Interstate 25 and U.S. Route 85 | |||||||
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Route information | |||||||
Maintained by NMDOT | |||||||
Length: | 462.124 mi (743.716 km) | ||||||
Existed: | 1957 – present | ||||||
Major junctions | |||||||
South end: | I-10 / US 85 / US 180 in Las Cruces | ||||||
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North end: | I-25 / US 85 / US 87 near Raton | ||||||
Location | |||||||
Counties: | Doña Ana, Sierra, Socorro, Valencia, Bernalillo, Sandoval, Santa Fe, San Miguel, Mora, Colfax | ||||||
Highway system | |||||||
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Interstate 25 (I-25) in the U.S. state of New Mexico follows the north–south corridor through Albuquerque and Santa Fe. It replaced U.S. Route 85 (US 85), which is no longer signed, but still exists in route logs sharing the I-25 alignment. I-25 starts in New Mexico at an interchange with I-10 in Las Cruces and extends roughly 460 miles (740 km) before reaching Colorado. I-25 passes through principally rural land through central New Mexico and passes through or near the cities of Las Cruces, Truth or Consequences, Socorro, Belen, Albuquerque, Santa Fe, Las Vegas, and Raton.
I-25 begins at I-10's exit 144 in Las Cruces (elevation 4,000 feet (1,200 m)), just south of the New Mexico State University campus. I-25 is concurrent with US 85 at this point, and carries US 85 concurrently for the remainder of its run in New Mexico. Immediately, the Interstate passes east of the New Mexico State campus, and the next three exits provide access to the city. The first exit is University Avenue, which provides access to NMSU. The final exit in Las Cruces is U.S. Route 70. Upon exiting the city the speed limit increases by ten miles per hour to 75 mph. Before I-25 reaches Truth or Consequences and just south of Elephant Butte Reservoir State Park it crosses over to the west side of the Rio Grande. From Las Cruces to Santa Fe I-25 follows the route of El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro.