Turnpike bridge is under contract
ccess Oklahoma Program Manager Ladan Nelson provided an update to Newcastle City Council on the Oklahoma Turnpike Authority East-to-West Connector project. Much of the focus at the December 8 meeting was on the South Canadian River bridge project.
At the time of the City Council’s meeting, OTA had not awarded a contract for construction; however, the turnpike authority did so at their December 9 meeting.
OTA states that the first phase of the $97 million bridge project was awarded to to Crossland Construction Co. Inc. They state this will be the longest bridge in Oklahoma at more than 1.25 miles long. Work will begin in early 2026 and is expected to be completed by late 2027.
They further state that the project was designed to minimize impacts to the Canadian River to protect water quality and the habitat of threatened species; the bridge piers will be constructed outside of the river channel and OTA will monitor construction closely to ensure the contractor complies with all environmental safeguards.
Nelson said OTA is now transitioning over from planning to the construction side, and the bridge will be one of the first projects in the Access Oklahoma program. She said it will be between Portland and Pennsylvania, and will connect Newcastle, Blanchard and Tuttle to Oklahoma City, Moore and Norman.
Nelson said the new bridge will aid in the travel time and liability, it will reduce time at U.S. Interstate 44 and State Highway 37, and will reduce the travel mileage from Newcastle to Norman from 16 miles to 12 miles.
“This is a four mile difference, but this is non-stop travel going east to west,” Nelson said, adding that there will be separated intersections and safer and more efficient travel.
She said OTA is minimizing impacts of the river channel, with the bridge to be designed completely out of the
BRIDGE on page 2 high water mark for travel.
BRIDGE: Westbound lanes being built first
“OTA is monitoring through a third-party inspection at least weekly to ensure the contractor is in compliance with all specifications.”
The projected 2027 opening will be only for the westbound bridge and alignment with travel in opposite directions in two lanes. When the eastbound lanes are later constructed, traffic will be normalized with eastbound travel in two lanes, and westbound travel in two lanes. Nelson said OTA anticipates an eastbound bridge opening in early- to mid-quarter of 2028.
Nelson said OTA projects 38,000 vehicles per day by the year 2030.
The I-44 East-to-West Connector Interchange was another topic of discussion. The OTA held a public involvement meeting with a virtual open house and received a lot of positive feedback, according to Nelson.
Mayor Karl Nail said OTA is planning a first-phase contract letting in May 2026 at an approximate cost of about $70 million. He said the City will be talking more about the interchange as that date nears.
Nelson said they are hoping to award a bid in June 2026 and then have a contractor on site in fall 2026. The interchange is planned to be built in three phases with flyovers being the last part of construction.
Nelson said it would take about 18 months to two years on the first phase, but the project would be completely finished in about 8-10 years.
A 3D rendering looking northwest shows how the East-to-West Connector Canadian River bridge will look once complete. • artwork courtesy Oklahoma Turnpike Authority
The U.S. Interstate 44 and State Highway 37 interchange at Newcastle will begin soon with a first phase, but is a three-phase project that will take years to complete. • artwork courtesy Oklahoma Turnpike Authority
