Pothole problems caus chaos for holiday travelers

I-40 shut down for several hours over holiday travel weekend

By Ralph Hardin

news@theeveningtimes.com

Anyone who lives in the Mid-South knows that potholes are just a way of life here. Roadways in Crittenden County are prone to having caved in and worn down sections of asphalt popping up all too frequently.

Such was the case this weekend. On Sunday, travelers on I-40 East making their way through West Memphis were subjected to extensive delays, as a large pothole and a number of smaller ones disrupted the flow of traffic, inciting frustration. The situation resulted in long waits for motorists, many of whom were likely making their way home during the holiday season’s final days between Christmas and New Year’s Eve According to a report the Arkansas Department of Transportation, ARDOT crews responded to an emergency call around 11:30 a.m., to attend to “a significant road hazard that required the temporary closure of multiple lanes, impacting many returning home from holiday festivities.”

With the potholes popping up likely to the wildly fluctuating temperatures in recent days and compounded by heavy rains and heavy traffic, I-40 became too dangerous to allow regular traffic flow. The situation was made even more complicated by ongoing construction work on I-55 that has disrupted traffic into and out of Memphis for months.

The necessary repairs compelled Arkansas Department of Transportation workers to close both the right and center lanes leaving only the far-left open to circumnavigate the obstruction.

ARDOT officials said the size of the potholes made standard asphalt patching methods insufficient for a swift resolution to the problem. The result was a traffic backlog that extended for miles west of the roadwork lasting for approximately nine hours, with congestion remaining severe as the crews worked to make the interstate highway safely navigable again. Reports from drivers, many of whom provided live updates on social media as they sat stranded in traffic, were that many found themselves at a standstill for several hours while repairs were underway near the Mound City Road overpass in West Memphis. The backup extended about six miles from the site of the roadwork, underscoring the extent of the pothole's impact on eastbound traffic with many on ramps inaccessible for people trying to get onto I-40 and I-55. Relief came when ARDOT crews completed their roadwork and reopened all lanes by 9 p.m. However, one lane remained blocked into the night, according to one Memphis news outlet.

Photo courtesy ofTDOT/ARDOT