 State Highway 81 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 SH 81 highlighted in red | ||||
| Route information | ||||
| Maintained byTxDOT | ||||
| Length | 23.354 mi[1] (37.585 km) | |||
| Existed | 1991–present | |||
| Major junctions | ||||
| South end |   I-35 /US 77 atHillsboro | |||
| North end |  I-35W north ofGrandview | |||
| Location | ||||
| Country | United States | |||
| State | Texas | |||
| Counties | Hill,Johnson | |||
| Highway system | ||||
| ||||
State Highway 81 (SH 81) is aTexasstate highway that runs fromHillsboro toGrandview. It was designated in 1991 to replaceU.S. Highway 81, which was decommissioned south ofFort Worth.[1]
SH 81 begins along the ramp from northboundI-35's exit 364B; the route is accessible from the southbound freeway at exit 364A forFM 310.[2] It travels north intoHillsboro along Abbott Avenue. SH 81 has a half-mile concurrency withSH 22/SH 171 through the city's downtown before continuing northward along Waco Street. At the northern edge of Hillsboro, the highway has an interchange withSpur 579, which provides access to I-35, as well asUS 77, just south of the point at which the freeway splits intoI-35W andI-35E. North of Hillsboro, SH 81 roughly parallels I-35W, which lies to the east.[3] While the freeway bypasses the cities ofItasca andGrandview, SH 81 enters them directly, along Hill Street and 3rd Street, respectively. In Grandview, it intersectsFM 916 and alsoFM 4 at that route's southern terminus before continuing northward to its end at I-35W's exit 16; the roadway continues as County Road 201A.[4]
As a majority ofUS 81 south of Fort Worth had already been superseded by the Interstate 35 freeway south of Fort Worth, the entire segment of that route from Fort Worth to Laredo was eliminated on March 26, 1991.[5] Many of the former pre-freeway alignments that were kept as part of the state highway system were replaced by various routes, including state highway loops andbusiness routes of Interstate 35. SH 81 was designated to replace the segment in Hill and Johnson counties, and represents the longest section south of Fort Worth with which US 81 did not have a concurrency with Interstate 35.[1]
The first highway designated SH 81 was originally proposed as a route through central Texas on August 21, 1923, beginning inBandera and traveling south then turning southeast throughSan Antonio, with a final ending point atCuero, replacingSH 29B and part ofSH 27.[6] On October 12, 1925, SH 81 had extended toKerrville, but this was not taken over by the state until January 1, 1926.[7] On March 19, 1930, SH 81 had been extended north toDe Leon, replacingSH 124 and portions ofSH 20 andSH 22. On June 20, 1933, the section east of San Antonio was transferred toSH 27.[8] On December 22, 1936, SH 81 was extended north toStrawn.[9] On February 19, 1937, the section from San Antonio to Kerrville was replaced bySH 16.[10] On February 21, 1938,SH 81 Business was designated in Goldthwaite.[11] On September 26, 1939, the entire route north of Kerrville had also been transferred to SH 16 (though the original plan was to extend south to San Antonio over part of SH 16 and north to Graham over part of SH 120, but this was scrapped because it would have crossed US 81). SH 81 was instead reassigned to a road fromLlano toBrady (formerly Texas State Highway no. "F"; proposed asSH 283).SH 81 Business was renumbered asLoop 15. On October 7, 1939, SH 81 was cancelled and returned toMcCulloch County (as per the original minute order designating this road).
| County | Location | mi[12] | km | Destinations | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hill | Hillsboro | 0.0 | 0.0 | I-35 /US 77 –Waco | Southern terminus; northbound exit and southbound entrance |
| 2.8 | 4.5 |     SH 22 east /SH 171 south (Corsicana Hwy.) –Corsicana,Mexia | Southern end of SH 22 / SH 171 concurrency | ||
| 3.3 | 5.3 |   SH 22 west /SH 171 north (W. Elm St.) –Meridian,Cleburne | Northern end of SH 22 / SH 171 concurrency | ||
| 5.1 | 8.2 |   Spur 579 toI-35 | |||
| Lovelace | 9.1 | 14.6 |  FM 2959 –Carl's Corner | ||
| | 11.2 | 18.0 |  FM 3147 | ||
| Itasca | 13.3 | 21.4 |  Spur 176 | ||
| 14.2 | 22.9 |   FM 66 /FM 934 (Main St.) –Maypearl | |||
| | 16.9 | 27.2 |  FM 2719 | ||
| | 18.4 | 29.6 |  FM 67 –Covington | ||
| Johnson | Grandview | 22.2 | 35.7 |   FM 4 /FM 916 (Criner St.) –Maypearl,Cleburne | |
| | 23.4 | 37.7 | I-35W –Ft. Worth | Northern terminus; roadway continues as CR 201A | |
| 1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi | |||||
Media related toTexas State Highway 81 at Wikimedia Commons
