U.S. Route 78 in Arkansas

This article is about the section of U.S. Route 78 in Arkansas. For the entire route, see U.S. Route 78.

U.S. Highway 78 (US 78) is an east–west highway in northeast Arkansas. The road largely runs concurrently with Interstate 55 (I-55) within the state.

U.S. Highway 78
Route information
Maintained by ArDOT
Length	140.75 mi (226.52 km)
Existed	October 25, 2023–present
Major junctions
West end	I-57 / US 67 / AR 226 near Swifton
Major intersections	US 49 / US 63 in from near Cash to Jonesboro I-555 through Jonesboro I-55 / US 61 / AR 18 in Blytheville I-555 / US 61 / AR 77 in Turrell US 64 in Marion I-40 / US 79 through West Memphis US 70 in West Memphis
East end	I-55 / US 61 / US 64 / US 70 / US 78 / US 79 at the Tennessee state line
Location
Country	United States
State	Arkansas
Counties	Craighead, Mississippi, Crittenden
Highway system
United States Numbered Highway System List Special Divided Arkansas Highway System Interstate US State Business Spurs Suffixed Scenic Heritage
← AR 77 → AR 78

Route description

Western terminus to Blytheville

See also: Interstate 555

US 78 begins at interchange with I-57/US 67 at exit 102 near Swifton where the roadway continues as AR 226 west toward Swifton. US 78/AR 226 then intersects Arkansas Highway 18 (AR 18) just south of the Cash Central Business District. The two highways then have an intersection with AR 226 southwest of Gilkerson before beginning to run concurrently with US 49 and US 63 east-northeast of Gibson. AR 226 then leaves US 49/US 63/US 78 in Jonesboro. Still in the city limits of Jonesboro, US 49/US 78 then meets I-555/AR 18; this is the point where US 63 splits from US 49/US 78, while US 49/US 78 begins to run concurrently with I-555. I-555/US 49/US 78 then intersects AR 1B (Harrisburg Road). I-555/US 78 then has an interchange in Jonesboro; it serves AR 1 (Stadium Boulevard/Red Wolf Boulevard) and Caraway Road. After meeting AR 463 and Nettleton Avenue, US 78 then splits from I-555 at exit 39. About 1.21 miles (1.95 km) down the road, US 78 meets AR 18 again, this time the two highways run concurrently to Blytheville.

US 78/AR 18 intersects AR 158 and AR 135 in Lake City. US 78/AR 18 then passes through the communities of Black Oak, Monette, Leachville, Manila, Wilson Junction, Dell, and finally Blytheville. In Blytheville, US 78/AR 18 intersects AR 151, US 61, AR 239, and I-55. At I-55, US 78 ends its concurrency with AR 18; US 78 travels concurrently with I-55 south to Memphis, Tennessee, while AR 18 continues straight towards Armorel.

Blytheville to Tennessee state line

Main article: Interstate 55 in Arkansas

History

Prior to November 2023, US 78 formerly ended at US 64/US 70/US 79 (Second Street) in Memphis, Tennessee. On October 25, 2023, the Arkansas Highway Commission voted unanimously to extend the US 78 designation into northeast Arkansas. According to the Arkansas Department of Transportation (ARDOT), the US 78 designation would be extended along several other routes from its former western terminus in Memphis across the Memphis & Arkansas Bridge to its newer current western terminus near Swifton, Arkansas, at US 67 (before I-57 was designated at that time). The route would be cosigned along portions of US 64, US 70, US 79, I-55, US 61, I-40, AR 18, AR 18S, I-555, US 49, US 63, and AR 226. This extension of the US 78 route designation was seen as a way to boost economic growth in the region by assigning a single route number for travelers to follow.^[1][2] The extension was approved by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) in November 2023.^[3]

Major intersections

County	Location	mi	km	Exit	Destinations	Notes
Craighead	​				I-57 / US 67 / AR 226 west – Swifton, Walnut Ridge, Newport, Little Rock	Western terminus of US 78; western end of AR 226 concurrency; roadway continues as AR 226 westbound; AR 226 west is the former US 67 north; exit 102 on I-57/US 67
	Cash				AR 18 to AR 91 – Grubbs
	​				AR 349 north to AR 91
	​				US 49 south / US 63 – Waldenburg	Western end of US 49/US 63 concurrency
	Jonesboro				AR 226 east (Woodsprings Road)	Eastern end of AR 226 concurrency
				45	I-555 north / US 63 north / AR 18 – Jonesboro	Eastern end of US 63 concurrency; western end of I-555 concurrency
				44	AR 1B (Harrisburg Road)
				42	US 49 north / AR 1 (Stadium Boulevard / Red Wolf Boulevard) / Caraway Road – Jonesboro, Paragould	Eastern end of US 49 concurrency
				40	AR 463 south (Nettleton Avenue)	Northern terminus of AR 463
				39	I-555 south / AR 18S begins (Dr. Martin Luther King Drive) – Memphis	Eastern end of I-555 concurrency; southern terminus of AR 18S; western end of SR 18S concurrency
					AR 18 west (Highland Avenue) / AR 18S ends (Dr. Martin Luther King Drive) – Memphis	Northern terminus of AR 18S; eastern end of AR 18S concurrency; western end of AR 18 concurrency
	Lake City				AR 158 west – Lunsford	Eastern terminus of AR 158
					AR 135 north – Paragould	Southern terminus of AR 135
	Black Oak				AR 135 south – Caraway, Lepanto	Northern terminus of AR 135
	Monette				AR 139 north (Edmonds Street)	Southern terminus of AR 139
					AR 139 south – Caraway	Northern terminus of AR 139
Mississippi	Leachville				AR 119 north to AR 119 – Leachville	Southern terminus of AR 119
	Manila				AR 18B east (West Lake Street) – Manila Business District	Western terminus of AR 18B; former AR 77
					AR 77 north – Leachville	Western end of AR 77 concurrency
					AR 181 south – Athelstan	Northern terminus of AR 181
	​				AR 181 south – Victoria	Northern terminus of AR 181
	Dell				AR 77 south – Dell Business District	Eastern end of AR 77 concurrency
	​				AR 312 east	Western terminus of AR 312
	​				AR 239 north – Half Moon	Southern terminus of AR 239
	Blytheville				AR 151 north – Gosnell	Southern terminus of AR 151
					US 61 (Division Street) to I-55 – Blytheville Business District
					AR 239 south (Ruddle Street)	Northern terminus of AR 239
				67	I-55 north / AR 18 east – Armorel, St. Louis	Eastern end of SR 18 concurrency; western end of I-55 concurrency
see I-55 (mile 0.000–67.079)
Mississippi River					I-55 south / US 61 south / US 64 east / US 70 east / US 78 east / US 79 north / SR 1 east – Memphis, Jackson, MS	Continuation into Tennessee; western terminus of SR 1
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi       Concurrency terminus

See also

• Arkansas portal
• U.S. roads portal

References

1. "Commission approves Highway 78 designation through Northeast Arkansas". KAIT. October 25, 2023. Retrieved October 26, 2023.
2. Holt, Tony (October 26, 2023). "Commission approves extending U.S. 78 designation into Arkansas". Arkansas Online. Retrieved October 26, 2023.
3. Special Committee on U.S. Route Numbering (November 2023). "2023 Fall Meeting Report to the Council on Highways and Streets" (PDF) (Report). Washington, DC: American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 5, 2023. Retrieved January 23, 2024.

External links

U.S. Route 78
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