Interstate 30 (I-30) is a
Interstate Highway
The Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways, commonly known as the Interstate Highway System, is a network of controlled-access highways that forms part of the National Highway System in the United States. Th ...
in the southern states of
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
and
Arkansas
Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...
in the United States. I-30 travels from
I-20
Interstate 20 (I‑20) is a major east–west Interstate Highway in the Southern United States. I-20 runs beginning at an interchange with I-10 in Scroggins Draw, Texas, and ending at an interchange with I-95 in Florence, South Carolina. Between ...
west of
Fort Worth, Texas
Fort Worth is the fifth-largest city in the U.S. state of Texas and the 13th-largest city in the United States. It is the county seat of Tarrant County, covering nearly into four other counties: Denton, Johnson, Parker, and Wise. According ...
, northeast via
Dallas
Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...
, and
Texarkana, Texas
Texarkana is a city in Bowie County, Texas, United States, in the Ark-La-Tex region. Located approximately from Dallas, Texarkana is a twin city with neighboring Texarkana, Arkansas. The Texas city's population was 36,193 at the 2020 census.
...
, to
I-40
Interstate 40 (I-40) is a major east–west Interstate Highway running through the south-central portion of the United States. At a length of , it is the third-longest Interstate Highway in the country, after I-90 and I-80. From west to ea ...
in
North Little Rock, Arkansas
North Little Rock is a city in Pulaski County, Arkansas, across the Arkansas River, Arkansas from Little Rock, Arkansas, Little Rock in the central part of the state. The population was 64,591 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. In 2 ...
. The highway parallels
U.S. Highway 67
U.S. Route 67 is a major north–south U.S. highway which extends for 1,560 miles (2,511 km) in the Central United States. The southern terminus of the route is at the United States-Mexico border in Presidio, Texas, where it continues so ...
(US 67) except for the portion west of downtown Dallas (which was once part of I-20).
Between the termini, I-30 has
interchanges
Interchange may refer to:
Transport
* Interchange (road), a collection of ramps, exits, and entrances between two or more highways
* Interchange (freight rail), the transfer of freight cars between railroad companies
* Interchange station, a rai ...
with
I-35W Interstate 35W may refer to:
*Interstate 35W (Texas), an Interstate highway serving Fort Worth, Texas, and its suburbs
*Interstate 35W (Minnesota), a Interstate highway serving Minneapolis, Minnesota, and its suburbs
**The I-35W Mississippi River ...
,
I-35E Interstate 35E may refer to:
*Interstate 35E (Texas), a long branch route serving Dallas, Texas
*Interstate 35E (Minnesota), a long branch route serving St. Paul, Minnesota
See also
* Interstate 35W (disambiguation)
{{road disambiguation
Lis ...
, and
I-45
Interstate 45 (I-45) is a major Interstate Highway located entirely within the US state of Texas. While most Interstate routes which have numbers ending in "5" are cross-country north–south routes, I-45 is comparatively short, with the ...
. I-30 is known as the Tom Landry Freeway between I-35W and I-35E, within the core of the
Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex
The Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, officially designated Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget, is a conurbated metropolitan statistical area in the U.S. state of Texas encompassing 11 counties and anchore ...
.
Route description
, -
,
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
, ,
, -
,
Arkansas
Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...
, ,
, -
, Total , ,
I-30 is the shortest two-digit Interstate with a number ending in zero in the Interstate System. The Interstates ending in zero are generally the longest east–west Interstates.
The largest metropolitan areas that I-30 travels through include the
Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex
The Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, officially designated Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget, is a conurbated metropolitan statistical area in the U.S. state of Texas encompassing 11 counties and anchore ...
, the
Texarkana metropolitan area, and the
Little Rock metropolitan area
Central Arkansas, also known as the Little Rock metro, designated by the United States Office of Management and Budget as the Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway Metropolitan Statistical Area, is the most populous metro area in the U.S. state of ...
.
Texas
![I30 fort worth texas](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/ff/I30_fort_worth_texas.jpg)
The western end and zero mile point of I-30 in Texas is at its intersection with I-20 in Parker County near Aledo. It then travels near downtown Fort Worth on a new routing further south than the now removed Lancaster Elevated section of the freeway. The section of I-30 between Dallas and Fort Worth is designated the
Tom Landry
Thomas Wade Landry (September 11, 1924 – February 12, 2000) was an American professional football player and coach. He was the first head coach of the Dallas Cowboys in the National Football League (NFL), a position he held for 29 seasons. Dur ...
