Interstate 640
Appearance
Interstate 640 (abbreviated I-640) is a bypass of Interstate 40 running north of Knoxville, Tennessee. For many years only about a two-mile segment of it between Tennessee State Route 33 and U.S. Highway 25 was open. Finally, the road was completed in anticipation of the traffic which was to be generated by the 1982 World's Fair. Today it is especially important for traffic going east on Interstate 40 which intends to turn northward on Interstate 75; this has greatly relieved congestion in downtown Knoxville. However, much east-west traffic on Interstate 40 still ignores this bypass and continues on through the heart of the city, a potentially more-congested but more direct route.