U.S. Route 80 in New Mexico

U.S. Route 80
Route information
Maintained by NMDOT
Length:	191 mi (307 km)
Existed:	November 11, 1926 – October 12, 1991
Major intersections (in 1956)
West end:	US 80 at the Arizona state line
	NM 9 near Rodeo NM 14 in Road Forks NM 338 near Road Forks NM 81 near Separ US 70 / NM 180 from Lordsburg to Las Cruces US 260 / NM 11 in Deming NM 478 in Las Cruces US 85 / NM 28 in Las Cruces
East end:	US 80 / US 85 in Anthony
Location
Counties:	Hidalgo, Grant, Luna, Doña Ana
Highway system
United States Numbered Highway System List Special Divided Replaced State Roads in New Mexico Interstate US State Minor Scenic ← NM 79 NM 80 →

U.S. Route 80 (US 80) was a major transcontinental highway in the U.S. state of New Mexico from November 11, 1926, to October 12, 1991. Nationally, US 80 stretched from San Diego, California to Tybee Island, Georgia, going through southern New Mexico from El Paso, Texas, through the towns of Las Cruces, Deming and Lordsburg before entering Arizona. US 80 was a modest 191 miles (307 km) long (compared to US 80 in Arizona which was almost 500 miles (800 km) long) and was eventually replaced by Interstate 10, US 70 and child route US 180, leading to the complete removal of US 80 in New Mexico.State Road 80 is a remnant of this route.

Beginning in 1909, New Mexico started using a numbering system for its highways. The first of these was Route 1. Known as the El Camino Real, Route 1 ran from the Texas state line in Anthony north to the Colorado state line near Raton. Further to the west, Route 4 ran from the Arizona state line near Rodeo to a junction with Route 1 in Las Cruces. In 1920, the western end of Route 4 was truncated to Lordsburg. The route between Lordsburg and Rodeo was taken over by Route 42. In 1917, the Dixie Overland Highway was established from San Diego, California to Savannah, Georgia, extending through New Mexico. This auto trail entered New Mexico from the east through Texas, going through Roswell back into Texas to El Paso, before heading back into New Mexico through Las Cruces, Deming and Lordsburg before aiming southwest into Arizona towards Douglas. Between 1920 and 1923, the Dixie Overland was joined by the Bankhead and Old Spanish Trail highways west of El Paso. By 1925, the Joint Board on Interstate Highways under the Secretary of Agriculture and American Association of State Highway Officials (AASHO), proposed a numbered transcontinental highway system across the country. This was approved by Congress on November 11, 1926. All of Route 4, part of Route 42, the southernmost section of Route 1, most of the Dixie Overland Highway, Old Spanish Trail and Bankhead Highway within New Mexico became U.S. Route 80. Child route US 180 was established between US 80 in Arizona and US 85 in Caballo. US 80 and US 85 ran concurrent together south of Las Cruces into Texas. The state highway system within New Mexico was renumbered and reworked extensively to accommodate the new U.S. Highway System by 1927 into well marked State Roads.

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Wikipedia