Highway in honor of the longtime
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divisi ...
coach. Though I-30 passed well south of
Texas Stadium
Texas Stadium was an American football stadium located in Irving, Texas, a suburb west of Dallas. Opened on October 24, 1971, it was known for its distinctive hole in the roof, the result of abandoned plans to construct a retractable roof (Cowboy ...
, the Cowboys' former home, their new stadium in
Arlington, Texas, is near I-30. However, the freeway designation was made ''before'' Arlington voted to build
AT&T Stadium
AT&T Stadium, formerly Cowboys Stadium, is a retractable roof, retractable-roof stadium in Arlington, Texas, United States. It serves as the home of the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL), and was completed on May 27, 2009. I ...
. This section was previously known as the Dallas–Fort Worth Turnpike, which preceded the Interstate System. Although tolls had not been collected for many years, it was still known locally as the Dallas–Fort Worth Turnpike until its renaming.
The section from downtown Dallas to Arlington was widened to over 16 lanes in some sections by 2010. From June 15, 2010, through February 6, 2011, this section of I-30 was temporarily designated as the "Tom Landry Super Bowl Highway" in commemoration of
Super Bowl XLV
Super Bowl XLV was an American football game between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Pittsburgh Steelers and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Green Bay Packers to decide the National Football League (NFL) champi ...
, which was played at Cowboys Stadium.
In Dallas, I-30 is known as East R.L. Thornton Freeway between downtown Dallas and the eastern suburb of
Mesquite
Mesquite is a common name for several plants in the genus ''Prosopis'', which contains over 40 species of small leguminous trees. They are native to dry areas in the Americas.
They have extremely long roots to seek water from very far under grou ...
. I-30 picks up the name from I-35E south at the Mixmaster interchange. The Mixmaster is scheduled to be reconstructed as part of the
Horseshoe project
The Horseshoe Project was a $798 million highway project that upgraded the congested Mix Master interchange in Downtown Dallas, Texas, connecting Interstate 35E (I-35E) and Interstate 30 (I-30). Construction began during the spring of 2013 and en ...
, derived from the larger Pegasus Project. The section from downtown Dallas to
State Highway Loop 12 (Loop 12, Buckner Boulevard) is eight lanes plus an
HOV
A high-occupancy vehicle lane (also known as an HOV lane, carpool lane, diamond lane, 2+ lane, and transit lane or T2 or T3 lanes) is a restricted traffic lane reserved for the exclusive use of vehicles with a driver and one or more passengers, i ...
lane. This section will be reconstructed under the East Corridor project to 12 lanes by 2025–2030. From
Rockwall to a point past
Sulphur Springs
Mineral springs are naturally occurring springs that produces hard water, water that contains dissolved minerals. Salts, sulfur compounds, and gases are among the substances that can be dissolved in the spring water during its passage underg ...
, I-30 runs concurrent with
US 67. Through the city of
Greenville, I-30 is known as
Martin Luther King Jr.
Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister and activist, one of the most prominent leaders in the civil rights movement from 1955 until his assassination in 1968 ...
Freeway. I-30 continues northeasterly through
East Texas
East Texas is a broadly defined cultural, geographic, and ecological region in the eastern part of the U.S. state of Texas that comprises most of 41 counties. It is primarily divided into Northeast and Southeast Texas. Most of the region consi ...
until a few miles from the Texas–Oklahoma border, when the route turns east toward Arkansas.
Arkansas
![Northern terminus of Interstate 30, Little Rock, AR](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/47/Northern_terminus_of_Interstate_30%2C_Little_Rock%2C_AR.jpg)
I-30 enters southwestern Arkansas at
Texarkana, the twin city of
Texarkana, Texas
Texarkana is a city in Bowie County, Texas, United States, in the Ark-La-Tex region. Located approximately from Dallas, Texarkana is a twin city with neighboring Texarkana, Arkansas. The Texas city's population was 36,193 at the 2020 census.
...
.
