Interstate 10 in New Mexico

Interstate 10 (I-10) in the US state of New Mexico is a 164.264-mile (264.357 km) long route of the United States Interstate Highway System. I-10 traverses southern New Mexico through Hidalgo, Grant, Luna, and Doña Ana counties. The Interstate travels west–east from the Arizona state line to the interchange with I-25 in Las Cruces, and then travels north–south to the Texas state line. US Route 80 in New Mexico (US 80) was replaced by Interstate 10.

Interstate 10
I-10 highlighted in red
Route information
Maintained by NMDOT
Length	164.264 mi[1] (264.357 km)
Existed	1957[2]–present
Major junctions
West end	I-10 at Arizona state line
	US 70 in Lordsburg US 180 in Deming US 70 in Las Cruces I-25 / US 85 in Las Cruces
East end	I-10 / US 85 / US 180 at Texas state line
Location
Counties	Hidalgo, Grant, Luna, Doña Ana
Highway system
Interstate Highway System Main Auxiliary Suffixed Business Future State Roads in New Mexico Interstate U.S. State Scenic ← NM 10 → NM 11

Route description

I-10 enters Hidalgo County, New Mexico from Cochise County, Arizona as a four lane divided highway. The highway travels east through rural southwest New Mexico, passing between Steins Mountain and Attorney Mountain, part of the Peloncillo Mountains, before passing by the ghost town of Steins. Continuing east, the northern terminus of New Mexico State Road 80 (NM 80) is intersected, serving Rodeo, followed by NM 338. Passing Lee Peak the highway turns southeast entering Lordsburg. US 70 is intersected in town, and becomes concurrent with the highway as it continues east past the Lordsburg Municipal Airport, before exiting the town. Near the Grant County line the highway bypasses the ghost town called Shakespeare. Entering Grant County, the highway continues southeast then northeast after intersecting NM 146. The highway passes over the Continental Divide on the Grant-Luna county line. Continuing east, the highway intersects the city of Deming and the highway becomes concurrent with US 180 as the three highways continue east. The highway enters Doña Ana County as it approaches Las Cruces. US 70 exits the highway as it enters the city (becoming Picacho Avenue), and the Interstate begins to turn south. Just south of the New Mexico State University campus, I-10 has a junction with the southern terminus of I-25. At the I-25 junction, I-10/U.S. Route 180 also becomes concurrent with US 85. At this point, the highway is now headed almost due south before crossing into Anthony, Texas (in El Paso County, Texas) from Anthony, New Mexico (in Doña Ana County).[3]

• Note: the speed limit has increased from 70 to 75 mph (115 to 120 km/h) on I-10 from Mesquite to Anthony at the Texas state line, and I-10 south of Las Cruces is now three lanes in each direction.

Interstate 10, west of Las Cruces, New Mexico.

History

State Road 14
Location	Arizona–New Mexico state line to Road Forks
Length	5.0 mi[4] (8.0 km)
Existed	1927–1960

I-10 replaced US 80 through New Mexico, bypassing major portions of old US 80 in the western portion of the state and in Doña Ana County. US 80 was one of the original United States Numbered Highways established in 1926.[5] The portion of US 80 between the Arizona state line and Anthony was decommissioned on October 6, 1989, while the remainder of the route through the state was removed October 12, 1991.[6]

From 1927 to 1960, the section of Interstate 10 between Road Forks and the Arizona state line was designated New Mexico State Road 14 (NM 14). Though it was only 5-mile (8.0 km) long, NM 14 and its Arizona counterpart, SR 86, served as a direct bypass for US 80 between Road Forks and Benson, Arizona. US 80 itself looped south to Douglas, Arizona at the Mexico-US border between Road Forks and Benson. By the late 1940s, NM 14 had been paved and carried the majority of US 80 traffic by 1950. With the advent of I-10, NM 14 was removed from the state road system in 1960.[4]

The Interstate was first numbered I-10 by the American Association of State Highway Officials, in cooperation with the Department of Commerce, in 1957.[7]

