Interstate 25 (I-25) is a part of the
Interstate Highway System
The Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways, commonly known as the Interstate Highway System, is a network of controlled-access highways that forms part of the National Highway System in the United States. Th ...
that runs from
Las Cruces, New Mexico
Las Cruces (; "the crosses") is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New Mexico and the seat of Doña Ana County. As of the 2020 census the population was 111,385. Las Cruces is the largest city in both Doña Ana County and southern New ...
, to
Buffalo, Wyoming
Buffalo is a city in Johnson County, Wyoming, United States. The city is located almost equidistant between Yellowstone Park and Mount Rushmore. The population was 4,415 at the 2020 census, down from 4,585 at the 2010 census. It is the county s ...
. In
Wyoming
Wyoming () is a U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho to the west, Utah to the south ...
, the Interstate Highway runs from the
Colorado
Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...
state line near
Cheyenne
The Cheyenne ( ) are an Indigenous people of the Great Plains. Their Cheyenne language belongs to the Algonquian language family. Today, the Cheyenne people are split into two federally recognized nations: the Southern Cheyenne, who are enroll ...
north to its national terminus at
I-90
Interstate 90 (I-90) is an east–west transcontinental freeway and the longest Interstate Highway in the United States at . It begins in Seattle, Washington, and travels through the Pacific Northwest, Mountain West, Great Plains, Midwest, and ...
near Buffalo. I-25 connects Wyoming's largest city and capital, Cheyenne, with its second largest city,
Casper
Casper may refer to:
People
* Casper (given name)
* Casper (surname)
* Casper (Maya ruler) (422–487?), ruler of the Mayan city of Palenque
* Tok Casper, first known king of Maya city-state Quiriguá in Guatemala, ruling beginning in 426
* David ...
, and the smaller communities of
Wheatland,
Douglas
Douglas may refer to:
People
* Douglas (given name)
* Douglas (surname)
Animals
*Douglas (parrot), macaw that starred as the parrot ''Rosalinda'' in Pippi Longstocking
*Douglas the camel, a camel in the Confederate Army in the American Civil W ...
, and Buffalo. The highway also connects those cities with
Denver
Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...
and
Billings
Billings is the largest city in the U.S. state of Montana, with a population of 117,116 as of the 2020 census. Located in the south-central portion of the state, it is the seat of Yellowstone County and the principal city of the Billings Metrop ...
via I-90. I-25
runs concurrently with
U.S. Route 87 (US 87) for almost its entire course in Wyoming. The highway also has extensive concurrencies with
US 20 and
US 26 along its east–west segment through the
North Platte River
The North Platte River is a major tributary of the Platte River and is approximately long, counting its many curves.U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed March 21, 2011 In a ...
valley. The Interstate has
business loops through Cheyenne,
Chugwater, Wheatland, Douglas,
Glenrock, Casper, and Buffalo.
Route description
Cheyenne to Wheatland
I-25 enters
Laramie County
Laramie County is a county located at the southeast corner of the state of Wyoming. As of the 2020 United States Census, the population was 100,512 or 17.4% of the state's total 2020 population, making it the most populous county in Wyoming, b ...
concurrent with US 87 from
Weld County, Colorado
Weld County is a county located in the U.S. state of Colorado. As of the 2020 census, the population was 328,981. The county seat is Greeley.
Weld County comprises the Greeley, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is included in the Denver ...
, southwest of Cheyenne and briefly runs parallel to a
BNSF Railway
BNSF Railway is one of the largest freight railroads in North America. One of seven North American Class I railroads, BNSF has 35,000 employees, of track in 28 states, and nearly 8,000 locomotives. It has three transcontinental routes that ...
line. The four-lane Interstate has its first interchange, a
diamond interchange
A diamond interchange is a common type of road junction, used where a controlled-access highway crosses a minor road.
Design
The freeway itself is grade-separated from the minor road, one crossing the other over a bridge. Approaching the ...
, with
Wyoming Highway 223 (WYO 223, Terry Ranch Road), and crosses over the
Union Pacific Railroad
The Union Pacific Railroad , legally Union Pacific Railroad Company and often called simply Union Pacific, is a freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Paci ...
's
Speer Subdivision rail line and over the BNSF rail line. I-25 meets High Plains Road at a
dumbbell interchange
A diamond interchange is a common type of road junction, used where a controlled-access highway crosses a minor road.
Design
The freeway itself is grade-separated from the minor road, one crossing the other over a bridge. Approaching the i ...