I-30 intersects
I-49
Interstate 49 (I-49) is a north–south Interstate Highway that exists in multiple segments: the original portion entirely within the state of Louisiana with an additional signed portion extending from Interstate 220 (Louisiana), I-220 in S ...
,
after which it travels northeast. I-30 then passes through
Hope
Hope is an optimistic state of mind that is based on an expectation of positive outcomes with respect to events and circumstances in one's life or the world at large.
As a verb, its definitions include: "expect with confidence" and "to cherish ...
,
birthplace of former President
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...
. I-30 then serves
Prescott,
Gurdon,
Arkadelphia
Arkadelphia is a city in Clark County, Arkansas, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 10,714. The city is the county seat of Clark County. It is situated at the foothills of the Ouachita Mountains. Two universities, Henderson ...
, and
Malvern
Malvern or Malverne may refer to:
Places Australia
* Malvern, South Australia, a suburb of Adelaide
* Malvern, Victoria, a suburb of Melbourne
* City of Malvern, a former local government area near Melbourne
* Electoral district of Malvern, an e ...
. At Malvern, drivers can use
US 70 or
US 270 to travel into historic
Hot Springs
A hot spring, hydrothermal spring, or geothermal spring is a spring produced by the emergence of geothermally heated groundwater onto the surface of the Earth. The groundwater is heated either by shallow bodies of magma (molten rock) or by circ ...
or beyond into
Ouachita National Forest
The Ouachita National Forest is a vast congressionally-designated United States National Forest, National Forest that lies in the western portion of Arkansas and portions of extreme-eastern Oklahoma, USA.
History
The Ouachita National Forest is t ...
. There, US 70 and US 67 join I-30 and stay with the Interstate into the Little Rock city limits. Northeast of Malvern, I-30 passes through
Benton before reaching the
Little Rock
( The "Little Rock")
, government_type = Council-manager
, leader_title = Mayor
, leader_name = Frank Scott Jr.
, leader_party = D
, leader_title2 = Council
, leader_name2 ...
city limits. From Benton to its end at I-40, I-30 is a six-lane highway with up to 85,000 vehicles per day. As I-30 enters Little Rock,
I-430
Interstate 430 (I-430) is a Interstate highway in Pulaski County, Arkansas, that bypasses the cities of Little Rock and North Little Rock. I-430 begins at an interchange southwest of Downtown Little Rock with I-30, U.S. Highway 67 (U ...
leaves its parent route to create a western bypass of the city. Just south of downtown, I-30 meets the western terminus of
I-440 and the northern terminus of another auxiliary route in
I-530
Interstate 530 (I-530) in Arkansas is a spur route of the Interstate highway system, traveling from Pine Bluff north-northwest to Little Rock at an interchange of I-30/ I-440/ U.S. Highway 65 (US 65)/ US 67/ US 167." rk ...
. I-530 travels south to
Pine Bluff. At this three-way junction of Interstates, I-30 turns due north for the final few miles of its route. Here, I-30 passes through the capitol district of Little Rock. I-30 also creates one final auxiliary route in
I-630, or the Wilbur D. Mills Freeway, which splits downtown Little Rock in an east–west direction before coming to its other end at I-430 just west of downtown. After passing I-630, I-30 crosses the
Arkansas River
The Arkansas River is a major tributary of the Mississippi River. It generally flows to the east and southeast as it traverses the U.S. states of Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Arkansas. The river's source basin lies in the western United Stat ...
into
North Little Rock
North Little Rock is a city in Pulaski County, Arkansas, across the Arkansas from Little Rock in the central part of the state. The population was 64,591 at the 2020 census. In 2019 the estimated population was 65,903, making it the seventh-mo ...
and comes to its eastern terminus, despite facing north, at
I-40
Interstate 40 (I-40) is a major east–west Interstate Highway running through the south-central portion of the United States. At a length of , it is the third-longest Interstate Highway in the country, after I-90 and I-80. From west to ea ...
. At its end, I-30 is joined by
US 65, US 67, and
US 167. US 65 joins I-40 westbound, while US 67 and US 167 join I-40 eastbound from I-30's eastern terminus.
History
![Margaret McDermott Bridge](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/07/Margaret_McDermott_Bridge.jpg)
The very first fully controlled-access part of what is now I-30 was the Dallas–Fort Worth Turnpike, a controlled-access tollway in the
Dallas–Fort Worth Metroplex
The Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, officially designated Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget, is a conurbated metropolitan statistical area in the U.S. state of Texas encompassing 11 counties and anchore ...
. Completed by 1957, it operated as a toll road between 1957 and 1977, afterward becoming a nondescript part of I-20 and then I-30. The road, three lanes in each direction but later widened, is the only direct connection between downtown
Fort Worth
Fort Worth is the fifth-largest city in the U.S. state of Texas and the 13th-largest city in the United States. It is the county seat of Tarrant County, covering nearly into four other counties: Denton, Johnson, Parker, and Wise. According ...
and downtown
Dallas
Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...
, Texas. In October 2001, the former turnpike was named the
Tom Landry
Thomas Wade Landry (September 11, 1924 – February 12, 2000) was an American professional football player and coach. He was the first head coach of the Dallas Cowboys in the National Football League (NFL), a position he held for 29 seasons. Dur ...
Highway, after the late
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divisi ...
coach.
The proposed expressway was studied as early as 1944 but was turned down by the state engineer due to the expense. However, in 1953, the state legislature created the
Texas Turnpike Authority
The North Texas Tollway Authority (NTTA) is an organization that maintains and operates toll roads, bridges, and tunnels in the North Texas area. Functioning as a political subdivision of the State of Texas under Chapter 366 of the Transpor ...
, which, in 1955, raised $58.5 million (equivalent to $ million in ) to build the project. Construction started later that year. On August 27, 1957, the highway was open to traffic, but the official opening came a week later on September 5. The turnpike's presence stimulated growth in
Arlington and
Grand Prairie
Grand Prairie is a city in Dallas, Tarrant, and Ellis counties of Texas, in the United States. It is part of the Mid-Cities region in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. It had a population of 175,396 according to the 2010 census, making it th ...
and facilitated construction of
Six Flags Over Texas
Six Flags Over Texas is a 212-acre (86 ha) amusement park, in Arlington, Texas, east of Fort Worth, Texas, Fort Worth and west of Dallas, Texas, Dallas. It is the first amusement park in the Six Flags chain, and features themed areas and attracti ...
. At the end of 1977, the bonds were paid off, and the freeway was handed over to the state Department of Transportation, toll collection ceased, and the tollbooths were removed in the first week of 1978.
The existing US 67 route was already in heavy use in the early 1950s, at which point it was twinned from just east of Dallas to Rockwall and also a rural section near Greenville and a few miles in Hopkins County. There were still a few at-grade crossings on these two sections into the 1980s. The twinned US 67 routes were upgraded to
Interstate Highway standards
Standards for Interstate Highways in the United States are defined by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) in the publication ''A Policy on Design Standards: Interstate System''. For a certain highway to ...
beginning in 1961, forming the R.L. Thornton Freeway. By the mid-1960s, much of I-30 was under construction outside the metroplex as well. The majority of the route was completed by 1965, but a stretch through rural areas built on a new alignment well away from US 67 between
Mount Pleasant and
New Boston remained unfinished. This remaining segment was finally built and opened to traffic in 1971, completing I-30.
Originally, the west end of I-30 was at the current intersection of I-30 and
US 80 near the border of Mesquite and Dallas. I-20 went into downtown Dallas and across the former turnpike through downtown Fort Worth and to points west. Later, I-20 took its current southerly route around Dallas and Fort Worth, and I-30 assumed the former I-20 route from US 80 to western Fort Worth, and later to the current intersection with I-20 near Aledo.
I-30 was proposed to be extended along the
US 67 freeway from Little Rock. However, this conflicted with the
Missouri Department of Transportation
The Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT, ) is a state government organization in charge of maintaining public roadways of the U.S. state of Missouri under the guidance of the Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission. MoDOT designs, ...
's plan to extend
I-57
Interstate 57 (I-57) is a north–south Interstate Highway in Missouri and Illinois that parallels the old Illinois Central Railroad for much of its route. It runs from Sikeston, Missouri, at I-55 to Chicago, Illinois, at I-94. I-57 essen ...
, which is also planned to use US 67. In April 2016, a provision designating US 67 from North Little Rock to
Walnut Ridge, Arkansas
Walnut Ridge is a city in Lawrence County, Arkansas, United States. The population was 5098 at the United States Census's 2019 estimate. The city is the county seat of Lawrence County. Walnut Ridge lies immediately north of Hoxie. The two towns f ...
