  U.S. Route 85 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CanAm Highway | ||||
 US 85 highlighted in red | ||||
| Route information | ||||
| Length | 1,479 mi[citation needed] (2,380 km) | |||
| Existed | 1926[citation needed]–present | |||
| Major junctions | ||||
| South end |  US 62 at theStanton Street Bridge at theMexican border inEl Paso, TX | |||
| Major intersections | ||||
| North end |  Highway 35 atCanada–US border nearFortuna, ND | |||
| Location | ||||
| Country | United States | |||
| States | Texas,New Mexico,Colorado,Wyoming,South Dakota,North Dakota | |||
| Highway system | ||||
| ||||
U.S. Route 85 (US 85) is a 1,479-mile-long (2,380 km) north–southUnited States Highway that travels in the Mountain and Northern Plains states of the United States. The southern terminus of the highway is at theMexican border inEl Paso, Texas, connecting withMexican Federal Highway 45. The northern terminus is at theCanadian border inFortuna, North Dakota, where the route continues north asSaskatchewan Highway 35. The highway route is part of theCanAm Highway. Sections of US 85 are designated as theTheodore Roosevelt Expressway.
| mi[1] | km | |
|---|---|---|
| TX | 21 | 34 |
| NM | 483 | 777 |
| CO | 310 | 499 |
| WY | 256 | 412 |
| SD | 154 | 248 |
| ND | 255 | 410 |
| Total | 1479 | 2380 |
The highway passes throughTexas,New Mexico,Colorado,Wyoming,South Dakota, andNorth Dakota. FromLas Cruces, New Mexico toFountain, Colorado, US-85 shares its alignment withI-25 and is not signed.
US 85 in Texas begins at the Mexico–US border withUS 62 and travels north throughEl Paso, beginning at theSanta Fe Street Bridge, and following Santa Fe Street, then Paisano Drive westward, along theRio Grande until Paisano Drive ends where it joins withInterstate 10, about 14 miles (23 km) before both reach the New Mexico border. The route is concurrent with I-10 for the remainder of its route within Texas.
The original route of US 85 in Texas had the highway concurrent with Doniphan Drive (after Paisano Drive), and parallelling theAtchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway through theMesilla Valley communities ofCanutillo,Vinton andAnthony before crossing the Texas/New Mexico state line inAnthony, New Mexico, then following the road which is nowNew Mexico State Road 478 (NM 478) up the Mesilla Valley toLas Cruces. This route is marked asTexas State Highway 20 north of the intersection with Mesa Street/Country Club Drive.
The unsigned route of US 85 through New Mexico exists only on paper to maintain continuity with signed sections in Colorado and Texas. Except for a 4-mile segment throughLas Vegas (signed as Business Loop 25), US 85 in New Mexico is entirely concurrent with Interstate Routes. For the first 20 miles (32 km) it shares its route with I-10, then continues north for the remainder of its length in New Mexico concurrent with I-25.[2] US-85 was de-signed in segments between 1970 and 1990 as I-25 was built through the state. I-25 betweenBernalillo and a point just south ofSanta Fe was built over the old US 85 alignment. I-25 was also built directly over US 85 from east of Santa Fe toLas Vegas and from US 64 to the Colorado border atRaton Pass. From the US-64/87 interchange in Raton to the Colorado state line at Raton Pass, US-85 also runs concurrently withUS-87 (also unsigned along I-25 in New Mexico). At one point, the route went along the historicEl Camino Real.
The original route fromAnthony toLas Cruces is now signed asNM 478. The original route from Las Cruces toHatch is now signed asNM 185;NM 187 south ofTruth or Consequences (T or C);NM 181 north of T or C;NM 1 (the route's pre-US-85 designation) fromRedrock toSocorro;NM 314 fromBelen toAlbuquerque;NM 313 from Albuquerque to Bernalillo;NM 14 andNM 466 through Santa Fe; andNM 445 from Maxwell toUS 64[3] Remnant US-85 signs can still be seen on Fourth Street in downtown Albuquerque, the original route through the city before I-25 was built.
For concurrencies of interstate, US routes, and routes of different levels of significance, the New Mexico Department of Transportation's policy is to sign only the route of greater significance, while leaving the route of lesser significance unsigned. Consistent with this policy, NMDOT has removed US 85 from its route logs, but the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) retains US 85 on a concurrent alignment with I-10 and I-25 to maintain continuity with signed segments in Texas and Colorado. Many mapmakers, such as theAmerican Automobile Association,Rand McNally andGoogle Maps follow AASHTO's practice and still sign US 85 along its concurrent stretches with the respective interstates.
US 85 entersColorado from New Mexico concurrent withI-25 and US-87 but is not signed. US 85 leaves I-25 at Exit 128 and follows Santa Fe Avenue throughFountain before turning west briefly onto Lake Avenue, then turning north following Nevada Avenue throughColorado Springs before rejoining I-25 at Exit 148. Approaching the south side ofDenver, US 85 again leaves I-25 at Exit 184. From there it heads west and north as a two lane rural highway. It becomes an expressway nearChatfield Reservoir and the southern Denver suburbs ofLittleton andEnglewood, where it is commonly known as Santa Fe Drive. It continues north through Denver for a few miles before once again joining with I-25 at mile marker 207. There it becomes a concurrency withUS 87 as well as I-25 and heads north through downtown Denver. At exit 214, US 85 turns east and becomes a concurrency withI-70 andUS 6 for about a mile where it exits with U.S. 6 and heads northeast throughCommerce City. In just a few miles the US 6/US 85 concurrency merges withI-76 at mile marker 9. They travel concurrently for 3 miles (4.8 km) until exit 12 when US 85 becomes an expressway and continues north out of the Denver area throughBrighton. From there it parallels I-25 for about 75 miles (121 km) passing throughFort Lupton,Platteville,LaSalle,Evans,Greeley,Eaton,Ault,Pierce, andNunn before crossing intoWyoming.
US 85 enters Wyoming from Colorado 8 miles (13 km) south ofCheyenne. In Cheyenne it joins with Business Route 87, and a mile later withI-180 until it meets withUS 30. The segment with I-180 is the only fully at-grade interstate route in the U.S.[4] At exit 12, it joins with I-25 andUS 87 in a concurrency for 5 miles (8.0 km) until US 85 leaves at exit 17 and travels northeast towardsMeriden. From there it heads north toTorrington, where it meets withUS 26 and concurrencies for 10 miles (16 km) untilLingle, and 47 miles (76 km) later it meetsUS 20 andUS 18 atLusk. It shares the next 47 miles (76 km) with US 18 and 33 miles (53 km) later meetsUS 16 nearNewcastle. From here it is 29 miles (47 km) until it entersSouth Dakota in theBlack Hills.
TheSouth Dakota section of US 85, with the exception of twoconcurrencies withUS 14 Alternate and a concurrency withI-90, is defined at South Dakota Codified Laws § 31-4-181.[5]
US 85 enters theBlack Hills from Wyoming and travels northeast until it meets withUS 14 Alternate east atCheyenne Crossing. The two routes form a concurrency from there, along the way coming to the road which leads toTerry Peak. Upon entering toLead, the two routes are separated, and the overlap with US 85 is replaced by atruck route. As the route US 85 and US 14 are separated until both meet again inDeadwood, but not before US 85 serves as the northern terminus ofU.S. Route 385. The routes run together through Deadwood before splitting, and US 85 then runs north to meetI-90. US 85 overlaps I-90 for 8 miles (13 km) while heading west. At exit 10 on the north side ofSpearfish, US 85 heads back north. AtBelle Fourche it crossesstate highway 34 andUS 212. From there it continues toNorth Dakota passing only through the small towns ofRedig,Buffalo (where it meetsstate highway 20), andLudlow, as well as coming to theGeographic Center of the United States.
US 85 entersNorth Dakota in the southwest part of the state. The first city on its route isBowman at the junction ofUS 12. Continuing north, it passes between North Dakota's two highest points,White Butte and Black Butte. NearAmidon US 85 heads east for 9 miles (14 km) before going back north along theLittle Missouri National Grassland for about 125 miles (201 km). NearBelfield it junctions withI-94. After forming a concurrency withNorth Dakota Highway 200, it eventually passes through part of the scenicBadlands, crosses theLittle Missouri River and passes near theTheodore Roosevelt National Park (North Unit).
