevation of . According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 4.2 square miles (10.9 km²), all of it land.
Ponchatoula is located along Interstate 55 and Highway 22, in a position that puts it an equal distance between New Orleans and Baton Rouge. In the early 1900s, Ponchatoula was one of only two ways to get to New Orleans by land, giving it the title of "Gateway to New Orleans."