MENU
SEARCHClosed since a crack was discovered in May, the I-40 Hernando DeSoto Bridge over the Mississippi River in Memphis, Tennessee, will reopen under limited traffic.
Diagram showing the location of the crack on the Hernando de Soto bridge over I-40 in Memphis.
Photo: TDOT
Closed since May, the I-40 Hernando DeSoto Bridge over the Mississippi River in Memphis, Tennessee, will reopen under limited traffic on Monday, Aug. 2, while contractors finish the work. The bridge is expected to fully reopen by the end of the week.
On May 11,, a contractor doing a bridge inspection for the Arkansas Department of Transportation discovered a crack in the bottom side of the bridge truss and immediately shut down the bridge.
The Tennessee DOT shares responsibility for the bridge with the Arkansas Department of Transportation. ArDOT handles the inspections, TDOT the repairs.
Contractors will have completed all the phase three plating by Friday, according to TDOT. They will begin to demobilize, break down platforms, remove equipment and barriers starting with the eastbound direction. They will do this one side at a time as it is the safest scenario for the workers.
Barring any complications, the reopening plan is as follows:
Monday, August 2 by 6:00 a.m. CST: All I-40 eastbound lanes open
Friday, August 6 (Time TBA): All I-40 westbound lanes open
The crack discovered by a bridge inspector May 11.
Photo: TDOT
I-40 is a major artery, with one of the highest truck traffic percentages in the United States. The I-40 Hernando DeSoto Bridge is one of only two river crossings in the Memphis area. The other is the I-55 Mississippi River Bridge, which was built in the mid-1940s. I-40 provides for much of the nation’s east-west interstate trucking traffic and I-55 accommodates north-south traffic.
The next closest crossings over the Mississippi River are located approximately 85 miles away on I-155 between Missouri and Dyer County, Tennessee, north of Memphis, and on U.S. 49 between Helena, Arkansas, and Mississippi, south of Memphis.
While the bridge has been under repair, all interstate traffic in the Memphis area has been diverted to I-55.
Immediately after the closure, the Arkansas Trucking Association estimated that the closure was costing the trucking industry more than $2.4 million each day it was closed.
“We know having the bridge closed has been incredibly inconvenient,” said TDOT Commissioner Clay Bright. “We appreciate the public’s patience while our team made the repairs and performed extensive inspections to ensure it’s structurally sound for many years to come.”
When the unexpected happens, how you react to, and deal with operational blind spots is critical. Here’s how to keep you recovery on track, when nothing is normal.
Read More →
As fleets adopt artificial intelligence for routing, maintenance, and load matching, new security risks are emerging. Learn where the vulnerabilities are and how to put the right controls in place.
Read More →
The long-awaited registration system promises a single portal — and tighter fraud controls.
Read More →
CargoNet reports fewer supply chain crime events to start 2026. But losses hold steady as organized crime shifts tactics toward impersonation schemes and high-value goods.
Read More →
Heavy Duty Trucking is searching for forward-looking leaders at trucking fleets as nominations for HDT’s Truck Fleet Innovators 2026. Deadline is May 15.
Read More →
Cargo theft rings plant operatives as drivers inside legitimate, fully vetted carriers, then execute coordinated thefts that look like a traditional straight theft from the outside.
Read More →
A modest sequential increase capped the strongest quarterly performance in years, signaling continued freight momentum in early 2026.
Read More →
More than 300 carriers across 26 states have been sent to collections as the Ohio Turnpike cracks down on toll evasion and delinquent payments.
Read More →
The American Transportation Research Institute will examine driver coaching, regulatory impacts — including the "Beyond Compliance" concept —and weather disruptions that shape trucking operations.
Read More →
Fleet Advantage's Brian Antonellis says it's time for fleets to get back to the fundamentals of good maintenance practices. And that includes replacing older, inefficient equipment.
Read More →
