Interstate 40 in New Mexico

Interstate 40
Route information
Maintained by NMDOT
Length:	373.510 mi[1] (601.106 km)
Existed:	1957[2] – present
Major junctions
West end:	I-40 at the Arizona state line
	US 491 in Gallup I-25 / US 85 in Albuquerque US 285 near Clines Corners US 54 / US 84 in Santa Rosa US 54 in Tucumcari
East end:	I-40 at the Texas state line
Location
Counties:	McKinley, Cibola, Bernalillo, Santa Fe, Torrance, Guadalupe, Quay
Highway system
Interstate Highway System Main Auxiliary Suffixed Business State Roads in New Mexico Interstate US State Minor Scenic ← NM 39 NM 41 →

Interstate 40 in eastern New Mexico

Interstate 40 (I-40), a major east–west route of the Interstate Highway System, runs east–west through Albuquerque in the U.S. state of New Mexico. It is the direct replacement for the historic U.S. Route 66 in New Mexico.

Route description

Arizona to Albuquerque

As I-40 enters New Mexico in a northeasterly direction it begins following the basin of the intermittent Puerco River, roughly tracing the southern edge of the contiguous part of the Navajo Reservation in the state. The freeway enters Gallup twenty miles (32 km) later paralleling the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway's southern transcontinental mainline. Leaving Gallup the now more easterly I-40 passes to the north of Fort Wingate and part of the fragmented Cibola National Forest before crossing the North American continental divide at an elevation of 7,275 ft (2,217 m), with 11,305 ft (3,446 m) stratavolcano Mt. Taylor towering to the east.

The highway traverses more of the Navajo Reservation and the Cibola Forest before turning southeast and crossing a malpaís. After serving interchanges near Grants, the freeway, coinciding with the northern boundary of El Malpais National Monument, crosses another malpaís, turns east and enters the Acoma Indian Reservation, home of the Acoma Pueblo. The route leaves the Acoma Indian Reservation with Mt. Taylor to the north and enters the Laguna Pueblo. Near the interchange with NM-6 the railway line that accompanies much of the route from the Arizona border diverts to the south while the freeway turns east by northeast towards Albuquerque. The route departs the Laguna Pueblo, briefly transits the Tohajiilee Indian Reservation (a chapter of the Navajo Nation), crosses the Rio Puerco and begins a steep climb to the top of a mesa marked by several small cinder cones overlooking the Rio Grande rift and Albuquerque.

From Laguna to the Route 66 Casino, Interstate 40 has at-grade intersections ^[3] with a number of ranch access roads in violation of interstate highway standards. These intersections are a vestige that remain from the conversion of US-66 to I-40 during the latter part of the 20th century.

Albuquerque Metro Area

Interstate 40 diverges from the former US-66 alignment (Central Avenue) at an interchange with Atrisco Vista Boulevard on the West Mesa that overlooks Albuquerque. I-40 descends Nine Mile Hill as it enters the city of Albuquerque, and intersects 98th Street, Unser Boulevard (NM-345) and Coors Boulevard (NM-45) before crossing the Rio Grande. The freeway then skirts the northern edge of downtown Albuquerque before intersecting Interstate 25 at a 5-level stack interchange (Big I). East of I-25, I-40 continues east, then turns southeast passing through Uptown before intersecting Old US-66 (now signed as NM-333/Central Avenue) at Tramway Boulevard (NM-556) as it leaves Albuquerque and enters Tijeras Canyon. This section of I-40 is also referred to as the Coronado Freeway.

Albuquerque to Texas

East of Albuquerque, Interstate 40 crosses the Sandia-Manzano Mountains by traversing Tijeras Pass, reaching its highest point of 7,200 feet at Sedillo Ridge. Continuing east, I-40 descends out of the mountains and into the Estancia Valley while passing through the town of Edgewood (m.m. 187). The highway continues east across the Estancia Valley, passing through Moriarty (m.m. 194). Before reaching Clines Corners, I-40 ascends into the Pedrenal Hills, a region of hills and low-level ridgelines averaging around 7,000 feet in elevation. East of Clines Corners,( m.m. 217) I-40 gradually descends from the Pedrenal Hills region and into the High Plains of eastern New Mexico. At Santa Rosa (m.m. 273) I-40 crosses the Pecos River, and then continues east-northwastward co-signed with US-54 to Tucumcari. At Tucumcari, I-40 diverges from US-54 and turns eastward and skirts the northern edge of San Jon before reaching the Texas state line at Glenrio.

