U.S. Route 85 (US 85) is a north–south United States Highway that travels in the Mountain and Northern Plains states of the United States. The southern terminus of the highway is at the Mexican border in

El Paso, Texas El Paso (; "the pass") is a city in and the county seat, seat of El Paso County, Texas, El Paso County in the western corner of the U.S. state of Texas. The 2020 population of the city from the United States Census Bureau, U.S. Census Bureau w ...

, connecting with

Mexican Federal Highway 45 Federal Highway 45 (''La Carretera Federal 45'') (Fed. 45) is the free (libre) part of the federal highways corridors (los corredores carreteros federales), and connects Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua through the Chihuahuan Desert to Panales, H ...

. The northern terminus is at the Canadian border in

Fortuna, North Dakota Fortuna is a city in Divide County, North Dakota, United States. The population was 30 at the 2020 census. Fortuna was founded in 1913 along a Soo Line Railroad branch line running between Flaxton, North Dakota and Whitetail, Montana. The name ...

, where the route continues north as

Saskatchewan Highway 35 Highway 35 is a paved undivided provincial highway in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It runs from the US Border near Port of Oungre (where it meets United States Route 85) to a dead end near the north shore of Tobin Lake. Saskatchewan H ...

. The highway route is part of the

CanAm Highway CanAm Highway is an international highway that connects Mexico to Canada through the United States. It travels along U.S. Route 85 (US 85) and Interstate 25 (I-25), passing through six U.S. states (Texas, New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming, Sou ...

. Sections of US 85 are designated as the Theodore Roosevelt Expressway.

Route description

, - , TX , 21 , 34 , - , NM , 483 , 777 , - , CO , 310 , 499 , - , WY , 256 , 412 , - , SD , 154 , 248 , - , ND , 255 , 410 , - , Total , 1479 , 2380 The highway passes through

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Tiguex , OfficialLang = None , Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ker ...

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 ...

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 ...

South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux language, Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state in the West North Central states, North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Lakota people, Lakota and Dakota peo ...

, and

North Dakota North Dakota () is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the Native Americans in the United States, indigenous Dakota people, Dakota Sioux. North Dakota is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north a ...

. From Las Cruces, New Mexico to Fountain, Colorado, US-85 shares its alignment with I-25 and is not signed.

Texas

US 85 in Texas begins at the Mexico–US border with US 62 and travels north through

El Paso El Paso (; "the pass") is a city in and the seat of El Paso County in the western corner of the U.S. state of Texas. The 2020 population of the city from the U.S. Census Bureau was 678,815, making it the 23rd-largest city in the U.S., the s ...

, beginning at the Santa Fe Street Bridge, and following Santa Fe Street, then Paisano Drive westward, along the

Rio Grande The Rio Grande ( and ), known in Mexico as the Río Bravo del Norte or simply the Río Bravo, is one of the principal rivers (along with the Colorado River) in the southwestern United States and in northern Mexico. The length of the Rio G ...

until Paisano Drive ends where it joins with

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 ...

, about 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 the

Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway , often referred to as the Santa Fe or AT&SF, was one of the larger railroads in the United States. The railroad was chartered in February 1859 to serve the cities of Atchison, Kansas, Atchison and Top ...

through the Mesilla Valley communities of Canutillo, Vinton and Anthony before crossing the Texas/New Mexico state line in

Anthony, New Mexico Anthony is a city in Doña Ana County, New Mexico, United States. The population was 9,360 at the 2010 census. It is located on the New Mexico–Texas state line in the Upper Mesilla Valley (immediately north of Anthony, Texas), and on Interstat ...

, then following the road which is now New Mexico State Road 478 (NM 478) up the Mesilla Valley to Las Cruces. This route is marked as Texas State Highway 20 north of the intersection with Mesa Street/Country Club Drive.

New Mexico

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 through

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

(signed as Business Loop 25), US 85 in New Mexico is entirely concurrent with Interstate Routes. For the first it shares its route with I-10, then continues north for the remainder of its length in New Mexico concurrent with I-25. US-85 was de-signed in segments between 1970 and 1990 as I-25 was built through the state. I-25 between

Bernalillo Bernalillo () is a town in Sandoval County, New Mexico, United States. As of the 2010 census, the town population was 8,320. It is the county seat of Sandoval County. Bernalillo is part of the Albuquerque Metropolitan Statistical Area. Histor ...

and a point just south of Santa Fe was built over the old US 85 alignment. I-25 was also built directly over US 85 from east of Santa Fe to

and from US 64 to the Colorado border at Raton Pass. At one point, the route went along the historic El Camino Real. The original route from Anthony to Las Cruces is now signed as NM 478. The original route from Las Cruces to Hatch is now signed as NM 185; NM 187 south of Truth or Consequences (T or C); NM 181 north of T or C; NM 1 (the route's pre-US-85 designation) from Redrock to Socorro; NM 314 from Belen to

Albuquerque Albuquerque ( ; ), ; kee, Arawageeki; tow, Vakêêke; zun, Alo:ke:k'ya; apj, Gołgéeki'yé. abbreviated ABQ, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico. Its nicknames, The Duke City and Burque, both reference its founding in ...

