Interstate 55 marker

Interstate 55

I-55 highlighted in red
Route information
Maintained by MoDOT
Length210.45 mi[1] (338.69 km)
Existed1956–present
NHSEntire route
Major junctions
South end I-55 at Arkansas state line
Major intersections
North end I-55 / I-64 / US 40 in St. Louis
Location
CountryUnited States
StateMissouri
CountiesPemiscot, New Madrid, Scott, Cape Girardeau, Perry, Ste. Genevieve, Jefferson, St. Louis, City of St. Louis
Highway system
← US 54→ US 56

Interstate 55 (I-55) in the US state of Missouri runs from the Arkansas state line to the Poplar Street Bridge over the Mississippi River in St. Louis.

Route description

I-55 enters Missouri at the Arkansas border near Cooter. It runs northward through mostly flat land in the Bootheel, where it has an interchange with U.S. Route 412 (US 412) and I-155. The highway continues over bumpy land through or near the towns of Hayti, Portageville, and New Madrid before reaching an interchange with US 60 and I-57 just south of Sikeston. The next interchange, US 62, provides access into the city of Sikeston and one of its most popular attractions, Lambert's Cafe, the "Home of the Throwed Rolls".

North of Sikeston, I-55 begins to traverse rolling terrain on its way to Cape Girardeau. Exit 95, Route 74 east, provides direct access to the Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge into southern Illinois. The heart of the city of Cape Girardeau as well as Southeast Missouri State University can be reached by taking either exit 96 or exit 99.

I-55 then goes through rural areas again as it makes a north-northwesterly run through the towns of Perryville and Ste. Genevieve before entering the southern reaches of the St. Louis metro area at the interchange with US 67 and the Twin Cities of Festus and Crystal City. US 61 and US 67 run concurrently immediately east of I-55 nearly due north through the Jefferson County towns of Herculaneum, Pevely (where the Interstate expands from four lanes to six), Barnhart (and then to eight), Imperial, and finally Arnold before crossing the Meramec River into St. Louis County.

From Richardson Road in Arnold to I-270, I-55 is 10 lanes wide. The Interstate narrows back down to eight lanes past I-270, through southern St. Louis County, and into the city of St. Louis. In the last few miles of I-55 in the state of Missouri, there is an interchange and brief overlap with I-44 before reaching the Poplar Street Bridge crossing into Illinois.

History

Sponsorship controversy

The white supremacy group Ku Klux Klan began fighting several court battles with the state of Missouri after the state disputed its right to sponsor a stretch of freeway in Saint Louis County and Jefferson County, near St. Louis. In March 2001, after a US District Court judge found that blocking the Klan's sponsorship was unconstitutional, the Court of Appeals ruled that the state must erect signs announcing the group's sponsorship. However, the Missouri Legislature later voted to rename the stretch of I-55 the "Rosa Parks Freeway" in honor of the Montgomery civil rights hero who began the Montgomery bus boycott. When asked how she felt about this honor, she is reported to have commented, "It is always nice to be thought of."[2] The Klan were eventually dropped from the scheme on April 4, 2001, on the grounds that, for the duration of their sponsorship, they had not once cleaned the freeway.

Exit list

CountyLocationmi[3]kmExitDestinationsNotes
Pemiscot​0.0000.000
 I-55 south – Memphis		Continuation into Arkansas
​1.1321.8221
 Route O to US 61 – Holland
​4.4877.2214 Route E – Cooter, Holland
​7.97712.8388
 US 61 south / Route 164 / Great River Road – Steele, Cottonwood Point		Southern end of US 61 and Great River Road concurrency
​14.48323.30814 Route U / Route H / Route J – Caruthersville, Braggadocio
​17.64428.39517
 I-155 east / US 412 – Caruthersville, Dyersburg, Hayti, Kennett		Signed as exits 17A (east) and 17B (west); I-155/US 412 exits 1A-B
Hayti19.07430.69719 Route 84 – Hayti, Caruthersville
​27.60744.42927 Route K / Route A / Route BB – Wardell, Homestown
New MadridPortageville32.90552.95532
 US 61 north / Route 162 / Great River Road – Portageville, Gideon		Northern end of US 61 and Great River Road concurrency
Marston40.98465.95740 Route EE (St. Jude Road) – Marston
New Madrid44.91372.28044
 I-55 BL north / US 61 / US 62 – New Madrid, Howardville
​49.63779.88349
 I-55 BL south / US 61 / US 62 – New Madrid, Kewanee
​52.16583.95152 Route P – Kewanee, Bernie
​58.22193.69858 Route 80 – Matthews, East Prairie
ScottSikeston66.177106.50266
 I-57 north / US 60 – Dexter, Poplar Bluff, Chicago		Signed as exits 66A (north/east) and 66B (west); I-57/US 60 exits 1A-B; current southern terminus of I-57
67.486108.60867 US 62 – Sikeston, Bertrand
69.379111.65569 Route HH – Miner, Sikeston
​80.956130.28680 Route 77 – Benton, Diehlstadt
Kelso8714087 Route PP – Kelso, Commerce
Scott City89.717144.38689
 US 61 south / Route M / Route K / Great River Road – Scott City, Chaffee		Southern end of US 61 and Great River Road concurrency
91.811147.75591 Route AB – Cape Girardeau Regional Airport
Cape GirardeauCape Girardeau93.504150.48093


