U.S. Route 550
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| U.S. Route 550 | |||||
| Million Dollar Highway | |||||
| Length: | 303 mi (488 km) | ||||
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| Formed: | 1926 | ||||
| North end: | Montrose, Colorado | ||||
| South end: | Bernalillo, New Mexico | ||||
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U.S. Route 550 is a spur of U.S. Highway 50. It currently runs for 304 miles (489 km) from Montrose, Colorado to Bernalillo, New Mexico in the western United States.
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[edit] Route summary
[edit] Colorado
U.S. Highway 550 begins at the corner of Townsend Avenue and Main Street in Montrose, Colorado at the Junction of its parent route U.S. Highway 50. The route travels south through the San Juan Mountains to the New Mexico border. Most of U.S. 550 in Colorado is 2 lane mountainous highway. It is the only north-south U.S. Highway in Colorado which runs west of the Continental Divide.
South of Montrose, Highway 550 passes through the towns of Ridgway, Ouray, Silverton and the city of Durango.
The stretch from Ouray to Durango is referred to as the Million Dollar Highway and is part of the San Juan Skyway Scenic Byway. This section of the route passes over three mountain passes:
- Red Mountain Pass, elevation 11,018 ft. (3358 m)
- Molas Pass, elevation 10,970 ft. (3343 m)
- Coal Bank Pass, elevation 10,640 ft. (3243 m)
Major Junctions:
[edit] New Mexico
From the Colorado border, Highway 550 passed through the towns of Aztec, Bloomfield, Cuba and ends on Interstate 25 at Bernalillo. All of Highway 550 in New Mexico has been upgraded to four lanes, offering a high-speed (70 mph) connection for Farmington, New Mexico and Durango, Colorado to Albuquerque and Santa Fe.
Major Junctions:
- US 64 Bloomfield Around Milepost 151
- I-25 Bernalillo Milepost 0.00
[edit] States Traversed
Highway 550 passes through the following states (north to south):
[edit] History
Highway 550 was part of the original 1926 federal highway system. The original highway extended 110 miles (177 km) from Montrose, Colorado at U.S. Highway 50 to U.S. Highway 450 (now U.S. Highway 160) at Durango, Colorado. In 1934, Highway 550 was extended through Farminington to Shiprock, New Mexico. In 1989, the western end of Highway 550 was replaced with U.S. Highway 64 between Farmington and Shiprock. In 1999, Highway 550 was rerouted at Aztec, New Mexico to replace New Mexico State Highway 44 to Bernalillo, New Mexico, at which time all of Highway 550 in New Mexico was upgraded to four lanes.
[edit] See also
| The Million Dollar Highway (Route 550) |
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| Passes: Coal Bank Pass | Molas Pass | Red Mountain Pass Towns: Durango | Silverton | Ouray |
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