Interstate 40 in Oklahoma

Interstate 40
Route information
Maintained by ODOT
Length:	331 mi (533 km)
Existed:	1957[1] – present
Major junctions
West end:	I-40 at the Texas state line
	US-81 in El Reno Kilpatrick Turnpike in Oklahoma City I‑44 in Oklahoma City I‑35 in Oklahoma City I‑235 in Oklahoma City I‑240 in Oklahoma City Indian Nation Turnpike in Henryetta US-69 in Checotah Muskogee Turnpike near Webbers Falls
East end:	I-40 at the Arkansas state line
Highway system
Interstate Highway System Main Auxiliary Suffixed Business Oklahoma State Highways Interstate U.S. Turnpikes ← SH-39 SH-42 →

Interstate 40 (I-40) is an Interstate Highway in Oklahoma that runs 331 miles (533 km) across the state from Texas to Arkansas. West of Oklahoma City, it parallels and replaces Old US-66, and east of Oklahoma City, it parallels US-62, 266, and 64.

Cities along the route include Erick, Sayre, Elk City, Clinton, Weatherford, Oklahoma City and its suburbs (El Reno, Yukon, Del City, Midwest City, and Shawnee), Okemah, Henryetta, Checotah, and Sallisaw.

Route description

Interstate 40 enters Oklahoma near Texola, in Beckham County. It crosses the North Fork of the Red River near Sayre and runs through the south side of Elk City. It then cuts across the northwest corner of Washita County before entering Custer County, where it passes through Clinton and Weatherford. After leaving Weatherford, I-40 then runs across the northern tip of Caddo County before it enters the Oklahoma City Metro Area at Canadian County.

I-40 runs through the south side of El Reno as it enters the Oklahoma City metro. It then passes through Yukon before entering Oklahoma City city limits. In west Oklahoma City, I-40 has a junction with Interstate 44 (the Amarillo Junction). It then runs just south of downtown Oklahoma City on a new ten lane section.^[2] I-40 then interlines with Interstate 35 at the Dallas Junction complex, forming a concurrency with it for about two miles (3 km). After the Dallas Junction, I-40 then passes through Del City and Midwest City on a freeway known as the Tinker Diagonal, providing access to Tinker Air Force Base in east Oklahoma City.

In far eastern Oklahoma City, I-40 meets Interstate 240 in a partial junction before passing through the north side of Shawnee marking the eastern end of the OKC metro area. In Henryetta, I-40 serves as the northern terminus of the Indian Nation Turnpike. In McIntosh County, it crosses the northernmost arm of Lake Eufaula and meets the US-69 freeway south of Checotah.

Near Webbers Falls, I-40 is the southern terminus of the Muskogee Turnpike. It then crosses the Arkansas River before heading around southern Sallisaw. The interstate crosses into Arkansas north of Moffett.

History

West of Oklahoma City, Interstate 40 parallels and replaces Old US-66. US-66 was decommissioned in Oklahoma in 1985.

Exit 176

Exit 181

Exit 240A

Exit 262

Bridge collapse

The I-40 bridge over the Arkansas River/McClellan-Kerr Navigation System near Webbers Falls was struck by a barge on May 26, 2002, causing the bridge to collapse and resulting in the death of 14 people.

Westbound I-40 traffic was detoured through Gore and Webbers Falls along SH-10, US-64, and SH-100, while eastbound traffic was diverted through Porum and Stigler along SH-2, SH-9, and US-59.^[3] Delays of thirty to fifty minutes on the 12-mile (19 km) westbound detour were typical, although trains passing through Gore could lengthen wait times by 15 minutes. The eastbound detour added 40 miles (64 km) and two hours to the typical trip. Some travelers chose to avoid the area entirely; one Tulsa trucking firm detoured trucks via Springdale, adding 70 miles (110 km) to the trip.^[4][5]

The detour significantly impacted the town of Gore. Local firefighters directed traffic there 24 hours a day, with daytime temperatures approaching 100 °F (38 °C). Businesses in Gore reported loss of revenue due to the traffic; one gas station reported a 30% decline in revenue while traffic was detoured through town.^[5]