 I-55 BL north / US 61 north / Route 74 west / Great River Road – Dutchtown, Cape Girardeau		Northern end of US 61 and Great River Road concurrency; southern end of Route 74 concurrency; signed as exits 93A (west) and 93B (north) northbound
95.245153.28295

 Route 74 east to IL 146 – Cape Girardeau		Northern end of Route 74 concurrency
96.463155.24296 Route K – Cape Girardeau, Gordonville
99.859160.70799 I-55 BL / US 61 / Route 34 – Cape Girardeau, Jackson
​102.304164.642102East Main Street, LaSalle Avenue
​105.758170.201105
 I-55 BL south / US 61 – Fruitland, Jackson
​111.292179.107111 Route E – Oak Ridge, Pocahontas
​118.049189.981117 Route KK – Old Appleton, Arnsberg
Perry​124.037199.618123 Route B – Biehle
Perryville129.869209.004129 Route 51 – Perryville, Marble Hill
​135.589218.209135 Route M – Brewer
Ste. Genevieve​141.212227.259141 Route Z – St. Mary
​143.816231.449143 Route N / Route J / Route M – Ozora
​150.411242.063150 Route 32 / Route B / Route A – Ste. Genevieve, Farmington
​154.984249.423154 Route O – Ste. Genevieve, Rocky Ridge
​157.785253.930157 Route Y – Bloomsdale
​162.123260.912162 Route DD / Route OO
Jefferson​165.263265.965165 Route TTSouthbound exit and northbound entrance
​171.087275.338170 US 61 – Selma
Crystal City174.470280.782174

 I-55 BL north / US 67 to US 61 – Crystal City, Farmington, Bonne Terre		Signed as exits 174A (north) and 174B (south)
Festus175.843282.992175 Route A – Hillsboro, Festus
Herculaneum178.742287.657178
 I-55 BL south (McNutt Street) – Herculaneum
Pevely180.957291.222180 Route Z – Pevely
Barnhart185.272298.166185 Route M – Barnhart, Antonia
Imperial186.892300.774186Imperial Main Street
Arnold190.188306.078190Richardson RoadSigned as Richardson Road/Vogel Road southbound
192.087309.134191 Route 141 – Arnold, Fenton
St. Louis​193.475311.368193Meramec Bottom Road
​195.409314.480195Butler Hill Road
​196.947316.955196

 I-255 east / I-270 west – Chicago, Kansas City		Southbound exit is via exit 197; I-255/270 exits 1A-B; access to St. Louis Lambert International Airport
​197.519317.876197 US 61 / US 67 / US 50 (Lindbergh Boulevard)
​199.583321.198199Reavis Barracks Road
​200.309322.366200Union RoadSouthbound exit and northbound entrance
​201.122323.674201ABayless Avenue
City of St. Louis201.761324.703201BWeber RoadSouthbound exit and northbound entrance
202.229325.456202ACarondelet Boulevard, River City BoulevardNorthbound exit and southbound entrance
202.305325.578202BGermania AvenueSouthbound exit and northbound entrance
202.990326.681202CLoughborough Avenue
203.877328.108203Virginia Avenue, Bates Street
204.894329.7452044500 South Broadway
205.526330.762205Gasconade StreetSouthbound exit and northbound entrance
206.346332.082206APotomac StreetNorthbound exit and southbound entrance
206.597332.486206B3200 South BroadwayNorthbound exit and southbound entrance
206.952333.057206CArsenal Street
207.803334.427207A
 Historic US 66 / Route 30 east (Gravois Avenue)		Northbound exit and southbound entrance
207.836334.480207BTruman ParkwayNorthbound exit and southbound entrance
207.982334.715207B
 I-44 west – Tulsa		Southern end of I-44 concurrency; no exit number southbound; I-44 exit 290A
208.040334.808290A Historic US 66 / Route 30 (Gravois Avenue / 12th Street)Southbound exit and northbound entrance
208.614335.732290CPark Avenue, 7th StreetExit number follows I-44
209.190336.659


 I-44 east to I-70 west – Kansas City, Walnut Street		Northern end of I-44 concurrency; I-44 exit 291A; northbound exit and southbound entrance. Access to St. Louis Lambert International Airport
209.315336.860

 I-64 west / US 40 west – St. Louis		Southern end of I-64/US 40 concurrency; I-64 exit 40B; southbound exit and northbound entrance
Mississippi River209.689337.462Poplar Street Bridge; Missouri–Illinois state line





 I-55 north / I-64 east / US 40 east to I-70 east – Illinois		Continuation into Illinois
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

Auxiliary routes

  • I-155: A spur running from I-55 in Hayti, Missouri, to US 51 in Dyersburg, Tennessee; overlaps with US 412 for its entire length. Eight miles (13 km) of this highway will be absorbed into the newly extended I-69 in the future.
  • I-255: The eastern third of the beltway around the St. Louis Metro Area (with I-270 forming the remaining two-thirds)
  • I-55 BL: I-55 has three business loops in Missouri.

References

  1. ↑ "Route Log and Finder List - Interstate System - table 1". Federal Highway Administration. October 31, 2002. Retrieved July 8, 2007.
  2. ↑ Scruggs, Yvonne (February 4, 2003). "Happy Birthday, Rosa Parks!". Women's eNews. Archived from the original on August 17, 2009. Retrieved September 19, 2011.
  3. ↑ Missouri Department of Transportation (September 6, 2016). MoDOT HPMAPS (Map). Missouri Department of Transportation. Retrieved September 6, 2016.
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