U.S. Route 54 (US 54) in Texas is a

U.S. Highway The United States Numbered Highway System (often called U.S. Routes or U.S. Highways) is an integrated network of roads and highways numbered within a nationwide grid in the contiguous United States. As the designation and numbering of these h ...

that travels through two portions of the state: one in the far western point, and the other in the far northwest Panhandle.

Route description

US 54 begins in El Paso, Texas, as a

controlled access A controlled-access highway is a type of highway that has been designed for high-speed vehicular traffic, with all traffic flow—ingress and egress—regulated. Common English terms are freeway, motorway and expressway. Other similar terms i ...

highway at an intersection with

Loop 375 Loop 375 is a beltway that partially encircles the city of El Paso, Texas. The beltway is mostly a freeway, except for its northern section, which includes at-grade intersections. The highway passes through various areas of El Paso, funneling tr ...

. The route then travels northward, joining up with I-110 within the first mile. A mile later, these highways intersect

Interstate 10 Interstate 10 (I-10) is the southernmost cross-country highway in the American Interstate Highway System. I-10 is the fourth-longest Interstate in the United States at , following I-90, I-80, and I-40. This freeway is part of the originally pl ...

at a complex, three level high expressway interchange which the locals call the "Spaghetti Bowl." I-110 ends here, while US 54 continues north through El Paso. The route turns northeast, becoming a rare example of a collector–express freeway in Texas (until the Pershing Drive exit) before entering New Mexico. The route re-enters Texas in the northwest Panhandle, traveling northeast through sparsely populated country. The route intersects

US Route 87 U.S. Highway 87 (US 87) is a north–south United States highway (though it is signed east–west in New Mexico) that runs for 1,998 miles (3,215 km) from northern Montana to southern Texas, making it the longest north-south roa ...

and

US Route 385 U.S. Route 385 (US 385) is a spur of U.S. Route 85 that runs for 1,206 miles (1,941 km) from Deadwood, South Dakota to Big Bend National Park in Texas. Route description , - , TX , 545 , 877 , - , OK , 36 , 58 , - , CO , 317 , 510 ...

Dalhart Dalhart is a city in Dallam and Hartley counties in the U.S. state of Texas, and the county seat of Dallam County. The population was 7,930 at the 2010 census. History Founded in 1901, Dalhart is named for its location on the border of Dalla ...

and US Route 287 in Stratford, before exiting into the

Oklahoma Panhandle The Oklahoma Panhandle (formerly called No Man's Land, the Public Land Strip, the Neutral Strip, or Cimarron Territory) is a salient in the extreme northwestern region of the U.S. state of Oklahoma, consisting of Cimarron County, Texas Count ...

at Texhoma.

History

The southwestern portion was originally part of the Ozark Trails, paralleling the El Paso and Southwestern Railroad, and was originally given the numbering of State Highway 33. SH 33 continued into Texas farther south in the Panhandle, following the former Ozark Trail. The northern Panhandle portion was originally assigned to State Highway 56, paralleling the Chicago, Rock Island, and Gulf Railroad. When the U.S. Highway System was unveiled in 1926, the northern section was assigned to U.S. Highway 54, while the southwestern portion was assigned to U.S. Highway 366. The US 366 designation was canceled in 1932 when other sections of the highway were added to an adjusted US Route 70. This section was added to US 54 in 1934, and has retained its numbering since. By 1939, the corresponding state highway designations had been canceled. The highway continues on its original routing except for realignment in 1990 in El Paso, with the old route becoming US Business Route 54 and Texas Loop 478. Most of the current US 54 in El Paso is a limited-access highway known as the Patriot Freeway which, as of 2016, was only partially completed.

Future

US 54 from Haggerty Drive in northeast El Paso to the New Mexico state line is planned to eventually be upgraded to freeway status.

Major intersections

El Paso business loop

Business U.S. Highway 54-A or Bus. US 54-A is a business route of US 54 at El Paso commissioned in 1990. The route begins at US 54 and State Highway Loop 478 at the Patriot Freeway. The route runs along Dyer Street through Northeast El Paso near Fort Bliss to its northern terminus at the New Mexico state line. Access to US 54 eastbound continues forward into New Mexico for over a local road not recognized by New Mexico as a state highway that becomes a one-way entrance ramp merging with US 54. Highway signs in New Mexico direct westbound US 54 traffic to turn left on Edge of Texas Street at the state line to access Bus. US 54-A. Bus. US 54-A and Loop 478 are the former route of US 54 prior to construction of the Patriot Freeway. Bus. US 54-A was created when Loop 478, which originally followed the route to New Mexico, was shortened to its current terminus at the beginning of the business loop. Loop 478 was first intended in 1969 to be the replacement for US 54 over the route and was planned to be signed as Business US 54 once the current US 54 was completed. Bus. US 54-A was concurrent with US 54 until 1991. ;Major intersections

References