2015 shootings

On December 17, 2015, a Pasadena, Texas man allegedly shot and killed two people on Interstate 40 near Weatherford, Oklahoma. He was arrested by police in Clinton, Oklahoma. The case is not being investigated as an act of terrorism at the moment.^[6]

Oklahoma City Crosstown realignment

The original I-40 Oklahoma City Crosstown Expressway was built in 1966 mostly as an elevated route; however, this former stretch was too narrow for existing traffic, and was frequently in disrepair. In response, the I-40 Crosstown Expressway has been relocated a few blocks south of the original route, and the original bridge torn down. The project was completed in February 2012.^[2]

The new I-40 Crosstown Expressway has been designed to carry 170,000+ vehicles-per-day traveling at 60 miles-per-hour (97 km/h) using at-least ten lanes for traffic, and has breakdown lanes for disabled vehicles and future lane expansion.

When the new crosstown opened in 2012, nearly 95% of non-rush hour traffic was considered 'through traffic'; not transferring to or from downtown streets.

A landscaped boulevard is currently under-construction (circa 2016) replacing the original I-40 Crosstown Bridge right-of-way through downtown Oklahoma City; similar to the I-30 reconstruction through downtown Fort Worth, Texas.

Business routes and old alignments

I-40 has eight business routes in Oklahoma, six of which are old alignments of US-66. A number of other old alignments of US-66 are also present west of Oklahoma City.

Erick I-40 Business Loop (formerly US-66) is a Business Loop that runs from I-40 two miles (3 km) west of Erick to the old alignment of US-66, through Erick, and back to I-40, four miles (6 km) east of Erick.

Sayre I-40 Business Loop (formerly US-66) is a Business Loop that begins two miles (3 km) south of Sayre at US-283, runs north into the city, and then leaves Sayre to the east, rejoining I-40 two miles (3 km) east of US-283.

Elk City I-40 Business Loop (formerly US-66) is a Business Loop that begins at Exit 32, seven miles (11 km) west of Elk City. It runs for ten miles (16 km) through Elk City, rejoining I-40 at Exit 41.

Clinton I-40 Business Loop (formerly US-66) is a Business Loop that begins at Exit 65, runs five miles (8 km) through Clinton, and rejoinds I-40 at Exit 69.

Weatherford I-40 Business Loop (formerly US-66) is a Business Loop that exits I-40 at Exit 82B, runs four miles (6 km) through Weatherford, and rejoins I-40 at Exit 82.

El Reno I-40 Business Loop (formerly US-66) is a Business Loop through El Reno. It exits I-40 at Exit 119, runs eight miles (13 km) through El Reno, and rejoins I-40 at Exit 125, the interchange with US-81.

Henryetta I-40 Business Loop (formerly US-62/US-75) is a Business Loop that leaves I-40 at Exit 237, runs four miles (6 km) through Henryetta, and rejoins I-40 at Exit 240, the interchange with US-75 and the Indian Nation Turnpike.

Sallisaw I-40 Business Loop is a Business Loop that leaves I-40 at Exit 308, US-59, runs four miles (6 km) through Sallisaw, and rejoins I-40 at Exit 311, US-64.

