The existing White River Bridge has four 3.66m-wide lanes and 61m of vertical clearance between piers for commercial navigation vessels. The new bridge will have 18 spans comprising six lanes and will provide 98m of horizontal clearance between the two main river piers and 15.8m of clearance above the White River. It will feature drilled shaft foundations instead of pile foundations as this will reduce costs as well as the time needed for construction. In addition, construction of the new link will include demolition of the old bridge, earthwork, traffic maintenance, and erosion control.
I-40 is an east-west interstate highway connecting Oklahoma and Tennessee with the majority of the route in Arkansas. Construction of the new White River Bridge and its approach roads is scheduled to begin in March 2017 and is expected to be complete in summer 2019. Once the new bridge is in operation its additional lanes will boost capacity will help improve journey times as well as safety for drivers in the area.
