US 63 Jonesboro bypass?

[bugo]

Since US 63 has been routed along US 49 south of Jonesboro, Arkansas, it now takes a rather circuitous route through Jonesboro. South of Bono, taking AR 91 west to AR 349 south to CR 203 to US 49/63 south is about 4 1/2 miles shorter than the current routing through Jonesboro. A bridge could be built that crosses the Union Pacific tracks and AR 226. An interchange would be even better here. CR 203 and AR 349 would be upgraded and a connection from Bono to the current AR 91/AR 349 intersection. I-555 would have to be extended along current US 63 from its current terminus. I don't know how much of a through route US 63 is at this time but if they are going to treat it as such a bypass would be helpful.

[The Ghostbuster]

Has US 63 officially been rerouted via US 49 to Interstate 40? Google Maps still shows it following its post-1999 route via Turrell, West Memphis, and west to Hazen. Wikipedia also lists it as following its post-1999 route as well. Perhaps both should be updated to reflect US 63's new route between Jonesboro and Hazen via Brinkley.

[edwaleni]

Has US 63 officially been rerouted via US 49 to Interstate 40? Google Maps still shows it following its post-1999 route via Turrell, West Memphis, and west to Hazen. Wikipedia also lists it as following its post-1999 route as well. Perhaps both should be updated to reflect US 63's new route between Jonesboro and Hazen via Brinkley.

With I-555 complete, there is a desire to re-route US-63 away from West Memphis and have it cosign with a straight southbound route.

Years ago, US-63 ended in West Memphis, but was extended further south when Arkansas wanted fed funding for a south route to Louisiana.

[cjk374]

Has US 63 officially been rerouted via US 49 to Interstate 40? Google Maps still shows it following its post-1999 route via Turrell, West Memphis, and west to Hazen. Wikipedia also lists it as following its post-1999 route as well. Perhaps both should be updated to reflect US 63's new route between Jonesboro and Hazen via Brinkley.

With I-555 complete, there is a desire to re-route US-63 away from West Memphis and have it cosign with a straight southbound route.

Years ago, US-63 ended in West Memphis, but was extended further south when Arkansas wanted fed funding for a south route to Louisiana.

US 63 is proof that Arkansas can't make a straight route if their existence depended on it.

[golden eagle]

Has US 63 officially been rerouted via US 49 to Interstate 40? Google Maps still shows it following its post-1999 route via Turrell, West Memphis, and west to Hazen. Wikipedia also lists it as following its post-1999 route as well. Perhaps both should be updated to reflect US 63's new route between Jonesboro and Hazen via Brinkley.

With I-555 complete, there is a desire to re-route US-63 away from West Memphis and have it cosign with a straight southbound route.

Years ago, US-63 ended in West Memphis, but was extended further south when Arkansas wanted fed funding for a south route to Louisiana.

Are there any plans to extend 555 to I-57 when it's completed in Arkansas and Missouri?

[Bobby5280]

Not currently. The North end of the I-555/US-63 freeway in Jonesboro would have to take a new terrain route to get to the bypass around Bono. From there an Interstate quality upgrade of US-63 to Walnut Ridge and Future I-57 would be relatively easy.

[MikieTimT]

Not currently. The North end of the I-555/US-63 freeway in Jonesboro would have to take a new terrain route to get to the bypass around Bono. From there an Interstate quality upgrade of US-63 to Walnut Ridge and Future I-57 would be relatively easy.

Everything northwest of AR-91 on US-63 until the Black River bridge is an "Arkansas freeway", meaning 5 lane, including the Bono bypass.  If I-555 were to be taken west of the current alignment of US-63, it'd have to be built up quite a bit as I've seen everything west of Bono underwater from Cache River flooding.  AR-230 through that area gets closed fairly regularly in the wet season.  And that whole part of Arkansas in general is Mississippi River floodplain in general, so 500 year events of that river will inundate everything other than Crowley's Ridge and Jonesboro until the foothills of the Ozarks past Black Rock and Pocahontas, so I-555 and I-57 would likely also be inundated as well unless some serious roadbed buildup is in store.  It's also why the farmland is so fertile in that part of the state.  Don't be thinking that can't happen in our lifetimes, as we just had a 500 year flood of the Arkansas River just a few weeks ago here in the state, so it's not out of the realm of possibility.

