Interstate 540 (Arkansas)

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Interstate 540
I-540 highlighted in red
Route information
Auxiliary route of I-40
Maintained by ArDOT
Length	14.7 mi[1] (23.7 km)
Existed	1965–present
NHS	Entire route
Major junctions
South end	US 271 / SH-9 at Oklahoma state line
Major intersections	US 71 / US 71B in Fort Smith US 64 / US 71B in Van Buren
North end	I-40 / US 71 in Van Buren
Location
Country	United States
State	Arkansas
Counties	Sebastian, Crawford
Highway system
Interstate Highway System Main Auxiliary Suffixed Business Future Arkansas Highway System Interstate US State Business Spurs Suffixed Scenic Heritage
← I-530 → AR 549

Interstate 540 (I-540) is a freeway spur route of I-40 in the US state of Arkansas in Fort Smith. The total length is 14.7 miles (23.7 km).^[1] At first, I-540 was a short spur connecting Fort Smith and Van Buren to I-40 as one of the original five Arkansas Interstates.^[2] The route ran 14.7 miles (23.7 km) to U.S. Highway 271 (US 271) near the Oklahoma state line.^[3] The growing Northwest Arkansas area and the University of Arkansas needed an Interstate connection to Little Rock, and through traffic north to Kansas City had also outgrown the winding US 71 north from I-40. The route was extended north to Mountainburg in the late 1990s on an all-new alignment (going under concurrency with I-40, one of the only auxiliary routes with a concurrency with its parent) with the route being completed to Bella Vista in January 1999.^[4] However, the segment north of I-40 became a part of I-49 in 2014.