; NM 313 from Albuquerque to Bernalillo; NM 14 and NM 466 through Santa Fe; and NM 445 from Maxwell to US 64 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.

Colorado

US 85 enters

from New Mexico concurrent with I-25 but is not signed. US 85 leaves I-25 at Exit 128 and follows Santa Fe Avenue through Fountain before turning west briefly onto Lake Avenue, then turning north following Nevada Avenue through Colorado Springs before rejoining I-25 at Exit 148. Approaching the south side of

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 ...

, 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 near

Chatfield Reservoir Chatfield Dam and Reservoir is a dam and artificial lake located on the South Platte River, south of Littleton, Colorado. The dam and reservoir were built by the United States Army Corps of Engineers as a response to the disastrous flood of 1965. ...

and the southern Denver suburbs of Littleton and Englewood, 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 with

US 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 ...

as well as I-25 and heads north through downtown Denver. At exit 214, US 85 turns east and becomes a concurrency with I-70 and

US 6 U.S. Route 6 (US 6), also called the Grand Army of the Republic Highway, honoring the American Civil War veterans association, is a main route of the U.S. Highway system. While it currently runs east-northeast from Bishop, California, to ...

for about a mile where it exits with U.S. 6 and heads northeast through

Commerce City The City of Commerce City is a home rule municipality located in Adams County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 62,418 at the 2020 United States Census, a 35.95% increase since the 2010 United States Census. Commerce City is the ...

. In just a few miles the US 6/US 85 concurrency merges with

I-76 Interstate 76 may refer to: Interstate Highways in the United States * Interstate 76 (Colorado–Nebraska) * Interstate 76 (Ohio–New Jersey), running through Pennsylvania Video gaming * ''Interstate '76 ''Interstate '76'' is a vehicular c ...

at mile marker 9. They travel concurrently for until exit 12 when US 85 becomes an expressway and continues north out of the Denver area through

Brighton Brighton () is a seaside resort and one of the two main areas of the City of Brighton and Hove in the county of East Sussex, England. It is located south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze A ...

. From there it parallels I-25 for about passing through Fort Lupton, Platteville, LaSalle,

Evans Evans may refer to: People *Evans (surname) *List of people with surname Evans Places United States *Evans Island, an island of Alaska *Evans, Colorado *Evans, Georgia *Evans County, Georgia *Evans, New York *Evans Mills, New York *Evans City, ...

, Greeley,

Eaton Eaton may refer to: Buildings Canada * Eaton Centre, the name of various shopping malls in Canada due to having been anchored by an Eaton's store * Eaton's / John Maryon Tower, a cancelled skyscraper in Toronto * Eaton Hall (King City), a confere ...

, Ault,

Pierce Pierce may refer to: Places Canada * Pierce Range, a mountain range on Vancouver Island, British Columbia United States * Pierce, Colorado * Pierce, Idaho * Pierce, Illinois * Pierce, Kentucky * Pierce, Nebraska * Pierce, Texas * Pierce, We ...

, and Nunn before crossing into

Wyoming

US 85 enters Wyoming from Colorado south of

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 ...

. In Cheyenne it joins with Business Route 87, and a mile later with

I-180 I-180 may refer to: * Interstate 180 (disambiguation), one of several roads * Polikarpov I-180 The Polikarpov I-180 (russian: И-180) was a 1938 Soviet fighter prototype. It was the last attempt to extract performance from the basic Polikarpov I- ...

until it meets with

US 30 U.S. Route 30 or U.S. Highway 30 (US 30) is an east–west main route in the system of the United States Numbered Highways, with the highway traveling across the northern tier of the country. With a length of , it is the third longest ...

