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The I-49 Arkansas River bridge project was about 47% complete on its latest contractor pay estimate, according to an October 5, 2026 report. An approximately $11 million estimate then being processed was expected to bring reported progress to roughly 50%. Jason Hughey, Arkansas Department of Transportation (ARDOT) District 4 engineer, said the project was ahead of schedule; that assessment reflects the update at that time, not a guaranteed completion date.
What the completion figures mean
The October 5 update distinguishes work already reflected in the latest contractor pay estimate from work expected to appear in the pending estimate. The reported status was about 47%; roughly 50% was the anticipated figure after an approximately $11 million estimate being processed that day. The latter was an expectation, not a finalized progress figure.
Hughey said contractors had used a little more than 40% of the allotted construction time and described the job as ahead of schedule: We’re actually ahead of schedule right now.
The report attributed some of the progress to a hot, relatively dry summer with little rain interrupting work. Schedule performance can change as construction proceeds.
Which I-49 work this project covers
The $282.5 million Arkansas River bridge contract is one project within the approximately 14-mile extension of I-49 from Arkansas 22 in Barling to the existing I-49/I-40 interchange near Alma. The full Barling-to-Alma connection involves multiple projects and was estimated at about $1.3 billion in the October report. Those figures describe different scopes: the bridge contract is not the cost of the entire extension.
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The October report calls the bridge work phase one of four phases needed for the Barling-to-Alma connection. It said another phase was expected to go out for bids in November, with work beginning southward from I-40; it described that work as phase three, from Clear Creek Road toward I-40. This was an announced expectation, not confirmation that bidding had taken place or that all future phases were funded. During his October 5 tour, U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said, “We are committed to working with you to get phase two and phase three.” The statement expresses a commitment to work with Arkansas, not a funding guarantee.
Bridge and construction scope
The Arkansas River bridge is 5,232 feet long. The project also includes an 1,822-foot bridge crossing Flat Rock Creek and Gun Club Road. ARDOT anticipated installing all steel girders for the Arkansas River bridge by around October 2027, according to the October report.
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Construction work documented in ARDOT’s SFY 2026 third-quarter report included rock fill, compacted embankment, drilled shafts, bridge columns and caps, prestressed girders, and erosion-control measures. The report recorded approximately $971,000 in added costs for additional clearing and grubbing, waste removal, and rock fill associated with existing soil conditions. Separately, eliminating a planned 36-inch waterline resulted in net project savings of approximately $9.05 million; the two figures refer to distinct cost changes.
Why the river-bottom soils required extra work
In a June 18, 2026 project account, contractor Emery Sapp & Sons described saturated, unstable organic soils in the river bottom. The contractor said crews placed rock fill or removed unsuitable material and rebuilt the area with imported compacted embankment. It reported 397,291 tons of imported material as of that June account; this is not an October progress total.
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How the October update compares with ARDOT’s quarterly report
ARDOT’s SFY 2026 third-quarter report covers Job 040901, a 3.20-mile Future I-49 section between Highway 22 and Gun Club Road in Crawford and Sebastian counties, with Manhattan Road & Bridge Company, LLC listed as prime contractor. Its figures are from the report period and should not be mistaken for the newer October bridge update.
| Measure | ARDOT SFY 2026 third-quarter report | October 5, 2026 report |
|---|---|---|
| Progress | 24.0% accepted work | About 47% on the latest contractor pay estimate; roughly 50% expected after the pending estimate |
| Working time used | 24.8% | A little more than 40% of allotted construction time, per Hughey |
| Contract amount | $273,448,359 current contract amount | $282.5 million bridge contract, as reported by Talk Business & Politics |
| Completion timing | Early 2029 current estimated completion, versus late 2029 originally | Not stated in the October report |
The reports use different dates and measures: ARDOT’s quarterly figure is accepted work for the identified job, while the October account gives Hughey’s latest contractor-pay-estimate status for the bridge project. The quarterly report’s early-2029 estimate applies to that contract scope; it does not mean the entire multi-phase Barling-to-Alma extension will be finished by then.
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