I-55 Mississippi River Bridge At Kings’ Crossing — Memphis, Tennessee
Client
- Tennessee Department of Transportation
Project Value 
$900 Million
Market
Bridge, Transportation
Services
Design
The new I-55 Mississippi River Bridge at Kings’ Crossing will replace the aging 1949 Memphis-Arkansas Bridge, which no longer meets the region’s growth needs and is unsuitable for seismic retrofitting. This modern long-span cable-stay bridge will connect Tennessee and Arkansas, tying directly into the recently completed I-55 Crump Interchange in Tennessee. Designed to enhance river freight mobility, the bridge will feature a larger navigation opening of over 1,300 feet, accommodating improved vessel traffic along the Mississippi River at Kings’ Crossing. Kings’ Crossing will serve as a critical hub for regional connectivity and freight mobility, ensuring the infrastructure meets the demands of the future.
The name Kings’ Crossing, officially adopted by the Tennessee General Assembly and the Arkansas Highway Commission, honors three transformative figures known as “Kings”: Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.; B.B. King; and Elvis Presley.
Innovative Engineering For A Complex Site
The structure will consist of a three-span cable-stay design, including a 1,412-foot main span over the primary navigation channels at Kings’ Crossing. The bridge’s towers will be strategically positioned, with one located on the Arkansas side of the river and the other on the Tennessee riverbank. To address the engineering challenges posed by the deep soils of the Mississippi embayment and proximity to the New Madrid Fault Zone, an innovative asymmetrical span arrangement (800’-1,412’-365’) was developed. This design results in a 525-foot-tall tower in Arkansas and a 333-foot-tall tower in Tennessee, with the shorter Tennessee back-span accommodating navigation clearance requirements and the geometric constraints of the Crump Interchange. The freestanding tapered pylons are engineered for improved seismic and wind performance while ensuring constructability.
Collaborative Delivery For Future Mobility
The Kings’ Crossing project is a collaborative effort funded by the Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) and the Arkansas Department of Transportation (ARDOT), with TDOT serving as the lead agency. Parsons was selected to design the new structure in Fall 2024, with geotechnical field investigations initiated in January 2005.
Delivered under the Construction Manager/General Contractor (CM/GC) method, the final design is scheduled for completion in December 2026, and construction is set to begin in February 2027.