, then has a
diverging diamond interchange
A diverging diamond interchange (DDI), also called a double crossover diamond interchange (DCD), is a subset of diamond interchange in which the opposing directions of travel on the non-freeway road cross each other on either side of the inte ...
with
WYO 212 (College Drive), a junction that serves as the southern end of
Interstate 25 Business (I-25 Bus.). The freeway has a
cloverleaf interchange
A cloverleaf interchange is a two-level interchange in which all turns are handled by slip roads. To go left (in right-hand traffic; reverse directions in left-driving regions), vehicles first continue as one road passes over or under the ...
with
I-80
Interstate 80 (I-80) is an east–west transcontinental freeway that crosses the United States from downtown San Francisco, California, to Teaneck, New Jersey, in the New York metropolitan area. The highway was designated in 1956 as one o ...
, crosses over the Union Pacific's
Laramie Subdivision and
US 30 (Lincolnway), and has a four-ramp
partial cloverleaf
A partial cloverleaf interchange or parclo is a modification of a cloverleaf interchange.
The design has been well received, and has since become one of the most popular freeway-to-arterial interchange designs in North America. It has also bee ...
interchange with US 30, which here is also part of
I-80 Bus.
I-25 continues north along the western edge of the city of Cheyenne and along the eastern edge of
Francis E. Warren Air Force Base
Francis E. Warren Air Force Base , shortened as F.E. Warren AFB is a United States Air Force base (AFB) located approximately west of Cheyenne, Wyoming. It is one of three strategic-missile bases in the U.S. It was named in honor of Francis E ...
, which is served by the next three interchanges. The highway has a five-ramp partial cloverleaf interchange with Missile Drive, crosses over a BNSF rail yard, and has a diamond interchange with Randall Road, which leads to Pershing Boulevard. I-25 reconnects with its business route at Central Avenue, where
US 85 joins the Interstate. The freeway has a dumbbell interchange with Vandehei Street before leaving the city of Cheyenne and passing through the unincorporated area of
Ranchettes. I-25 has an interchange with
WYO 211 (Horse Creek Road) before US 85 splits to the northeast. There is no direct access from southbound I-25 to northbound US 85 at the latter interchange; southbound traffic uses the WYO 211 interchange to turn around to access northbound US 85.
I-25 continues through sparsely populated northern Laramie County, where the Interstate crosses
Lodgepole Creek
Lodgepole Creek is a tributary of the South Platte River, approximately long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed March 25, 2011 in the U.S. states of Wyoming, Nebraska and ...
and has five interchanges with minor roads: Ridley Road, an unnamed road only marked as exit 25, Whitaker Road, Nimmo Road, and an unnamed road that serves the Little Bear Community. The Interstate enters
Platte County at its interchange with Bear Creek Road. I-25's first population center north of Cheyenne is Chugwater, where the highway crosses over a BNSF rail line and
Chugwater Creek, has an interchange with
WYO 211 and
WYO 313 in town, and has an interchange with
WYO 321 (Ty Basin Road) north of town. Those two interchanges serve as the termini for Chugwater's
I-25 Bus. The Interstate meets the western end of
WYO 314 (Slater Road) west of
Slater
A slater, or slate mason, is a tradesman, tradesperson who covers buildings with slate.
Tools of the trade
The various hand tool, tools of the slater's trade are all drop-forged.
The slater's hammer is forged in one single piece, from crucib ...
; has minor interchanges with Hunton Road, Antelope Road, and Bordeaux Road; and meets the eastern end of
WYO 34.
Wheatland to Casper
I-25's next serves the town of Wheatland, the
county seat
A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US st ...
of Platte County. Wheatland's
I-25 Bus. splits off onto Mariposa Boulevard and provides access to
WYO 310 and
WYO 312. The Interstate and business route reconvene at the north end of town. I-25 has minor interchanges with Laramie River Road near its crossing of the
Laramie River
The Laramie River is a tributary of the North Platte River, approximately long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed March 21, 2011 in the U.S. states of Colorado and Wyoming. ...
and with Johnson Road. The Interstate meets US 26 at a
directional T interchange
In the field of road transport, an interchange (American English) or a grade-separated junction (British English) is a road junction that uses grade separations to allow for the movement of traffic between two or more roadways or highways, using ...
at
Dwyer Junction, and the U.S. Route joins I-25 and US 87 heading north. I-25 has minor interchanges with El Rancho Road and an unnamed access road to Middle Bear around a junction with the southern end of
WYO 319 (Cassa Road). The Interstate has an interchange with
Wyoming Highway 319 Spur (WYO 319 Spur) in the town of
Glendo, then parallels WYO 319 and the BNSF rail line northwest into
Converse County to the west of the
Glendo Reservoir
Glendo Reservoir is a reservoir located on the North Platte River in Platte County and Converse County in the U.S. State of Wyoming. The reservoir is formed by Glendo Dam. The earthfill dam is feet long and high and contains two hydroelectri ...
