US Transportation Department to invest nearly $400 million for new Interstate 55 bridge in Memphis

Associated Press

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — Officials say the U.S. Department of Transportation is providing nearly $400 million to build a new Interstate 55 bridge connecting Tennessee and Arkansas across the Mississippi River. The work would replace the existing 75-year-old span. The Tennessee governor and a congressman from Memphis said in separate news releases Friday that the Transportation Department informed Congress it is investing more than $393 million to build the new bridge. The existing Interstate 55 bridge was built in 1949. It is one of two that connects Memphis with Arkansas, along with the Interstate 40 bridge. Officials have been pushing for a modernized I-55 bridge since the I-40 bridge was closed for weeks in 2021 to repair a crack.