Crawford County, Arkansas – A planned rest area along future Interstate 49 in Crawford County has received a $23 million federal grant to help move it toward construction. The facility will provide parking for more than 130 trucks and approximately 50 passenger vehicles between the Gun Club Road and Clear Creek Road interchanges.
The U.S. Department of Transportation awarded the funding to the Arkansas Department of Transportation through its Nationally Significant Multimodal Freight and Highways Projects program, known as INFRA. The money will support final design and construction of the new rest area and truck parking facility.
“ARDOT is pleased to partner with USDOT to construct vital infrastructure projects that impact safety for the traveling public,” ARDOT Director Jared Wiley said. “Without this grant funding, the truck parking facility would remain out of reach for years to come.”
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Beyond the parking spaces, the grant will fund northbound and southbound access ramps, roads within the facility, and lighting. Those improvements will support access to a dedicated stopping location for truck drivers and other travelers using the future interstate.
The project addresses an issue that Congressman Steve Womack has made a funding priority: providing truck drivers with safe places to park. Womack, who represents Arkansas’ 3rd Congressional District, connected the investment to both highway safety and the movement of goods.
“Truckers are the cornerstone of our interstate commerce,” Congressman Steve Womack (AR-3), said. “We depend on these hardworking men and women to transport goods and fuel across our country, keeping store shelves stocked and gas tanks filled. A lack of adequate truck parking nationwide puts a strain on drivers, creates safety risks for the traveling public, and jeopardizes our supply chain. This is why I prioritized funding to build truck parking infrastructure in my transportation appropriations bill for two consecutive years. Our truck drivers should not have to worry about finding a safe place to park, no matter where they are. I’m proud that future truckers traveling along I-49 in Crawford County will have that peace of mind, building on the generational benefits that this new interstate segment brings to the River Valley.”
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Wiley also credited Womack’s work on federal funding for truck parking, placing the Crawford County award within a broader national investment in facilities for commercial drivers.
“Arkansas is grateful for Congressman Womack’s leadership in this space,” Wiley said. “His work ensured that $200 million was dedicated to much-needed truck parking infrastructure nationwide in fiscal years 2026 and 2027. This $23 million grant award will help bolster efforts by a wide array of transportation professionals who understand the value of safe and predictable parking for those who keep our economy moving.”
The INFRA program supports improvements intended to make the movement of people and goods safer, more efficient, and more reliable. Its goals include addressing major congestion points and expanding capacity on critical bypasses used by thousands of freight trucks each day.
More information about the funding program is available on the USDOT website. Details about the Crawford County project are included in ARDOT’s grant announcement.