, an impoundment of the North Platte River. I-25 crosses over the North Platte River and a BNSF rail line at
Orin
ORiN (Open Robot/Resource interface for the Network) is a standard network interface for FA (factory automation) systems. The Japan Robot Association proposed ORiN in 2002, and the ORiN Forum develops and maintains the ORiN standard.
Background
...
, where the Interstate has an interchange with and is joined by US 20; this interchange serves as the western terminus of
US 18.
I-25, US 87, US 20, and US 26 head west to Douglas, the county seat of Converse County.
I-25 Bus. and its companion business routes—
US 87 Bus.,
US 20 Bus., and
US 26 Bus.—split northwest from a
trumpet interchange
In the field of road transport, an interchange (American English) or a grade-separated junction (British English) is a road junction that uses grade separations to allow for the movement of traffic between two or more roadways or highways, using ...
into the city while I-25 and the mainline U.S. Routes pass to the south of the city. I-25 crosses over the BNSF rail line and the North Platte River, then curves northwest to meet the business routes at a trumpet interchange on the west side of the city near the business routes' intersection with
WYO 59, which leads north to
Gillette
Gillette is an American brand of safety razors and other personal care products including shaving supplies, owned by the multi-national corporation Procter & Gamble (P&G).
Based in Boston, Massachusetts, United States, it was owned by The Gil ...
. I-25 continues west through interchanges with the western end of
WYO 96 (La Prele Road), Inez Road, the road south to
Ayres Natural Bridge
Ayres Natural Bridge Park is a county park in Converse County, Wyoming in the United States. It occupies 150 acres (0.6 km²) between the towns Glenrock and Douglas about 6 kilometers south of Interstate 25 exit 151. The park's name is deri ...
, Barber Road, and Bixby Road. US 87, US 20, and US 26 diverge from I-25 east of Glenrock.
I-25 Bus. joins the U.S. Routes in heading northwest toward the town, then reconnects with I-25 via
WYO 95 (Deer Creek Road) south of town. I-25 enters
Natrona County
Natrona County is a county in the U.S. state of Wyoming. As of the 2020 United States Census, the population was 79,955, making it the second-most populous county in Wyoming. Its county seat is Casper.
Natrona County comprises the Casper, WY ...
and has interchanges with
WYO 253 (Hat Six Road) and
WYO 258 (Wyoming Boulevard), which serves the town of
Evansville
Evansville is a city in, and the county seat of, Vanderburgh County, Indiana, United States. The population was 118,414 at the 2020 census, making it the state's third-most populous city after Indianapolis and Fort Wayne, the largest city in S ...
to the north.
Casper to Buffalo
![Interstate 25 WY1](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d5/Interstate_25_WY1.jpg)
I-25 briefly parallels US 87, US 20, and US 26 (Yellowstone Highway) and enters the city of Casper at a complex junction—the complexity is explained in the description for
I-25 Bus.—where the Interstate crosses over Yellowstone Highway, the three U.S. Routes join I-25, I-25 Bus. splits from the Interstate to serve downtown Casper, and
US 87 Bus.,
US 20 Bus., and
US 26 Bus. split from the mainline U.S. Routes on Yellowstone Avenue. I-25, US 87, US 20, and US 26 cross over the BNSF rail line and are paralleled by a pair of frontage roads, F Street to the north and E Street to the south. There are several slip ramps between I-25 and the frontage roads serving the three streets that connect the portion of Casper north of the BNSF rail line to downtown Casper. The first street, which is Bryan Stock Trail north of the Interstate and Beverly Street to the south, is part of the complex junction between the mainline Interstate and U.S. Routes and their business routes. The second street is McKinley Street, and the third street is Center Street and carries the northmost portion of I-25 Bus. and US 87 Bus. E Street begins from an exit ramp to Center Street as I-25 and F Street cross the North Platte River. West of the river, the freeway has a diamond interchange with
WYO 220 (Poplar Street), then curves north and has a diamond interchange with US 20 and US 26, which split west toward
Shoshoni
The Shoshone or Shoshoni ( or ) are a Native American tribe with four large cultural/linguistic divisions:
* Eastern Shoshone: Wyoming
* Northern Shoshone: southern Idaho
* Western Shoshone: Nevada, northern Utah
* Goshute: western Utah, easter ...
and
Casper–Natrona County International Airport
Casper–Natrona County International Airport is northwest of Casper, in Natrona County, Wyoming. Before December 19, 2007 the airport was called Natrona County International Airport.
Scheduled passenger service is offered by SkyWest Airli ...
, and the access road to the
Casper Events Center
The Ford Wyoming Center (formerly known as the Casper Events Center) is a multi-purpose arena in Casper, Wyoming, in the United States. The arena was built in April 1982. It seats 8,395 for ice hockey and indoor football games, 8,842 for basketba ...
.
I-25 leaves the city of Casper and has an interchange with
WYO 254 (Wardwell Road) next to unincorporated
Hartrandt and the town of
Bar Nunn. The Interstate has an interchange with Ormsby Road in the
Homa Hills area on the northern edge of the Casper populated area. I-25 has minor interchanges with Ranch Road and an unnamed road marketed as exit 223, then connects with the south end of
WYO 387, which serves
Midwest
The Midwestern United States, also referred to as the Midwest or the American Midwest, is one of four Census Bureau Region, census regions of the United States Census Bureau (also known as "Region 2"). It occupies the northern central part of ...
to the east, before entering
Johnson County. The freeway has interchanges with Tisdale Mountain Road and Powder River Road just north of the highway's crossing of the South Fork of the
Powder River. I-25 meets the southern end of
WYO 196 (TTT Road) and parallels the state highway to
Kaycee, where the highway crosses the Middle Fork of the Powder River and has an interchange with
WYO 191. North of Kaycee, I-25 crosses the North Fork of the Powder River and has minor interchanges with Reno Road, Middle Fork Road, and Trabing Road and a crossings of two branches of
Crazy Woman Creek near the Middle Fork interchange. The final
I-25 Bus. and its companion,
US 87 Bus., split off to the south of the town of Buffalo, the county seat of Johnson County. East of the town, I-25 has an interchange with
US 16, which also carries
I-90 Bus. The Interstate reaches its northern terminus at a directional T interchange with I-90. US 87 continues north along westbound I-90 toward
Sheridan
Sheridan may refer to:
People
Surname
*Sheridan (surname)
*Philip Sheridan (1831–1888), U.S. Army general after whom the Sheridan tank is named
*Richard Brinsley Sheridan (1751–1816), Irish playwright (''The Rivals''), poet and politician
...
and Billings; I-90 also heads east toward Gillette. Buffalo's I-25 Bus. and US 87 Bus. have their northern terminuses at a partial interchange just west of the I-25/I-90 junction.
History
Construction on I-25 began with a section near Cheyenne in 1958. The final section of the freeway, spanning between Casper and Kaycee, was opened on February 2, 1982.
Exit list
Related routes
I-25 in Wyoming currently has no auxiliary Interstates but has six business loops and one business spur. Its business loops are located in
Cheyenne
The Cheyenne ( ) are an Indigenous people of the Great Plains. Their Cheyenne language belongs to the Algonquian language family. Today, the Cheyenne people are split into two federally recognized nations: the Southern Cheyenne, who are enroll ...
,
Chugwater,
Wheatland,
Douglas
Douglas may refer to:
People
* Douglas (given name)
* Douglas (surname)
Animals
*Douglas (parrot), macaw that starred as the parrot ''Rosalinda'' in Pippi Longstocking
*Douglas the camel, a camel in the Confederate Army in the American Civil W ...
,
Glenrock, and
Casper
Casper may refer to:
People
* Casper (given name)
* Casper (surname)
* Casper (Maya ruler) (422–487?), ruler of the Mayan city of Palenque
* Tok Casper, first known king of Maya city-state Quiriguá in Guatemala, ruling beginning in 426
* David ...
. The business spur is located in
Buffalo.
References
External links
{{State detail page browse, type=I, route=25, state=Wyoming, stateafter=, statebefore=Colorado
25
Wyoming
Transportation in Laramie County, Wyoming
Transportation in Platte County, Wyoming
Transportation in Converse County, Wyoming
Transportation in Natrona County, Wyoming
Transportation in Johnson County, Wyoming