History

Planning and construction of Interstate 40 through New Mexico began shortly after the Federal Highway Act of 1956 created the Interstate Highway System. First sections of I-40 through the state were completed by 1960 including a short section west of Tucumcari in Quay County, from a point just west of Santa Rosa west past Clines Corners to just east of Moriarty, along with a section on the east side of Albuquerque and another section from near Cubero to Grants, which included a new spur route connecting the Interstate Highway with U.S. 66 on that city's east side. Construction of I-40, generally paralleling the existing U.S. 66 in some sections and replacing the older route in others, was hobbled for a few years during this decade by the New Mexico Legislature's passage of an Anti-Bypassing Law that prohibited the construction of an interstate bypass around a city or town opposed to it. That law was repealed in 1966 following a threat of loss of federal funds and most New Mexico cities along I-40, I-25 and I-10 then worked out agreements with state and federal highway officials in determining where the bypass routes around their municipalities should be located.

By the end of the 1960s, most rural sections of I-40 were completed across the state with the largest exception being a 40-mile (64 km) stretch east of Tucumcari to the Texas border at Glenrio, where traffic was diverted to the old U.S. 66. That section of highway by this time became locally and nationally known as "Slaughter Lane" due to tremendous amounts of traffic for a two-lane highway along with rough and narrow paving which led to numerous injury and fatal traffic accidents that reached epidemic numbers in 1968 and 1969. Construction on this section of I-40 was held up by a dispute at San Jon concerning a proposed routing of I-40 bypassing that city to the north by some five miles (8 km), which was resolved in November 1969 when federal and state officials agreed to bring the bypass closer to the city along its northern limits. However, aside from a few small villages such as Montoya, Newkirk and Cuervo in the eastern portion of the state and Laguna, Budville and Cubero to the west, no major bypasses had been entirely completed in New Mexico so traffic was still diverted over the U.S. 66 routes through each of those cities.

In 1970, I-40 was entirely completed through the city of Albuquerque. Other bypasses were completed around various cities through the state including San Jon and Tucumcari (1981), Santa Rosa (1972), Moriarty (1973), Grants (1974) and Gallup (1980).