[US71]

Not currently. The North end of the I-555/US-63 freeway in Jonesboro would have to take a new terrain route to get to the bypass around Bono. From there an Interstate quality upgrade of US-63 to Walnut Ridge and Future I-57 would be relatively easy.

IMO, I'm not sure the traffic would warrant extending 555.

[Wayward Memphian]

Not currently. The North end of the I-555/US-63 freeway in Jonesboro would have to take a new terrain route to get to the bypass around Bono. From there an Interstate quality upgrade of US-63 to Walnut Ridge and Future I-57 would be relatively easy.

IMO, I'm not sure the traffic would warrant extending 555.

Only as part of an overall plan to build a four lane across North Arkansas to NWA basically replacing US 412. Lots of traffic would shift from I-40 to that routing. I would never go on I-40 on my many trips east to either Memphis for family or NEA for duck hunting. Lots of students would use it going to and from the U of A

[Bobby5280]

An upgraded road from current I-555 up through Walnut Ridge could either turn into a big upgrade of US-412 or go farther North up to West Plains and Willow Springs, MO to hook into the US-60 corridor (another route slowly being brought up to Interstate standards).

Everything northwest of AR-91 on US-63 until the Black River bridge is an "Arkansas freeway", meaning 5 lane, including the Bono bypass.  If I-555 were to be taken west of the current alignment of US-63, it'd have to be built up quite a bit as I've seen everything west of Bono underwater from Cache River flooding.

The segment I'm talking about bypassing is the 2.5 mile segment of US-63 from the very last freeway exit on the NW side of Jonesboro to the start of the bypass around Bono. There's too much development right up on the existing US-63 undivided 4-lane highway (with center turn lane) to squeeze a freeway through there. The territory is hilly and covered with trees. An extension of I-555 would have to go to the left of the existing alignment and hook into the Bono bypass just past the US-63/Bus-63 split in Bono.

[edwaleni]

Extending I-555 was discussed in another thread, but the result was the same.

There just isn't enough traffic west of Jonesboro to support it.

ARDOT upgraded AR-226 (Cash Highway) to 4 lanes to serve as the connector between US-67 (future I-57) and Jonesboro from the west.

While the concept of extending I-555/US-63 to a more serious route beyond Portia, west of Walnut Ridge would be nice for truck traffic coming up/down to Memphis, it probably won't get any serious attention until ARDOT gets funding to support a US-412 upgrade, which is on their priority route listing. When I-22 was finished between Birmingham and Memphis, this increased traffic to/from Atlanta.  Every time they extend capacity to/from the southeast, it draws more traffic from the northwest (like KCMO).

As for improvements all the way to US-60 in Missouri, (which I think will become a true Interstate route someday as it follows National Priority Route #3), the best route would be US-63 from Hardy to West Plains, MO, but I can't see it being prioritized.  ARDOT wants US-412 updated across the entire north part of the state and it doesn't have enough dough to finish I-49 as it is.

This would take traffic across north Arkansas to US-65 where they would go up the Branson route to reach KCMO.  It's just not going to happen in our lifetimes unfortunately.

[Tomahawkin]

Just saw this for the first time in years. Was there any fruition to this? I'd figured a Paragould bypass would have been considered sooner?

[US71]

Just saw this for the first time in years. Was there any fruition to this? I'd figured a Paragould bypass would have been considered sooner?

Paragould has a bypass along US 412.

Jonwsboro has I-555 loping to the south and west

[kenarmy]

So I take it 63 still hasn't been rerouted..

[US71]

So I take it 63 still hasn't been rerouted..

I saw a post somewhere that it had been, but I haven't had time to confirm it personally.

[ozarkman417]

I was in Jonesboro a week ago, so this might help:

GSV with only US 49 & AR 18 (Sep 2019), versus this new BGS from two weeks ago..



Also, I-555 is still only signed up to Southwest.