Then, atWatford City it travels west for 16 miles (26 km) where it turns back north beforeAlexander. U.S. 85 continues north as North Dakota 200 turns west toward Montana. South ofWilliston it crosses theMissouri River. The stretch from Watford City to Williston is in the process of being converted into an undivided four-lane highway, and should be substantially completed in 2014. A few miles later it meets withUS 2 where the two overlap for 19 miles (31 km) as anexpressway, which now bypasses Williston to the northwest. After US 2 heads east, US 85 continues north to a concurrency withNorth Dakota Highway 5. From there it is 7 miles (11 km) toFortuna where US 85 heads back north for its remaining 6 miles (9.7 km) to the Canada–US border.
What is now US 85 fromEl Paso, Texas to then-US 66 (nowNM 6) inLos Lunas, New Mexico (south ofAlbuquerque) was shown asU.S. Route 466 in an early 1925 plan for theU.S. Highway System. This north–south route was never signed in the field; instead, the route was designated asU.S. Route 570 and then as part of US 85.[6] The number "466" was later used alonganother routing.
US 62 at theMexico–US border inEl Paso. US 62/US 85 travels concurrently through the city.
I-10 /US 180 in El Paso. The highways travel concurrently to theLas Cruces–University Park, New Mexico line.
I-10 /I-25 /US 180 on the Las Cruces–University Park line. I-25/US 85 shares a hidden concurrency toFountain, Colorado.
US 70 in Las Cruces
US 380 west ofSan Antonio
US 60 inSocorro. The highways travel concurrently to south-southwest ofAbeytas.
I-40 inAlbuquerque
US 550 inBernalillo
US 84 /US 285 south ofSanta Fe. US 84/US 85 travels concurrently toRomeroville. US 85/US 285 travels concurrently toEldorado at Santa Fe.
US 64 south ofRaton. The highways travel concurrently to Raton.
US 64 /US 87 in Raton. US 85/US 87 travels concurrently to Fountain, Colorado.
US 160 inTrinidad. The highways travel concurrently toWalsenburg.
US 50 inPueblo. The highways travel concurrently through Pueblo.
I-25 /US 24 /US 87 inColorado SpringsI-25 /US 87 in Colorado Springs. The highways travel concurrently toCastle Rock.I-25 /US 87 in Denver. The highways travel concurrently through Denver.
US 6 in Denver. The highways travel concurrently to nearCommerce City.
US 40 /US 287 in Denver
I-25 /I-70 /US 87 in Denver. I-70/US 85 travels concurrently through Denver.
I-270 /US 36 in Commerce City
I-76 /US 6 in Henderson
US 34 inEvans. The highways travel concurrently toGreeley.
I-80 /I-180 on theFox Farm-College–Cheyenne line. I-180/US 85 travels concurrently into Cheyenne proper.
I-180 /US 30 in CheyenneI-25 /US 87 in Cheyenne. The highways travel concurrently toRanchettes.
US 26 inTorrington. The highways travel concurrently toLingle.
US 18 /US 20 inLusk. US 18/US 85 travels concurrently to the northeastern part ofNiobrara County. US 20/US 85 travels concurrently through Lusk.
US 16 inNewcastle
US 385 inDeadwood
I-90 /US 14 inSpearfish. The highways travel concurrently toNorth Spearfish.
US 212 inBelle Fourche
US 12 inBowman. The highways travel concurrently through Bowman.
I-94 inBelfield
US 2 /ND 1804 west ofWilliston.
US 2 /US 85B / CR 6 onWilliston city line. Southern end of US 2 concurrency. Northern terminus of US 85B.US 2 About 7 miles (11 km) North ofWilliston. Northern end of US 2 concurrency.Highway 35 at theCanada–US border north-northwest ofFortuna| Browse numbered routes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ←US 84 | NM | →US 87 | ||
| ←US 84 | CO | → SH 86 | ||
| ←I-80 | WY | →US 87 | ||
← US 83 | SD | → SD 87 | ||
Routes initalics are no longer a part of the system. Highlighted routes are considered main routes of the system. |
