Arkansas State Highway and Transportation Department (AHTD) officials announce that Interstate 40 EASTBOUND will be temporarily reduced to one lane of travel on Tuesday, August 17^th between mile markers 146 and 151, including the I-430, Crystal Hill and Burns Park Interchanges.  Lane closures will begin after the morning rush hour with two lanes expected to be restored prior to the next morning’s peak travel time.   

Beginning at approximately 9 a.m. on Tuesday, construction crews will begin shifting I-40 eastbound traffic to new concrete lanes by merging traffic to the left left lane on the original pavement, then transitioning the single lane of traffic onto the new pavement.  Once traffic is on the new pavement, construction workers will relocate temporary concrete barrier walls, reconfigure exit and entrance ramps and install new striping and pavement markings.  Interstate entrance and exit ramps at Crystal Hill Road and Burns Park will also be intermittently closed during this lane shifting process.  With all roadway markings in place, both lanes and all ramps will be opened on the new pavement by 6 a.m. on Wednesday morning.

In order to transition traffic across the old pavement to new concrete lanes, some temporary ramp relocations are needed in order to build the permanent ramps.  Exit and entrance ramps for the Burns Park Interchange will move westward and signage will be in place to inform motorists of these temporary locations.  The most significant ramp changes will be the placement of stop signs for I-40 entrance ramps at Crystal Hill and Burns Park as well as for traffic exiting I-40 to Crystal Hill Road.  Motorists using this I-40 exit lane will stop for traffic on the I-430 northbound ramp to I-40 east before continuing on to Crystal Hill Road.  Traffic merging on to I-40 from I-430 will have a 500 foot acceleration lane with a 200 foot taper.

The closures and traffic shift are necessary in order to progress to the next phase of construction as part of the $57.2 million rehabilitation and widening of the Interstate in this area.  The contractors, Weaver-Bailey Construction and Jenson Construction, have been removing the median area of the original Interstate and building two new concrete lanes.  During this time, eastbound motorists between I-430 and Burns Park have been traveling on temporary lanes to the outside of the roadway.  All work will be done as weather permits with possible rainfall forcing the transition schedule to begin at a later date as needed to meet the weather-related installation requirements of the striping and pavement marking materials. 

Motorists are reminded to stay alert, avoid distractions and follow all signs and speed limits in the work zone with doubled fines occurring for all moving violations.  For additional information, motorists may contact the AHTD Public Affairs office Monday through Friday between 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. via phone at (501) 569-2227 or email at info@arkansashighways.com.  Lane closure details will also be posted on the “Today’s Lane Closures” page and real-time traffic details such as live video and traffic flow can be found in the “Central Arkansas Traffic Report” at www.ArkansasInterstates.com.

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