Wisconsin Department of Transportation officials are studying what improvements need to be made to U.S. Route 41 in order for it to upgraded to Interstate status.[2] Necessary upgrades must be made before any signage changes can happen, but the entire length from Milwaukee to Green Bay is expected to become a new Interstate 41.[2] The legislation was added to the 2005 federal highway bill (Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users) by Congressman Tom Petri. Gannett Wisconsin Newspapers reviewed the state traffic records, and found that the number of cars traveling on 41 in northeast Wisconsin has nearly doubled since 1994.[2] It is unknown if the U.S. Route 41 shields will remain when I-41 signs are tentatively scheduled to go up in 2009.[citation needed] When complete, this will be only the second Interstate number to overlap its U.S. Route counterpart. The other is Interstate 74 & U.S. Route 74 in North Carolina.
Two expansion projects are scheduled for 2010. The first upgrades the old rural freeway west of Green Bay from CTH F(Scheuring Rd) past I-43 to CTH M(Lineville Rd) to a six-lane road with the rebuilding of all interchanges along the corridor; including a free-flow interchange with WIS 29.[3] The second is an expansion of the highway from WIS 26 to Breezewood Lane around Oshkosh from 4 to 6 lanes - including rebuilds of 9 interchanges and the Lake Butte des Morts causeway. [4] [5] The bridge over Lake Butte des Morts is scheduled to be expanded to eight lanes. [5] The second plan has a $292 million budget, and is scheduled to include two additional park and ride lots at State Highways 26 and 76. [5]
Studies are also underway on upgrading the US 41/US 10/WIS 441 interchange in the Neenah area. Currently, the interchange is missing the US 10 Eastbound to US 41 Northbound, and US 41 Northbound to US 10 Westbound ramp movements. This study is focusing on ways to reconstruct this interchange to allow all ramp movements.