[2] However, the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) Special Committee on U.S. Route Numbering denied the I-49 designation at their annual meeting in September 2007 because none of the new roadway was under construction.

[5] The two-year project represented a shift in funding priorities for MoDOT, which, in 2007, had announced the indefinite postponement of its portion of the Bella Vista bypass project, citing a $139 million (equivalent to $197 million in 2023[6]) funding gap in Arkansas between construction costs and toll revenues, and Arkansas's commitment to only a two-lane bypass constructed over six years.

[4] The last of the upgrade projects were completed in December 2012, but some designations about seven miles (11 km) north of the Arkansas state line still have not been built to meet Interstate standards.

[11] In March 2019, the Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission approved the remaining funding needed to complete the portion of the Bella Vista Bypass within the state.

Construction started on May 11, 2020,[13] and the entire bypass opened on October 1, 2021, following a ribbon-cutting ceremony held the day prior,[14] fully completing I-49 within the state.