The first public meetings to determine what should be done about the Interstate 40 Crosstown expressway were held in January 1996. The Technical Advisory Committee, made up of public servants and private sector advisors, and the Citizens’ Advisory Committee were formed then and continued to meet through early 2007.

The committees considered seven options, each with 3 variations, totaling 21, including a “no-build” option that would have left the deteriorating bridge as-is. The committees narrowed the options to two and those were presented to the public in 1998. In December 1998, the option known as Alternative D was selected as the locally preferred alternate, with public input.

In January 2001, the City of Oklahoma City completed the “I-40 Relocation Land Use and Mitigations Plan.” With this in hand, the Oklahoma Department of Transportation incorporated various components and released the “Draft Environmental Impact Statement” for open discussion by the general public. The first public hearing was held in February 2001.

Melvena Heisch, Oklahoma’s deputy historic preservation officer, said of the state Department of Transportation’s outreach efforts, “The State Historic Preservation Office appreciated the Oklahoma Department of Transportation's extensive efforts to solicit public comments on this project.”

ODOT is nearing completion of years of design work and right-of-way acquisition. The first six construction contracts have been awarded. The first, awarded in August 2005, was for construction of east and westbound interstate bridges and an adjacent bridge for the Union Pacific Railroad paralleling the interstate.  These bridges will span a future extension of the Oklahoma River.