Interstate 69 in Indiana
The original plan (in a DEIS prepared by INDOT in 2004, but later dropped) was for I-69 to leave the now-former I-164 alignment somewhere just east of Green River Road (exit 3) and head south (instead of turning west with I-164) for approximately before crossing the Ohio at a point near the mouth of the Green River. This portion of the route had not then been funded, as construction of the new Ohio River crossing and its approaches in both states was expected to cost approximately $800 million. Indiana and Kentucky officials had said construction on the new Ohio River Bridge would not begin until at least 2020, after two new crossings near Louisville were completed. With Indiana then preparing to break ground on SIU 3, Kentucky officials indicated that collecting tolls might be the only feasible option for completing the I-69 bridge, as traditional federal and state funding for such projects were drying up. , neither Kentucky nor Indiana officials had yet come up with the money to plan and construct this I-69 bridge.
Interstate 69 in Arkansas
On October 15, 2006, the FHWA directed the Arkansas State Highway and Transportation Department (AHTD) to begin land acquisition for I-69 from U.S. 65 to the west bank of the Mississippi River where the Dean Bridge will be built. The first phase of this section was funded for fiscal year 2010 in AHTD's 2010-2013 Statewide Transportation Improvement Plan (STIP). In January 2017, AHTD reported that the Arkansas portion of SIU-12, including the Charles W. Dean Bridge, is "shovel ready," pending receipt of funding and completion of any actions required on the part of Mississippi to begin construction on the bridge.