Exit list

County	Location	mi	km	Exit	Destinations	Notes
Texas–Oklahoma state line		0.00	0.00	I-40 continues west into Texas
Beckham	​			1	Texola
	​			5	I‑40 Bus. east (Honeyfarm Road) – Erick
	Erick			7	SH-30 – Erick, Sweetwater
	​			11	I‑40 Bus. west – Erick
	​			14	Hext Road
	Sayre			20	I‑40 Bus. east / US-283 (South 4th Street) – Mangum
				23	SH-152 (Main Street) – Cordell
		25.11	40.41	25	I‑40 Bus. west (North 4th Street)
	​			26	Cemetery Road
	​			32	I‑40 Bus. east / SH-34 south – Carter, Mangum, Elk City	Western terminus of SH-34 concurrency
	​			34	Merritt Road
	Elk City			38	SH-6 (South Main Street) – Altus
				40	East 7th Street
				41	I‑40 Bus. west / SH-34 north – Woodward, Elk City	Eastern terminus of SH-34 concurrency
Washita	Canute			47	Canute
	​			50	Clinton Lake Road
	Foss			53	SH-44 – Foss, Altus
Custer	​			57	Stafford Road
	​			61	Haggard Road
	​			62	Parkersburg Road
	Clinton			65	I‑40 Bus. east (Gary Boulevard)	No eastbound entrance
				65A	10th Street, Neptune Drive
				66	US-183 (S. 4th Street) – Cordell
	​	69.16	111.30	69	I‑40 Bus. west – Clinton	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
	​			71	Custer City Road
	Weatherford			80	SH-54 – Thomas, Mountain View
				80A	I‑40 Bus. east (W. Main Street) – Southwestern Oklahoma State University	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
				82	I‑40 Bus. west (E. Main Street)
				84	Airport Road
Caddo	​			88	SH-58 – Hydro, Carnegie
	​			95	Bethel Road
	​			101	US-281 / SH-8 – Hinton, Anadarko
Canadian	​			104	Methodist Road
	​			108	US-281 Spur – Geary, Watonga
	​			115	US-270 west – Calumet	Western terminus of US-270 concurrency
	​			119	I‑40 Bus. east – El Reno
	El Reno			123	Country Club Road
				125	I‑40 Bus. west / US-81 – El Reno, Chickasha
				127	Radio Road
	​			130	Banner Road
	​			132	Cimarron Road – C.E. Page Airport
	Yukon			135	Frisco Road	Planning underway, bid letting projected for 2017[7]
				136	Garth Brooks Boulevard
				137	Cornwell Drive, Czech Hall Road	Eastbound exit and entrance on Czech Hall Road, westbound exit and entrance from Northwest 10th Street
				138A	SH-4 (Mustang Road)	Westbound exit via exit 139
				139	Kilpatrick Turnpike east	Eastbound I-40 exit 138B
				140	Morgan Road
Oklahoma	Oklahoma City			142	Council Road
				143	Rockwell Avenue
				144	MacArthur Boulevard
				145	Meridian Avenue
				146	Portland Avenue	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
				147	I‑44 / SH-3 – Lawton, Tulsa	Signed as exits 147A (westbound I-44 exit) & 147B (eastbound I-44 exit); I-44 exits 120A-B
				148A	Agnew Avenue, Villa Avenue
				148B	Oklahoma City Boulevard	Boulevard planned to follow the previous Oklahoma City Crosstown Expressway alignment, currently in progress
				148C	Penn Avenue
				149	Western Avenue
				150A	Shields Boulevard	No Westbound exit
				150B	Robinson Avenue	Westbound exit
				151A	Oklahoma City Boulevard
				151B	I‑35 south / US-62 west (US-77 south) – Dallas	Western terminus of I-35/US-62 concurrency
				151C	I‑235 north (US-77 north) – Edmond, State Capitol, Oklahoma Health Center	Signed as exit 126 westbound, due to I-35 concurrency
				127	Eastern Avenue, M. L. King Avenue	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
				153	I‑35 north / US-62 east to I‑44 – Tulsa, Wichita	Eastern terminus of I-35/US-62 concurrency
	Del City			154	Reno Avenue, Scott Street
				155A	Sunnylane Road – Del City
				155B	S.E. 15th Street – Del City, Midwest City
	Midwest City			156A	Sooner Road
				156B	Hudiburg Drive	No eastbound entrance
				157A	S.E. 29th Street – Midwest City	Eastbound exit only
