> There was a gap in Memphis where the locals objected to its completion because the traffic noise would have disturbed the animals at the zoo. A bigger reason

> There was a gap in Memphis where the locals objected to its completion because the traffic noise would have disturbed the animals at the zoo. A bigger reason is that the road would have run straight through Overton Park and required that the entire park be destroyed. People like Overton Park, and the protests over that got the project cancelled. In fact, they actually built the road east of Overton Park, but they stopped there when the protests started. What was intended to be I-40 is now called Sam Cooper Blvd. If you look at Google Maps, you'll see that the gap between the end of I-40 on the west side and the beginning of Sam Cooper basically just consists of Overton Park and a few blocks in each direction.