On Friday morning, Sept. 4, the westbound lanes of a new interstate in Benton and Washington counties briefly turned into a parking lot. Hundreds of people, including federal, state and regional officials, gathered at the interchange where the new XNA connector splits from the Springdale Northern Bypass. They stood in front of two highway shields, Interstate 42 and Highway 642, that had never been posted anywhere in Arkansas before that week, Talk Business & Politics reported. The roads opened to traffic after the ribbon-cutting.
For Tontitown, the location of the other end matters more than the ceremony. The seven-mile segment that opened that day runs from Arkansas Highway 112 to U.S. Highway 412 in western Tontitown. The airport has gone without a direct freeway connection since it opened in 1998, the Fayetteville Flyer noted. Now one of the ends of that freeway route is in Tontitown.
Where the new road meets U.S. 412
The bypass meets existing U.S. 412 at an interchange west of Tontitown, at the point where 412 widens from four lanes to five. That location comes from ARDOT's project page for the Springdale Northern Bypass. From there, the new interstate heads north and east toward Highway 112. About a mile before the Highway 112 exit, the XNA Connector branches off, KNWA reported.
The connector is four miles long and ends at a traffic signal with Arkansas Highway 264 at XNA's south entrance. Most of it is a four-lane, interstate-style highway. For about nine-tenths of a mile at the airport end, south of the south entrance, it narrows to two lanes.
For anyone in Tontitown, that means the trip to the terminal now starts with a highway on-ramp at the edge of town. Map apps update at their own pace, so pull up the route once before your next early flight. That's a better time to learn the new interchanges than 5 a.m. with a full trunk.
The old way to the airport
The new road is easier to appreciate once you trace the route it replaces. Before September, people coming to XNA from communities east and south of the airport had to take Highway 112 and Highway 264 through the town of Cave Springs, according to KNWA's earlier coverage of ARDOT's announcement. For years, the Fayetteville Flyer explained, the main route from I-49 went like this:
- Exit I-49 at Lowell.
- Go west on Highway 264.
- Turn north on Highway 112.
- Turn west again on Highway 264 toward the airport.
When the first phase of the bypass opened in 2018 between I-49 and Highway 112, the trip got somewhat shorter. Drivers still had to take Highway 112 for the last stretch to XNA, though. The Flyer described the new route as one that skips the old drive through Lowell and Cave Springs and along Highway 112. Drivers from Fayetteville and Springdale can now take I-49 north to the bypass, follow it west and take the connector to the airport entrance.
Tontitown is at the far end of that same corridor. Drivers from Fayetteville get on the new road from the east. Tontitown gets on from the west, at the tie-in with 412.
What opened on Sept. 4
| Project | Route | Length | Structures | Contractor | Contract |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Springdale Northern Bypass, phase two | I-42, Hwy 412 in western Tontitown to Hwy 112 | 7 miles | 15 bridges, three interchanges | Emery Sapp & Sons, Columbia, Mo. | $180.78 million |
| XNA Connector | Hwy 642, I-42 to Hwy 264 at XNA's south entrance | 4 miles | 11 bridges, one interchange, one signal | Crossland Construction Co., Columbus, Kan. | $127.67 million |
According to Talk Business, the two projects together had a construction value of $308.46 million, and ARDOT Director Jared Wiley put the total investment at $400 million. The first phase of the bypass, between I-49 and Highway 112, opened in 2018. The two phases together now make up I-42. The Federal Highway Administration approved the interstate designation the same week the road opened. With phase two finished, 12 of the bypass's 21 planned miles are complete, KNWA reported.
Ten minutes, by ARDOT's estimate
At the ceremony, Wiley gave a time savings figure. It applies to a specific trip: drivers coming from the west who take I-42 instead of driving U.S. 412 through Tontitown. He estimated they would save about 10 minutes a day. Talk Business quoted his reasoning:
"That doesn't sound like a lot, but when you look at that over a week, that's one hour less sitting in traffic each week. Two full days a year that we save off that commuter time, and that's a big deal for folks in this region."
So the new interstate does two things for Tontitown. It gives residents a freeway to the airport, and it gives traffic from the west a way around the stretch of 412 through town. ARDOT's 10 minutes is a projection for those through-drivers. It isn't a measured before-and-after time for a trip that starts on Henri De Tonti Boulevard.
The first real-world reports came from Labor Day weekend. KHBS 40/29 talked with travelers at XNA the Monday after the opening. One traveler, Jody Brown, estimated the new route saved about 12 minutes compared with driving through Cave Springs. He added, "But more than that, you don't get caught behind one slow car on a two-lane road." Another traveler, Henry Ho, put his savings at five or six minutes. Those are personal estimates, but they agree on the main change. The airport trip no longer depends on how fast the car ahead of you is going on a two-lane road.
Olivia Tyler, XNA's public affairs manager, told KHBS on opening day that "having a direct connection to I-49 is gonna make it smoother and safer." Labor Day was a long weekend. Thanksgiving next month will be the first big holiday travel season on the new road, whether you're flying out or picking up family at the south entrance.
What's still on ARDOT's list near Tontitown
The roadwork isn't finished. ARDOT's Springdale-area program summary, dated Sept. 21, 2026, still lists the phase-two bypass job as under construction, with completion estimated for late 2026. The road is open, but ARDOT hasn't closed out the project on paper. The same summary lists other projects close to home:
- Highway 112 major widening, U.S. 412 to the Springdale Bypass: 4.38 miles, listed as programmed, with a projected total cost of $100 million to $125 million.
- U.S. 412 and Barrington Road intersection improvements in Tontitown: listed as programmed, under $1 million, with no letting date shown.
- South Barrington Road and East Fletcher Avenue pedestrian intersection improvements in Tontitown: listed as programmed, under $1 million.
- U.S. 412 and Klenc Road intersection improvements in Tontitown: substantially completed in December 2025, at $1,018,079.
East of town, the rest of the bypass is still years away. Wiley said the third phase, a three-mile segment from I-49 to Highway 265, is expected to go to bid in about a year, with construction starting late next year. The fourth and final phase, from Highway 265 back to U.S. 412 east of Springdale, has no scheduled bid date. Over the long term, I-42 is planned to follow roughly the U.S. 412 corridor through Tulsa to Interstate 35 north of Oklahoma City. For now, the finished part of the bypass ends at Tontitown's western edge.
When we help relocating families settle in Northwest Arkansas, the drive from XNA is usually their first look at the area, and that drive now arrives from the western edge of Tontitown. If you have family flying in for the holidays, or you're wondering how the new interchange fits into your plans for your Tontitown home, Roe Team is happy to talk it through over coffee or by phone. When you're ready, start with a free home valuation.
