U.S. Route 77
U.S. Route 77 (US 77) is a major north–south United States Numbered Highway which extends for 1,305 miles (2,100 km) in the central United States. As of 2005, Its southern terminus is in Brownsville, Texas, at Veteran's International Bridge on the Mexican border, where it connects with both Mexican Federal Highway 101 and Mexican Federal Highway 180, and the highway's northern terminus is in Sioux City, Iowa, at an interchange with Interstate 29 (I-29).[1]
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| Route information | |
| Length | 1,305 mi (2,100 km) |
| Existed | 1926–present |
| Major junctions | |
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| North end |  |
| Location | |
| States | Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa |
| Highway system | |
It is unsigned in and around Dallas, Texas. Its historic segment through South Dakota and Minnesota was decommissioned with the advent of I-29 but otherwise the route has been spared the decommissioning that has shortened other US Highways. The route has major freeway sections in Oklahoma City including the Broadway Extension connecting suburban Edmond to downtown Oklahoma City.
Route description
Texas
The section between the Oklahoma–Texas state line and Waco is mostly co-located with I-35 and the I-35E branch through Dallas, and where it is co-located, it is not signed.
The two stretches in Texas that are not co-located are a stretch wholly within the city of Denton and a longer stretch from near Red Oak, to Hillsboro, the reason being that US 77 is a separate road between the two, serving the town of Waxahachie.
As of 2004, US 77 Alternate has a northern terminus in Hallettsville, Texas. It rejoins US 77 at Refugio, Texas. While the main line of US 77 passes through Victoria, Alternate US 77 veers to the west to serve Yoakum and Cuero.
The southern end extends from I-37 near Corpus Christi to Harlingen, where it merges with US 83 and runs through the cities of Harlingen, San Benito and Brownsville to its southern terminus at the United States/Mexico border.
A section of US 77 located in the Giddings, Texas area is known as the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Highway.
Another section of US 77, from I-37 to SH 44 in Nueces County, was redesignated I-69/US 77 in 2011.
As of 2017, US 77 is being co-signed with I-35E as part of the reconstruction co-signed between Denton and I-635.
Oklahoma
In Oklahoma, US 77 runs north–south, paralleling I-35, connecting Texas to Kansas and running for 268 miles (431 km) through the central part of the state. It passes through many major cities, including Ardmore, Oklahoma City and Norman, Guthrie, and Ponca City. It has a freeway section, the Broadway Extension, connecting Oklahoma City to its northern suburb Edmond, in addition to sections that are co-flagged with I-35 and I-235.
Kansas
US 77 runs for 234 miles (377 km) in Kansas. Between the US 40 junction and the Cowley County line is designated as a Blue Star Memorial Highway. In Cowley County, it is the Robert B. Docking Memorial Highway. Near Arkansas City it is the Walnut Valley Greenway.[2]
From Nebraska to US 24 and from K-15 to Arkansas City, it is part of the National Highway System.[2]
Nebraska
In Nebraska, US 77 is a major north–south artery connecting the capital city of Lincoln with outlying areas to the north and south. The highway is designated as the Homestead Expressway from Beatrice to I-80 at Lincoln. In Lincoln, US 77 becomes a full controlled-access expressway before it overlaps with I-80 for about eight miles (13 km). North of I-80, US 77 continues as an expressway to Wahoo, where it becomes a two-lane undivided road. It remains a two-lane highway except for two sections near Fremont, which are four-lane divided highways. The expressway north of Fremont is shared with US 275 and Nebraska Highway 91. US 275 and NE 91 separate from US 77 just south of Winslow, and US 77 continues north as a two-lane highway until it meets US 75 at Winnebago. The two highways run together to the junction of I=129 and US 20 at Dakota City, where US 75 breaks off and US 77 continues northward as a divided highway through South Sioux City before exiting the state via the Siouxland Veterans Memorial Bridge.
Iowa
US 77 barely enters Iowa. After crossing the Missouri River via the Veteran's Bridge at Sioux City, the highway ends at a diamond interchange with I-29. Its total length in Iowa is slightly more than four-tenths mile (640 m).[3]
History
US 77 previously extended north through South Dakota to Ortonville, Minnesota. It followed the current I-29 corridor up to the Toronto, South Dakota area, and then followed current South Dakota Highway 15 north to Milbank, South Dakota. After reaching Milbank, it traveled to the east, concurrently with US 12 to Ortonville, where it ended at an intersection with US 75. Portions of the old highway in the Sioux Falls, South Dakota area exist today as South Dakota Highway 115, and further north, as Moody County Road 77A.
Future
US 77 is currently being upgraded between the Mexican border in Brownsville to Victoria, Texas, as I-69E.
Major intersections
- Texas
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- Oklahoma
- Kansas
- Nebraska
- Iowa
See also
Related U.S. Routes
Bannered and suffixed routes
References
- "End of US highway 77". USEnds.com. Retrieved October 9, 2014.
- Kennedy, Richie. Kansas Highways Routelog. Route56. URL accessed March 6, 2007.
- 2009 Volume of Traffic on the Primary Road System of Iowa (PDF) (Report). Iowa Department of Transportation. January 1, 2009. Retrieved October 2, 2010.
External links
- Endpoints of U.S. Highway 77
- Kansas Highway Maps: Current, Historic, KDOT
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Routes in italics are no longer a part of the system. Highlighted routes are considered main routes of the system. |
