Arkansas

[Road Hog]

[quote-Wayward Memphian]I'd be highly pissed if they started any part of that before all of I-40 is 6 laned between LR and Memphis. That is total hell. The trucks are increasingly making a habit of not getting back over once they overtake another going a 10th of a mph slower to over take another ahead. This leading regular traffic to dash in to the right lane and floor it to get around the trucks loitering in the left. And...why Arkansas is constantly repairing the cable  barriers.

Six-lane widening projects on I-40 between Little Rock and Memphis have been very long overdue. We're talking 30 years or more. I can remember that stretch of Interstate being clogged with truck traffic on road trips when I was just a kid. Hardly any of it is 3x3 currently; it's still 2x2.

I'd even go so far to say parts that road should be a 4x4 lanes configuration rather than just 3x3. The I-55/I-40 overlap should be at least 8 lanes wide instead of 6.

I think the only sustained stretch of 3x3 lanes on I-40 in Arkansas is between Conway and the I-57 interchange in North Little Rock.
[/quote]
The short segment between the I-55 split and the bridge is 3x3, but that's it. West of Conway, 2x2 is mostly sufficient.

[Bobby5280]

I'm pretty critical of the Oklahoma Turnpike Authority from time to time. But I think they'll finish the project to widen all of the Turner Turnpike between Oklahoma City and Tulsa to 3x3 lanes long before Arkansas ever gets finished widening I-40 to 3x3 between Little Rock and Memphis. Hell, the OTA will probably have a good chunk of the Will Rogers Turnpike widened to 3x3 as well. And ODOT might even get I-35 widened to 3x3 from the Red River to OKC.

[bassoon1986]

I'm pretty critical of the Oklahoma Turnpike Authority from time to time. But I think they'll the project to widen all of the Turner Turnpike between Oklahoma City and Tulsa to 3x3 lanes long before Arkansas ever gets finished widening I-40 to 3x3 between Little Rock and Memphis. Hell, the OTA will probably have a good chunk of the Will Rogers Turnpike widened to 3x3 as well. And ODOT might even get I-35 widened to 3x3 from the Red River to OKC.

Shoot, even with Louisiana's money woes I think they could finish widening all of I-12 to 3 lanes, and could complete I-49 to the end of the existing US 90 freeway in Raceland (including Shreveport's Inner Cory Connector and Lafayette's I-49 connection) before I-40 is widened to 3x3 between Little Rock and Memphis 

[Plutonic Panda]

Are there any projects at all planned to widen the freeway between Little Rock and Memphis?

[CoreySamson]

Are there any projects at all planned to widen the freeway between Little Rock and Memphis?

Basically the only thing happening right now is that any bridge replacements on I-40 (e.g, the White River bridge, Shell Lake) are being built with 3 lanes each way in mind. I'm not sure if there is anything else being planned.

Examples of that bridge widening:
https://maps.app.goo.gl/yamK2LXvPgqbnmKQ8
https://maps.app.goo.gl/xKPU1M7MEhBXUX7R9

[Plutonic Panda]

Are there any projects at all planned to widen the freeway between Little Rock and Memphis?

Basically the only thing happening right now is that any bridge replacements on I-40 (e.g, the White River bridge, Shell Lake) are being built with 3 lanes each way in mind. I'm not sure if there is anything else being planned.

Examples of that bridge widening:
https://maps.app.goo.gl/yamK2LXvPgqbnmKQ8
https://maps.app.goo.gl/xKPU1M7MEhBXUX7R9

Wow, that sucks. I mean it's good. Those bridges are being widened enough to have three lanes each way which shows Arkansas seems to intend to eventually wide the entire thing. But I thought they would have at least some spot widenings planned if not underway. They don't seem exactly flush with cash.

The only thing I could think of is if enough constituents write their legislators maybe the state could do what Missouri did with I-70.

[Mike24]

ARDOT has three projects programmed for widening I-40, covering 16.6 miles from I-440 in North Little Rock to Highway 31 in Lonoke, and 12 miles from Shearerville to West Memphis.

One is already scheduled for construction next year, I-440 to Kerr Road.

https://ardot.gov/divisions/program-management/project-development/staff-minutes/

[Road Hog]

ARDOT has three projects programmed for widening I-40, covering 16.6 miles from I-440 in North Little Rock to Highway 31 in Lonoke, and 12 miles from Shearerville to West Memphis.

One is already scheduled for construction next year, I-440 to Kerr Road.

https://ardot.gov/divisions/program-management/project-development/staff-minutes/

Yay, only 90 miles to go!

[Wayward Memphian]

Are there any projects at all planned to widen the freeway between Little Rock and Memphis?

Basically the only thing happening right now is that any bridge replacements on I-40 (e.g, the White River bridge, Shell Lake) are being built with 3 lanes each way in mind. I'm not sure if there is anything else being planned.

Examples of that bridge widening:
https://maps.app.goo.gl/yamK2LXvPgqbnmKQ8
https://maps.app.goo.gl/xKPU1M7MEhBXUX7R9

Wow, that sucks. I mean it's good. Those bridges are being widened enough to have three lanes each way which shows Arkansas seems to intend to eventually wide the entire thing. But I thought they would have at least some spot widenings planned if not underway. They don't seem exactly flush with cash.

The only thing I could think of is if enough constituents write their legislators maybe the state could do what Missouri did with I-70.

The new White River Bridge is built for 6 lanes. It's curved and the traffic cam is a spectacular watch when it freezes over. 

[Road Hog]

I hope that instead of building the 6-lane sections from each end, like ARDOT usually does, a decent portion can be built in the middle (basically the Brinkley area) to allow some traffic to pass.

[Plutonic Panda]

I hope that instead of building the 6-lane sections from each end, like ARDOT usually does, a decent portion can be built in the middle (basically the Brinkley area) to allow some traffic to pass.

I wonder if that would actually work or if it would just create a situation where people would just start driving recklessly to pass people because there probably will be left lane hoggers.

[ElishaGOtis]

I hope that instead of building the 6-lane sections from each end, like ARDOT usually does, a decent portion can be built in the middle (basically the Brinkley area) to allow some traffic to pass.

I wonder if that would actually work or if it would just create a situation where people would just start driving recklessly to pass people because there probably will be left lane hoggers.

Or middle lane trucks going 55  

[sprjus4]

Something sort of like that exists here in Virginia along I-81, although technically it's a climbing lane.

North of Lexington, I-81 northbound opens up to 3 continuous lanes for 7 miles, and allows traffic to open up and pass slower trucks that might be hogging the highway.

While it's helpful in that area, particularly due to the varying terrain, it just bogs back down to the same old 2 lanes and stuck behind trucks again afterwards.

With that being said, it is a nice "break", and when it's heavy truck traffic it allows you to move above 70 mph for a while, but that's about it. You can pass one bunch of trucks but you'll be stuck behind the next soon after once it's back to 2 lanes and doing 60 mph again.

In the case of I-40, I'd imagine they don't want to widen in the middle randomly because it has the risk of creating a new bottleneck when it goes back to 2 lanes in a direction, especially during heavier travel periods.

[bwana39]

Something sort of like that exists here in Virginia along I-81, although technically it's a climbing lane.

North of Lexington, I-81 northbound opens up to 3 continuous lanes for 7 miles, and allows traffic to open up and pass slower trucks that might be hogging the highway.

While it's helpful in that area, particularly due to the varying terrain, it just bogs back down to the same old 2 lanes and stuck behind trucks again afterwards.

With that being said, it is a nice "break", and when it's heavy truck traffic it allows you to move above 70 mph for a while, but that's about it. You can pass one bunch of trucks but you'll be stuck behind the next soon after once it's back to 2 lanes and doing 60 mph again.

In the case of I-40, I'd imagine they don't want to widen in the middle randomly because it has the risk of creating a new bottleneck when it goes back to 2 lanes in a direction, especially during heavier travel periods.

So kind of like a passing lane on a 2 lane road.

[Bobby5280]

North of Lexington, I-81 northbound opens up to 3 continuous lanes for 7 miles, and allows traffic to open up and pass slower trucks that might be hogging the highway.

IMHO, pretty much all of I-81 through Virginia needs to be 3x3 lanes. Despite the "minor" Interstate route number I-81 carries a great deal of commercial traffic. It's like a back door route from the I-40 corridor up to the NYC area, bypassing DC/Baltimore and Philadelphia.

In the case of I-40, I'd imagine they don't want to widen in the middle randomly because it has the risk of creating a new bottleneck when it goes back to 2 lanes in a direction, especially during heavier travel periods.

I'd agree they need to widen I-40 working from Little Rock and Memphis inward to the middle. The finished 3x3 segments progressing from Little Rock and Memphis will provide the most relief. In terms of bottlenecks, I-40 already has one of sorts in North Little Rock just East of the split with I-57. The road drops down to 2x2 and it's not even out of the Little Rock metro yet.

On the bright side they've taken care of some harder projects, like the White River bridge replacement and bridge replacements at some other exits. That should help set the stage for the actual highway widening projects.