, as "Future I-57" was added to the federal fiscal year 2017 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development funding bill. The provision would also give Arkansas the ability to request any segment of the road built to Interstate Highway standards be officially added to the Interstate Highway System as I-57. Had I-30 been extended, there were plans to upgrade
Arkansas Highway 226
Arkansas Highway 226 is a designation for two state highways in northeast Arkansas. The main segment of runs east from an intersection of U.S. Route 67/Arkansas Highway 367 to I-555/US 63/ AR 18 in Jonesboro. A short route of runs in rural J ...
(AR 226) to
Interstate standards
Standards for Interstate Highways in the United States are defined by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) in the publication ''A Policy on Design Standards: Interstate System''. For a certain highway to ...
and designate it as "Interstate 730".
I-130 was a proposed auxiliary route of I-30 that was planned to be
concurrent
Concurrent means happening at the same time. Concurrency, concurrent, or concurrence may refer to:
Law
* Concurrence, in jurisprudence, the need to prove both ''actus reus'' and ''mens rea''
* Concurring opinion (also called a "concurrence"), a ...
with I-49. Once the eastern segment of the
Texarkana Loop had been upgraded to Interstate standards, I-130 was to have been signed; however, it is now part of
I-49
Interstate 49 (I-49) is a north–south Interstate Highway that exists in multiple segments: the original portion entirely within the state of Louisiana with an additional signed portion extending from Interstate 220 (Louisiana), I-220 in S ...
.
Exit list
Business routes
I-30 formerly had two business routes, both of which were in Arkansas. There are currently no business routes of I-30.
Benton
Interstate 30 Business (I-30 Bus.) was a
business route
A business route (or business loop, business spur, or city route) in the United States is a short special route connected to a ''parent'' numbered highway at its beginning, then routed through the central business district of a nearby city or ...
in
Benton, Arkansas
Benton is a city in and the county seat of Saline County, Arkansas, United States and a suburb of Little Rock. It was established in 1837. At the 2010 census, the city had a population of 30,681. In 2019 the population was estimated at 36,820. ...
. It ran from exit 116 to exit 118 on I-30 from approximately 1960 to 1975, concurrently with
US 70C.
Little Rock
Interstate 30 Business (I-30 Bus.) was a
business route
A business route (or business loop, business spur, or city route) in the United States is a short special route connected to a ''parent'' numbered highway at its beginning, then routed through the central business district of a nearby city or ...
in
Little Rock, Arkansas
(The Little Rock, The "Little Rock")
, government_type = council-manager government, Council-manager
, leader_title = List of mayors of Little Rock, Arkansas, Mayor
, leader_name = Frank Scott Jr.
, leader_ ...
. The route started at exit 132 on I-30 and followed
US 70B nearly its entire route. In
North Little Rock
North Little Rock is a city in Pulaski County, Arkansas, across the Arkansas from Little Rock in the central part of the state. The population was 64,591 at the 2020 census. In 2019 the estimated population was 65,903, making it the seventh-mo ...
, the route remained concurrent with
US 70 and terminated at exit 141B at I-30.
See also
*
Notes
References
*
External links
*
Interstate Guide: I-30I-30, downtown Fort Worth and west of downtownnbsp;– from dfwfreeways.info
I-30, former DFW Turnpike segmentnbsp;– from dfwfreeways.info
I-30, downtown Dallas and east of downtownnbsp;– from dfwfreeways.info
{{DEFAULTSORT:Interstate 30
30
30
30
Transportation in Parker County, Texas
Transportation in Tarrant County, Texas
Transportation in Dallas County, Texas
Transportation in Rockwall County, Texas
Transportation in Hunt County, Texas
Transportation in Hopkins County, Texas
Transportation in Franklin County, Texas
Transportation in Titus County, Texas
Transportation in Morris County, Texas
Transportation in Bowie County, Texas
Transportation in Miller County, Arkansas
Transportation in Hempstead County, Arkansas
Transportation in Nevada County, Arkansas
Transportation in Clark County, Arkansas
Transportation in Hot Spring County, Arkansas
Transportation in Pulaski County, Arkansas