				157B	Air Depot Boulevard – Tinker Gate
				157C	Town Center Drive – Eaker Gate
				159A	Hruskocy Gate
				159B	Douglas Boulevard – Lancer Gate, Liberator Gate, Marauder Gate
	Oklahoma City			162	Anderson Road
				165	I‑240 west (SH-3) – Lawton, Dallas	Western terminus of SH-3 concurrency; westbound exit and eastbound entrance
				166	Choctaw Road
				169	Peebly Road
				172	Newalla Road – Harrah
Pottawatomie	​			176	SH-102 north (McLoud Road)	Western terminus of SH-102 concurrency
	​			178	SH-102 south – Dale, Bethel Acres	Eastern terminus of SH-102 concurrency
	​			181	US-177 / US-270 east / SH-3W east – Shawnee, Tecumseh	Eastern terminus of US-270 concurrency, SH-3 splits into SH-3E (which remains concurrent with I-40) and SH-3W (which exits)
	Shawnee			185	SH-3E east – Shawnee	Eastern terminus of SH-3E concurrency
				186	SH-18 – Shawnee, Meeker
	​			192	SH-9A south – Earlsboro
Seminole	​			200	US-377 / SH-99 – Prague, Seminole
	​			212	SH-56 – Cromwell, Wewoka
Okfuskee	​			217	SH-48 – Holdenville, Bristow
	​			221	US-62 west / SH-27 – Okemah, Wetumka	Western terminus of US-62 concurrency
	​			227	Clearview Road
	​			231	US-75 south – Wetumka, Weleetka	Western terminus of US-75 concurrency
Okmulgee	Henryetta			237	I‑40 Bus. east – Henryetta
				240A	Indian Nation Turnpike – McAlester, Dallas	Indian Nation Turnpike exits 104A-B
				240B	US-62 east / US-75 north / I‑40 Bus. west – Henryetta, Okmulgee	Eastern terminus of US-62/US-75 concurrency
McIntosh	​			247	Tiger Mountain Road
	​			255	Pierce Road
	​			259	SH-150 (Lake Eufaula Road)
	​			262	To US-266 / Lotawatah Road
	​			264	US-69 – Eufaula, McAlester, Dallas	Signed as exits 264A (south) and 264B (north)
	​			265	US-69 Bus. – Checotah
	​			270	Texanna Road – Porum Landing
Muskogee	​			278	US-266 / SH-2 – Muskogee, Warner, Porum
	​			284	Ross Road
	​			286	Muskogee Turnpike west – Muskogee, Tulsa
	​			287	SH-100 north – Webbers Falls, Gore
Sequoyah	​			291	SH-10 north (Carlisle Road) – Gore
	​			297	SH-82 – Vian, Tahlequah
	​			303	Dwight Mission Road
	Sallisaw			308	I‑40 Bus. east / US-59 – Sallisaw, Poteau
				311	I‑40 Bus. west / US-64 – Sallisaw, Stilwell
	​			321	SH-64B north – Muldrow
	​			325	US-64 – Roland, Fort Smith
	​			330	SH-64D south – Dora, Fort Smith	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance (Westbound exit and eastbound entrance is in Arkansas and is signed as Exit 1)
Oklahoma–Arkansas state line		331.00	532.69	I-40 continues east into Arkansas
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi       Concurrency terminus       Incomplete access       Unopened

Auxiliary route

I-40 has one auxiliary route in Oklahoma:

• I‑240: A bypass of the south side of Oklahoma City

See also

• U.S. Route 66 in Oklahoma

References

1. Froehlig, Adam. Scans from the "Yellow Book". Froggie's Place. URL accessed September 20, 2006.
2. "OKC I-40 Crosstown". Okladot.state.ok.us. Retrieved 2011-09-19.
3. "I-40 Webbers Falls Local Detour Route & Map". Oklahoma Department of Transportation. Retrieved 2014-01-10.
4. Stewart, D. R. (May 29, 2002). "Truckers weigh cost of detours". Tulsa World. Retrieved 2014-01-10.
5. Morgan, Rhett (July 26, 2002). "Towns on detour route await bridge reopening". Tulsa World. Retrieved 2014-01-10.
6. http://abcnews.go.com/US/dead-apparent-road-rage-shooting-oklahoma-highway/story?id=35819332
7. Powell, Jim (August 20, 2014). "'Ball rolling' on Frisco Road–I-40 project". The Yukon Review. Retrieved 2014-09-10.

External links

Route map: Bing / Google

• I-40 at OKHighways.com
• I-40 at AARoads