Interstate 57 (I-57) is a north–south Interstate Highway that currently exists in two segments. It runs through Arkansas, Missouri, and Illinois. I-57 parallels the old Illinois Central Railroad for much of its route north of I-55. The Interstate begins at I-40 in North Little Rock, Arkansas, traveling northward concurrently with U.S. Highway 67 (US 67) until it reaches Walnut Ridge, Arkansas, where the Interstate ends for now. I-57 will run northward to meet up with the existing segment in southeastern Missouri. I-57 resumes its run from Sikeston, Missouri, at I-55 to Chicago, Illinois, at I-94. I-57 essentially serves as a shortcut route for travelers headed between the Southern U.S. (Memphis, New Orleans, etc.) and Chicago, bypassing St. Louis, Missouri, and Springfield, Illinois. Between the junction of I-55 and I-57 in Sikeston and the junction of I-55 and I-90/I-94 in Chicago, I-55 travels for 436 miles (702 km), while the combination of I-57 and I-94 is only 396 miles (637 km) long between the same two points. In fact, both the control cities on the overhead signs and the destination mileage signs reference Memphis along southbound I-57, even as far north as its northern origin at I-94 in Chicago.[2] Likewise, at its southern end in Missouri, Chicago is the control city listed for I-57 on signs on northbound I-55 south of Sikeston, even though I-55 also goes to Chicago.[3]
A southward extension of I-57 from its current southern terminus to Little Rock, Arkansas, is currently in various stages of development. On November 7, 2024, 110 miles (177 km) from North Little Rock to Walnut Ridge in Arkansas was officially redesignated to I-57 finally extending the Interstate to the state of Arkansas. [4]
- ^ Starks, Edward (January 27, 2022). "Table 1: Main Routes of the Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways". FHWA Route Log and Finder List. Federal Highway Administration. Archived from the original on July 3, 2017. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
- ^ American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials. "Interstate Control Cities". American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials. Archived from the original on June 24, 2021. Retrieved July 10, 2021.
- ^ Missouri Department of Transportation (n.d.). Exit 64A sign (Highway guide sign). Sikeston: Missouri Department of Transportation. Retrieved April 4, 2012.
- ^ "Arkansas to celebrate U.S. Highway 67's designation as Interstate 57 on Thursday". White River Now. Batesville, Arkansas. November 2, 2024. Retrieved November 7, 2024.