Interstate 55 in Tennessee

Interstate 55
Bishop J.O. Patterson Sr. Memorial Parkway W.B. Fowler Sr. Expressway
Route information
Maintained by TDOT
Length:	12 mi (19 km)
Major junctions
South end:	I-55 / I-69 at the Mississippi state line
	US 51 in Memphis I-240 in Memphis US 61 / US 64 / US 70 / US 79 in Memphis
North end:	I-55 at Arkansas state line
Highway system
Interstate Highway System Main Auxiliary Suffixed Business Tennessee State Routes Interstate US State ← SR 54 SR 55 →

I-55 northbound, along with I-69, as it enters Tennessee in Memphis.

Interstate 55 in Tennessee lies entirely within the city of Memphis, located in Shelby County. The highway enters the city from Southaven in Desoto County, Mississippi and passes through the Whitehaven area of the city, bypassing Memphis International Airport to the west.

Route description

I-55 enters Tennessee from Mississippi concurrent with I-69. I-55/I-69 heads due north before turning northwest. Then I-55 has an interchange with Interstate 240, I-55 then turns westward for a brief period before turning northward again. Just before reaching downtown, the highway turns westward again at E.H. Crump Boulevard and crosses the Mississippi River via the Memphis-Arkansas Bridge into West Memphis, in Crittenden County, Arkansas.^[1]

I-55 provides an alternate route for motorists who do not want to take Interstates 240 and 40 through downtown to cross the Mississippi River.

History

On January 18, 2008, the Federal Highway Administration authorized the states of Mississippi and Tennessee to extend I-69 from the I-40/TN 300 interchange in north Memphis to the I-55/I-69 interchange in Hernando; however, Tennessee has not yet signed the extension of the route, although Mississippi has already done so.^[2] Interstate 55 is one Tennessee's interstates where the speed limit is 65 MPH instead of 70.

Future

There are currently plans to revamp the I-55/Crump Boulevard Interchange. The current design (a cloverleaf interchange) causes northbound motorists, especially truck drivers, to slow down from 55 MPH to 25 MPH when going from the section they are on to the section passing over the Mississippi River. Prior to 2011, northbound traffic had to merge on a one-lane loop with a tight radius while traffic going from I-55 SB to Riverside Drive merged into traffic on another loop ramp. This has caused several accidents over the years. A temporary solution has been put into effect by making the NB loop into two lanes, eliminating the I-55 SB to Riverside Drive loop, and creating a left turn lane for the I-55 SB to Riverside Drive traffic. This eliminates having to make a lane change in order to stay on I-55 NB.

Starting in 2016, a project creating a permanent solution will be constructed. The cloverleaf will be eliminated entirely and two flyover ramps will be added, thus creating free-flow traffic for the mainline interstate. A roundabout will be created in place of the cloverleaf for Riverside Drive traffic, E.H. Crump Boulevard traffic, and the I-55 entrance/exit ramps. It was announced in May 2015 that the adjacent Memphis-Arkansas Bridge would be shut down for 9 months in order to allow for construction of the flyovers. Construction is expected to last through 2018 and open at the beginning of 2019.^[3]

Exit list

County	Location	mi	km	Exit	Destinations	Notes
Mississippi–Tennessee state line		0	0.0	I-55 / I-69 continue into Mississippi
Shelby	Memphis			2	SR 175 (Shelby Drive) – Whitehaven, Capleville	Signed as exits 2A (east) and 2B (west) southbound
				5	US 51 (Elvis Presley Boulevard, SR 3) / Brooks Road – Graceland	Signed as exits 5A (Brooks Road) and 5B (US 51 south) southbound
				6	I-69 north / I-240 – Nashville, Little Rock, Memphis International Airport	Northern end of I–69; signed as exits 6A (east) and 6B (west); I-240 exits 25A-B
				7	US 61 (3rd Street, SR 14) – Vicksburg, Mississippi	No access from southbound US 61 to northbound I-55 or southbound I-55 to northbound US 61
				8	Horn Lake Road	Southbound exit and northbound entrance
				9	Mallory Avenue
				10	South Parkway
				11	McLemore Avenue - President's Island
				12A	US 61 south / US 64 east / US 70 east / US 79 east (Crump Boulevard, SR 1 east)	South end of US 61/US 64/US 70/US 79 overlap; 25 mph (40 km/h) advisory speed for ramps carrying I-55 in both directions
				12B	Riverside Drive - Downtown
				12C	Metal Museum Drive	Serves the National Ornamental Metal Museum; right-in/right-out southbound
Mississippi River				Memphis & Arkansas Bridge; Tennessee–Arkansas state line
Crittenden	West Memphis	12	19		I-55 north / US 61 north / US 64 west / US 70 west / US 79 west – Blytheville, Chicago	Continuation into Arkansas
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi       Concurrency terminus       Incomplete access

References

Route map: Bing / Google

Interstate 55
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