Notice to Media

U.S. Highway 63 Extended in Arkansas

LITTLE ROCK (11-8) – Portions of several Arkansas highways will be receiving a new designation, according to Arkansas Highway Commission Vice Chairman John "M" Lipton of Warren.

U.S. Highway 63, which presently enters the state from Missouri at Mammoth Springs and ends in West Memphis, is being extended from West Memphis to near Ruston, Louisiana.

From West Memphis, the route of U.S. Highway 63 will run concurrently with I-40 west to Highway 11 near Hazen. The U.S. 63 designation will then follow Highway 11 to Stuttgart where it will join U.S. Highway 79 southwestward to near Altheimer. From that point, U.S. 63 will follow existing Highway 15 to El Dorado where it will join U.S. Highway 167 into Louisiana.

"This designation will provide a continuous route from Interstate 55 at West Memphis to Interstate 20 near Ruston, Louisiana," Lipton noted. "This will link the towns of Hazen, Stuttgart, Pine Bluff, Warren, El Dorado and Ruston on a single U.S. Highway," he added.

The Arkansas State Highway and Transportation Department made a joint application with the Louisiana Department of Transportation requesting the designation in August of this year. The Route Numbering Committee of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials considered the request at its October meeting in Tulsa, Oklahoma and recently notified both Departments of the approval.

"This route is yet another artery for commerce and economic development in southeast Arkansas," Lipton noted. "I’m very pleased that our request was accepted. It is a logical addition to the U.S. highway system."

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