Exit list

County	Location	mi[8]	km	Exit	Destinations	Notes
Hidalgo	​	0.000	0.000		I-10 west – Tucson	Continuation into Arizona
	​	3.630	5.842	3	Steins
	​	5.833	9.387	5	NM 80 south – Road Forks	Former US 80 west
	​	11.200	18.025	11	NM 338 south – Animas
	​	15.680	25.235	15	Gary
	Lordsburg	20.820	33.507	20A	New Mexico Information Center (Free maps, literature & Internet service), Rest Area	Westbound access via exit 20
				20B	I-10 Bus. east (W. Motel Drive)	Signed as exit 20 westbound; former US 80 east
		22.610	36.387	22	NM 494 (Main Street)
		24.565– 24.610	39.534– 39.606	24	I-10 Bus. / US 70 west (E. Motel Drive)	Western end of US 70 overlap; former US 80 west
	​	29.556	47.566	29	No name exit	Ulmorris Road is the connecting road, but it is not listed on road signs
	​	34.273	55.157	34	NM 113 south – Playas
Grant	​	42.570	68.510	42	Separ
	​	49.900	80.306	49	NM 146 south – Hachita, Antelope Wells
Luna	​	56.210	90.461	55	Quincy
	​	63.320	101.904	62	Gage
	​	68.570	110.353	68	NM 418 east	Former US 70 / US 80
	Deming	81.220	130.711	81	I-10 Bus. east (W. Pine Street)
		82.120	132.159	82A	US 180 west to NM 26 east / I-25 – Silver City, Hatch	Western end of US 180 overlap
		82.580	132.900	82B	Cedar Street Railroad Boulevard	Eastbound signage Westbound signage
		85.240	137.180	85	I-10 Bus. west (E. Pine Street)
	​	102.950	165.682	102	Akela
Doña Ana	​	116.125	186.885	116	NM 549 west	Former US 70 / US 80
	​	127.230	204.757	127	Corralitos Road
	Las Cruces	132.031	212.483	132	Las Cruces International Airport
		134.637	216.677	135	US 70 east (W. Picacho Avenue)	Eastern end of US 70 overlap
		138.968	223.647	139	NM 292 south (Motel Boulevard)
		140.215	225.654	140	NM 28 (Avenida de Mesilla)
		141.552– 141.827	227.806– 228.248	142	NM 478 (Main Street) / NM 101 west (University Avenue) / Valley Drive (NM 188)	Valley Dr. not signed eastbound; NM 478 (Main St.) not signed eastbound; NM 478 if former US 80/US 85
		144.349– 144.650	232.307– 232.792	144	I-25 north (US 85) – Las Cruces, Albuquerque	Western end of US 85 overlap; southern terminus of I-25
	​	151.200	243.333	151	NM 228 – Mesquite
	​	154.950	249.368	155	NM 227 west – Vado, Berino
	​	160.400	258.139	162	NM 404 – Anthony, Chaparral
	​	164.264	264.357		I-10 / US 180 east / US 85 south – El Paso	Continuation into Anthony, Texas
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi       Concurrency terminus

See also

• Business routes of Interstate 10
•  U.S. Roads portal

References

1. "Interstate Highways" (PDF). New Mexico Department of Transportation. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 23, 2011. Retrieved December 3, 2010.
2. Official Route Numbering for the National System of Interstate and Defense Highways (Map). American Association of State Highway Officials. August 14, 1957. Retrieved June 16, 2011.
3. Google (December 3, 2010). "Interstate 10" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved December 3, 2010.
4. Riner, Steve (January 19, 2008). "New Mexico Highways". pp. State Routes 1–25. Retrieved April 13, 2015.
5. Bureau of Public Roads & American Association of State Highway Officials (November 11, 1926). United States System of Highways Adopted for Uniform Marking by the American Association of State Highway Officials (Map). 1:7,000,000. Washington, DC: U.S. Geological Survey. OCLC 32889555. Retrieved November 7, 2013 – via University of North Texas Libraries.
6. Weingroff, Richard F. (April 6, 2010). "U.S. Route 80 The Dixie Overland Highway". Highway History. Federal Highway Administration. Retrieved December 4, 2010.
7. Official Route Numbering for the National System of Interstate and Defense Highways (Map). American Association of State Highway Officials. August 14, 1957. Retrieved December 4, 2010.
8. "TIMS Road Segments by Posted Route/Point with AADT Info" (PDF). Santa Fe: New Mexico Department of Transportation. June 8, 2016. pp. 1–6. Retrieved October 9, 2017.

External links

• Media related to Interstate 10 in New Mexico at Wikimedia Commons