. The segment with I-180 is the only fully at-grade interstate route in the U.S. At exit 12, it joins with I-25 and

in a concurrency for until US 85 leaves at exit 17 and travels northeast towards Meriden. From there it heads north to Torrington, where it meets with

US 26 U.S. Route 26 (US 26) is an east–west United States highway that runs from Seaside, Oregon to Ogallala, Nebraska. When the U.S. highway system was first defined, it was limited to Nebraska and Wyoming; by the 1950s, it continued into Idaho and ...

and concurrencies for until Lingle, and later it meets

US 20 U.S. Route 20 or U.S. Highway 20 (US 20) is an east–west United States Numbered Highway that stretches from the Pacific Northwest east to New England. The "0" in its route number indicates that US 20 is a major coast-to-coast route. S ...

and US 18 at Lusk. It shares the next with US 18 and later meets

US 16 U.S. Route 16 (US 16) is an east–west United States Highway between Rapid City, South Dakota and Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming. The highway's eastern terminus is at a junction with Interstate 90/U.S. Route 14 (I-90/US 14), concu ...

near Newcastle. From here it is until it enters

in the

Black Hills The Black Hills ( lkt, Ȟe Sápa; chy, Moʼȯhta-voʼhonáaeva; hid, awaxaawi shiibisha) is an isolated mountain range rising from the Great Plains of North America in western South Dakota and extending into Wyoming, United States. Black Elk P ...

South Dakota

The

section of US 85, with the exception of two concurrencies with US 14 Alternate and a concurrency with

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 ...

, is defined at South Dakota Codified Laws § 31-4-181. US 85 enters the

from Wyoming and travels northeast until it meets with US 14 Alternate east at Cheyenne Crossing. The two routes form a concurrency from there, along the way coming to the road which leads to

Terry Peak per yr --> , snowmaking = , nightskiing = , external_linkterrypeak.com } Terry Peak is a mountain and ski area in the west central United States, in the Black Hills of South Dakota outside of Lead. With an elevation of above sea level, it is ...

. Upon entering to

Lead Lead is a chemical element with the symbol Pb (from the Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a heavy metal that is denser than most common materials. Lead is soft and malleable, and also has a relatively low melting point. When freshly cu ...

, the two routes are separated, and the overlap with US 85 is replaced by a

truck route A truck or lorry is a motor vehicle designed to transport cargo, carry specialized payloads, or perform other utilitarian work. Trucks vary greatly in size, power, and configuration, but the vast majority feature body-on-frame constructi ...

. As the route US 85 and US 14 are separated until both meet again in

Deadwood Deadwood may refer to: Places Canada * Deadwood, Alberta * Deadwood, British Columbia * Deadwood River, a tributary of the Dease River in northern British Columbia United States * Deadwood, California (disambiguation), several communiti ...

, but not before US 85 serves as the northern terminus of

U.S. 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 ...

. The routes run together through Deadwood before splitting, and US 85 then runs north to meet

. US 85 overlaps I-90 for while heading west. At exit 10 on the north side of

Spearfish Spearfish may refer to: Places *Spearfish, South Dakota, United States * North Spearfish, South Dakota, United States * Spearfish Formation, a geologic formation in the United States Biology * ''Tetrapturus'', a genus of marlin containing spe ...

, US 85 heads back north. At

Belle Fourche Belle Fourche (; ) is a city in and the county seat of Butte County, South Dakota, United States. Its population was 5,617 at the 2020 census. It is near the geographic center of the United States, which moved some 550 miles northwest from the g ...

it crosses state highway 34 and

US 212 U.S. Route 212 (US 212) is a spur of US 12. It runs for from Yellowstone National Park to Minnesota Highway 62 at Edina, Minnesota. It does not intersect US 12 now, but it once had an eastern terminus at US 12 in St. Paul, Minnesot ...

. From there it continues to

passing only through the small towns of Redig, Buffalo (where it meets state highway 20), and Ludlow, as well as coming to the Geographic Center of the United States.

North Dakota

US 85 enters

in the southwest part of the state. The first city on its route is Bowman at the junction of US 12. Continuing north, it passes between North Dakota's two highest points,

White Butte White Butte is the highest natural point in the U.S. state of North Dakota. At an elevation of 3,506 ft (1,069 m), it is a prominent butte in Slope County, in the Badlands of the southwestern part of the state. It is located east of U.S. ...

and Black Butte. Near Amidon US 85 heads east for before going back north along the Little Missouri National Grassland for about . Near Belfield it junctions with I-94. After forming a concurrency with North Dakota Highway 200, it eventually passes through part of the scenic

Badlands Badlands are a type of dry terrain where softer sedimentary rocks and clay-rich soils have been extensively eroded."Badlands" in ''Chambers's Encyclopædia''. London: George Newnes, 1961, Vol. 2, p. 47. They are characterized by steep slopes, m ...