Exit list

County	Location	mi[4]	km	Exit	Destinations	Notes
McKinley	​	0.00	0.00		I-40 west – Flagstaff	Continuation into Arizona
	​	8.5	13.7	8	NM 118 – Defiance, Manuelito
	Gallup	16.13	25.96	16	I-40 Bus. east / NM 118 – Gallup
				20	US 491 north / NM 602 south (Munoz Boulevard) – Shiprock, Zuni
				22	Miyamura Drive, Montoya Boulevard
		26.24	42.23	26	I-40 Bus. west / NM 118 – Gallup
	McGaffey	33.41	53.77	33	NM 400 south – McGaffey
	Iyanbito	36.89	59.37	36	NM 118 west – Iyanbito
	​	39.69	63.87	39	Refinery
	Coolidge	44.62	71.81	44	Coolidge
	​	47.73	76.81	47	Continental Divide
	Thoreau	53.56	86.20	53	NM 371 / NM 612 – Thoreau
	Prewitt	63.17	101.66	63	NM 412 – Prewitt
Cibola	Bluewater Village	72.08	116.00	72	Bluewater Village
	Milan	79.126	127.341	79	I-40 Bus. east / NM 122 / NM 605 – Milan, San Mateo
	Grants	81.64	131.39	81	NM 53 south / I-40 Bus. / NM 122 – San Rafael, Grants	Signed as exits 81A (south) and 81B (north) eastbound
				85	I-40 Bus. west / NM 122 / NM 547 – Grants, Mount Taylor
	Quemado	89.78	144.49	89	NM 117 – Quemado
	​	96.3	155.0	96	McCartys, Acoma, Sky City
	San Fidel	100.313	161.438	100	San Fidel
	​	102.235	164.531	102	Acomita, Acoma, Sky City
	​	104.73	168.55	104	Cubero, Budville, Seama
	​	107.8	173.5	108	Casa Blanca, Paraje
	Laguna	114.66	184.53	114	NM 124 west – Laguna
	​	117.55	189.18	117	Mesita
	​	126.57	203.69	126	NM 6 east – Los Lunas
	Cañoncito	131.027	210.868	131	To'hajiilee
Bernalillo	​	140.03	225.36	140	Rio Puerco
	​	149.11	239.97	149	NM 500 / Atrisco Vista Boulevard
	Albuquerque	152.262	245.042	153	98th Street, Arroyo Vista Blvd
				154	NM 345 (Unser Boulevard)
				155	NM 448 (Coors Boulevard)
				157A	Rio Grande Boulevard
				157B	12th Street	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance; westbound access via exit 158
				158	8th Street, 6th Street	No westbound entrance
				159A	4th Street, 2nd Street, University Boulevard	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
		159.397	256.525	159B-C	I-25 (Pan American Freeway) / US 85 – Las Cruces, Santa Fe	Signed as exits 159B (south) and 159C (north); I-25 exits 226A-B
				159D	University Boulevard, 2nd Street, 4th Street	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance; serves University of New Mexico Hospital
				160	Carlisle Boulevard
				161	San Mateo Boulevard
				162	Louisiana Boulevard
				164	Wyoming Boulevard
				165	Eubank Boulevard
				166	Juan Tabo Boulevard
		167.937	270.268	167	NM 556 (Tramway Boulevard) / Historic US 66 (Central Avenue)
	​			170	NM 333 – Carnuel
	​	173.91	279.88	175	NM 14 / NM 337 – Tijeras, Cedar Crest
	Zuzax	177.84	286.21	178	NM 333 – Zuzax
	Sedillo	181.05	291.37	181	To NM 217 – Sedillo
Santa Fe	Edgewood	187.32	301.46	187	NM 344 – Edgewood
Torrance	Moriarty	194.82	313.53	194	I-40 Bus. east / Historic US 66 – Moriarty
		196.115	315.616	196	NM 41 (Howard Cavasos Boulevard)
		198.03	318.70	197	I-40 Bus. west / Historic US 66 – Moriarty	No westbound entrance
	​	203.69	327.81	203	Longhorn Ranch	Exit does not sign this destination
	Wagon Wheel	208.645	335.782	208	Wagon Wheel
	Clines Corners	217.855	350.604	218A	Clines Corners	Westbound exit only
				218B	US 285 – Vaughn, Santa Fe, Roswell	Signed as exit 218 eastbound
	​	226.175	363.993	226	Palma	Exit does not sign this destination
	​	230.535	371.010	230	NM 3 – Encino, Villanueva
	​	234.07	376.70	234	Flying C	Exit does not sign this destination
	​	239.53	385.49	239	McKenzie	Exit does not sign this destination
Guadalupe	​	243.7	392.2	243	Milagro	Exit does not sign this destination; signed as exits 243B and 243A westbound
	​	252.09	405.70	Eastbound Rest Stop
	​			Vaughn Route 66 Rest Stop; exit 252
	​			256	US 84 north (NM 219 south) – Las Vegas	Western end of US 84 overlap
	San Ignacio	263.42	423.93	263	San Ignacio
	Colonias	267.75	430.90	267	Colonias
	Santa Rosa	272.94	439.25	273	I-40 Bus. east (US 84) – Santa Rosa, Vaughn	Eastern end of US 84 overlap
				275	Santa Rosa (I-40 Bus. / US 54 / US 84)
		277.163	446.051	277	I-40 Bus. west / US 54 west / US 84 – Santa Rosa, Fort Sumner	Western end of US 54 overlap
	​	284.104	457.221	284	Frontier Museum
	Cuervo	291.21	468.66	291	Cuervo
	Newkirk	300.02	482.84	300	NM 129 – Newkirk
Quay	Montoya	311.495	501.303	311	Montoya
	Palomas	321.85	517.97	321	Palomas
	Tucumcari	328.95	529.39	329	I-40 Bus. / Historic US 66 east / US 54 east	Eastern end of US 54 overlap
				331	Camino del Coronado
		332.397	534.941	332	NM 209 / NM 104 (1st Street)
		333.94	537.42	333	US 54 east (Mountain Road) – Dalhart, Texas
		335.8	540.4	335	I-40 Bus. / Historic US 66 west
	​	338.98	545.54	339	NM 278	Airport
	​	344.34	554.16	343	Quay Road AD	Exit does not sign this road
	San Jon	355.975	572.886	356	NM 469 / Historic US 66 – San Jon
	Bard			361	Bard
	Endee			369	NM 93 south / NM 392 north – Endee
	​	373.53	601.14		I-40 east	Continuation into Texas
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi       Concurrency terminus       Incomplete access

References

External links

Route map: Bing / Google

• Media related to Interstate 40 in New Mexico at Wikimedia Commons

Interstate 40
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