The $8.2 billion ACCESS Oklahoma long-range bond plan, which will update Oklahoma’s turnpike system over the course of 15 years, includes two developments that will impact Norman and Cleveland County.
What is ACCESS Oklahoma?
ACCESS stands for Advancing and Connecting Communities and Economies Safely Statewide. According to the Oklahoma Turnpike Authority, the state agency conducting the project, updates to Oklahoma’s turnpike system will include renewing bridges and pavement, widening existing turnpikes and adding three new routes in the Oklahoma City metro area.
According to the OTA, the project’s mission is to provide a safe, convenient and efficient transportation network.
Two turnpikes are slated for the Cleveland County area: the South Extension Turnpike and the Toby Keith Expressway, formerly known as the East-West Connector.
• South Extension Turnpike: The South Extension will be around 19 miles of roadway, from the Toby Keith Expressway on Franklin Road to Interstate 35 in Slaughterville. The extension is intended to be complete by 2034. In March 2025, the extension’s path was rerouted to avoid federal property at Lake Thunderbird. Originally, the expansion was planned to run west of the lake.
ACCESS Oklahoma's South Extension Turnpike alignment as of April 2026.
• Toby Keith Expressway: Extending across north Norman, this turnpike intends to connect Interstate 44 to Interstate 40 at the new Kickapoo Turnpike. The expressway will run around 28 miles and is expected to be completed by 2033.
ACCESS Oklahoma's Toby Keith Expressway alignment as of April 2026.
The naming of the expressway after the late country music artist came as a surprise to some Norman residents. Keith allowed Pike Off OTA, an organization fighting turnpike expansion in Oklahoma, to place a banner opposing the project on his Norman property in 2022, per KFOR reporting.
Stelen Covel, Keith’s son, told OU Daily in March that the family’s view on the turnpike had changed and they are now in support of the project.
“(Keith) was for the turnpike before he passed, …” Covel said. “I think this is the state giving back to him in whatever way it could.”
Community Response
Nonprofit organization Pike Off OTA and Facebook group “NO MORE TURNPIKES, Oklahoma!” have formed in response to the ACCESS Oklahoma turnpike plans.
According to the Pike Off OTA website, the organization formed after the 2022 announcement of the ACCESS Oklahoma plans. “NO MORE TURNPIKES, Oklahoma!” has, as recently as March, called on Norman residents to protest the turnpike at city council meetings.
Mayor Stephen Tyler Holman spoke in May 2025 regarding the city’s position on turnpike projects.
“The official stance of the city of Norman government is a unanimous resolution that was passed in 2022 that opposes this project happening in our city limits,” Holman said. “I do not foresee the city council voting to repeal that any time.”
At the Norman City Council meeting on March 25, two contracts were passed in agreement with the OTA that will set in motion progress on the Toby Keith Expressway.
One of the contracts allows the OTA to relocate water wells and water lines in northwest Norman. The other contract permits construction and maintenance on water systems in northwest Norman.
During public comment time at the meeting, residents voiced concern over the contracts and council members’ votes.
“Please be the council we elected you to be,” Karlinda Gravel, Ward 4, said.
Timeline
Since its announcement, the ACCESS Oklahoma turnpike initiative has sparked four years of citizen protest and exchanges between county and state governments.
OU Daily has curated a timeline of events and meetings regarding the ACCESS Oklahoma turnpike since the announcement of the plan.
As of the time of publication, the only active construction is a strip of the Toby Keith Expressway at the South Canadian River. This strip includes two projects: a bridge over the South Canadian River and the mainline, and a Western Avenue Interchange extending east to Interstate 35.
This story was edited by Macey Thaxton and Audrey McClour. Larkin Bock, Gretchen Schultz and Mary Ann Livingood copy edited this story.