, crosses the Little Missouri River and passes near the Theodore Roosevelt National Park (North Unit). Then, at

Watford City Watford City (Hidatsa: abaʔaruʔush), founded in 1914, is a city in and the county seat of McKenzie County, North Dakota, United States. The population was 6,207 at the 2020 census, making it the thirteenth largest city in North Dakota. Becaus ...

it travels west for where it turns back north before Alexander. U.S. 85 continues north as North Dakota 200 turns west toward Montana. South of Williston it crosses the Missouri 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 with US 2 where the two overlap for as an

expressway Expressway may refer to: * Controlled-access highway, the highest-grade type of highway with access ramps, lane markings, etc., for high-speed traffic. * Limited-access road, a lower grade of highway or arterial road. *Expressway, the fictional s ...

, which now bypasses Williston to the northwest. After US 2 heads east, US 85 continues north to a concurrency with

North Dakota Highway 5 North Dakota Highway 5 (ND 5) is a east–west state highway in North Dakota. Its route is in the extreme north part of the state, near the Canada–United States border. The eastern terminus is located about four miles (6 km) east of Jo ...

. From there it is to Fortuna where US 85 heads back north for its remaining to the Canada–US border.

History

What is now US 85 from

to then- US 66 (now NM 6) in Los Lunas, New Mexico (south of

) was shown as U.S. Route 466 in an early 1925 plan for the

U.S. Highway System 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 hi ...

. This north–south route was never signed in the field; instead, the route was designated as U.S. Route 570 and then as part of US 85. The number "466" was later used along another routing.

Major intersections

;Texas : Benito Juárez Street and at the Mexico–US border in

. US 62/US 85 travels concurrently through the city. : in El Paso. The highways travel concurrently to the Las Cruces–

University Park, New Mexico University Park is a census-designated place (CDP) in Doña Ana County, New Mexico, United States. The population was 4,192 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Las Cruces Metropolitan Statistical Area. The CDP is almost all of the area bounde ...

line. ;New Mexico : on the Las Cruces–University Park line. I-25/US 85 shares a hidden concurrency to Fountain, Colorado. : in Las Cruces : west of

San Antonio ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= U.S. state, State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , s ...

: in Socorro. The highways travel concurrently to south-southwest of Abeytas. : in

: in

: south of Santa Fe. US 84/US 85 travels concurrently to Romeroville. US 85/US 285 travels concurrently to Eldorado at Santa Fe. : south of Raton. The highways travel concurrently to Raton. : in Raton. US 85/US 87 travels concurrently to Fountain, Colorado. ;Colorado : in

Trinidad Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands of Trinidad and Tobago. The island lies off the northeastern coast of Venezuela and sits on the continental shelf of South America. It is often referred to as the southernmos ...

. The highways travel concurrently to

Walsenburg The City of Walsenburg is the Statutory City that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Huerfano County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 3,049 at the 2020 census, down from 3,068 in 2010. History Walsenbur ...

. : in Pueblo. The highways travel concurrently through Pueblo. : in Colorado Springs : in Colorado Springs. The highways travel concurrently to Castle Rock. : in Denver. The highways travel concurrently through Denver. : in Denver. The highways travel concurrently to near

. : in Denver : in Denver. I-70/US 85 travels concurrently through Denver. : in Commerce City : in Henderson : in

. The highways travel concurrently to Greeley. ;Wyoming : on the Fox Farm-College–

line. I-180/US 85 travels concurrently into Cheyenne proper. : in Cheyenne : in Cheyenne. The highways travel concurrently to Ranchettes. : in Torrington. The highways travel concurrently to Lingle. : in Lusk. US 18/US 85 travels concurrently to the northeastern part of

Niobrara County Niobrara County is a county in the U.S. state of Wyoming. As of the 2020 United States Census, the population was 2,467, making it the least populous county in Wyoming. Its county seat is Lusk. Its eastern boundary abuts the west lines of the ...

. US 20/US 85 travels concurrently through Lusk. : in Newcastle ;South Dakota : in

: in

. The highways travel concurrently to North Spearfish. : in

;North Dakota : in Bowman. The highways travel concurrently through Bowman. : in Belfield : west of Williston. : on Williston city line. Southern end of US 2 concurrency. Northern terminus of US 85B. : About North of Williston. Northern end of US 2 concurrency. : at the Canada–US border north-northwest of Fortuna

References

External links

Endpoints of U.S. Highway 85
{{DEFAULTSORT:85 United States Numbered Highway System U.S. Highways in South Dakota U.S. Highways in Wyoming U.S. Highways in New Mexico Theodore Roosevelt Expressway