U.S. Route 60 in New Mexico

U.S. Route 60 (US 60) is an east–west United States Highway within New Mexico. It begins at the Arizona state line and continues east to the Texas state line.

This article is about the section of U.S. Route 60 in New Mexico. For the entire route, see U.S. Route 60.

U.S. Highway 60
US 60 highlighted in red
Route information
Maintained by NMDOT
Length366.982 mi[1] (590.600 km)
ExistedJune 8, 1931[2]–present
HistoryOriginal route of US 70[2]
Major junctions
West end US 60 at Arizona state line
 
East end US 60 at Texas state line
Location
CountiesCatron, Socorro, Torrance, Guadalupe, De Baca, Roosevelt, Curry
Highway system
  • State Roads in New Mexico
← NM 59→ NM 61

Route description

US 60 enters New Mexico in Catron County east of Springerville, Arizona. The road makes an arc through Catron County, with the apex at Quemado, avoiding Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest and Escondido Mountain. East of Pie Town, the road crosses the Continental Divide.

US 60 eastbound at the junction with NM 603 in Pie Town

Between the divide and Datil, US 60 cuts through Cibola National Forest. In Datil, US 60 serves as the eastern terminus of New Mexico State Road 12 (NM 12).

East of Datil, US 60 traverses the northern end of the Plains of San Augustin, then crosses the county line into Socorro County. The road bisects the Very Large Array complex and a track used in rearranging the antennas that make up the Array crosses the highway. Some 36 miles (58 km) into the county,[3] the highway passes through Magdalena.

US 60 looking west, west of Socorro

It then enters the county seat of Socorro, where it meets Interstate 25 (I-25). US 60 heads north, running concurrently with the Interstate.

US 60 splits from I-25 near Bernardo, about 25 miles (40 km) north of Socorro. It turns back eastward, rising through Abo Pass at the southern end of the Manzano Mountains before crossing into Torrance County and passing through Mountainair, where it intersects NM 55. After passing through Willard, it sets out across the Pedernal Hills. In Encino, it begins a concurrency with US 285. Just after crossing into Guadalupe County, US 54 joins the concurrency. The three highways pass through Vaughn and then go their separate ways; US 285 heads southeast towards the direction of Roswell, US 54 heads northeast towards both Santa Rosa and I-40, and US 60 heads east towards Clovis.

US 54, US 60 and US 285 in Vaughn.

US 60 angles southeast toward Yeso, entering De Baca County en route. Curving back towards the east, the road enters Fort Sumner, the county seat, 21 miles (34 km) later.[3] Just west of town, it serves as the northern terminus of NM 20, and in Fort Sumner proper, it overlaps US 84, which will persist until just before the Texas border. East of town the two highways encounter NM 212, a spur to Fort Sumner State Monument, and NM 252 in Taiban.

US 60/US 84 passes through Tolar near the De Baca–Roosevelt county line. The two routes do not stay in Roosevelt County for long, however, proceeding into Curry County west of Melrose. The highways pass through Melrose, St. Vrain, and Grier before widening out to a four-lane highway as they approach Clovis, the Curry County seat. In Clovis, the home of Cannon Air Force Base, the highways meet up with US 70, which joins the concurrency. The three highways proceed through Texico, and just before the Texas state line, US 60 leaves the concurrency and heads northeast while US 70/US 84 continues eastward.

For the distance of more than 300 miles (480 km) between Abo Pass and Amarillo, the highway parallels the Southern Transcon, one of the busiest transcontinental railroads in the west.

Major intersections
CountyLocationmi[4]kmDestinationsNotes
Catron​0.0000.000 US 60 west – SpringervilleWestern terminus
​ NM 601
Quemado NM 32
NM 36
Pie Town NM 603
Datil NM 12
Socorro​ NM 52
Magdalena NM 169
NM 107
Socorro I-25 Bus.
I-25 south (US 85 south)Western end of I-25/US 85 concurrency
Escondida NM 408
​ I-25 north (US 85 north)Eastern end of I-25/US 85 concurrency
​ NM 116
​ NM 304
​ NM 47
Torrance​ NM 513
Mountainair NM 55
​ NM 41
Willard NM 42
Encino US 285 northWestern end of US 285 concurrency
NM 3
GuadalupeVaughn US 54 westWestern end of US 54 concurrency
US 285 southEastern end of US 285 concurrency
US 54 eastEastern end of US 54 concurrency
De BacaFort Sumner NM 20
US 84 westWestern end of US 84 concurrency
NM 272
​ NM 212
Taiban NM 294
NM 252
TolarOld NM 86
Roosevelt
 No major junctions
CurryMelrose NM 268
NM 267
​ NM 224
Clovis NM 311
NM 467
US 70 / NM 209 northWestern end of US 70 concurrency; southern terminus of NM 209
Texico NM 108 north
NM 348
US 70 / US 84 eastEastern end of US 70/US 84 concurrency
​366.982590.600 US 60 east – HerefordEastern terminus
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

References
KML is from Wikidata
  1. "Posted Route–Legal Description" (PDF). New Mexico Department of Transportation. March 16, 2010. p. 20. Retrieved October 17, 2018.
  2. Weingroff, Richard (June 18, 2003). "U.S. Route 666: "Beast of a Highway"?". Federal Highway Administration. Retrieved August 3, 2019.
  3. Rand McNally (2008). "New Mexico" (Map). The Road Atlas (2008 Large Scale ed.). Chicago: Rand McNally. p. 130.
  4. "TIMS Road Segments by Posted Route/Point with AADT Info; NM, NMX-Routes" (PDF). New Mexico Department of Transportation. April 3, 2013. pp. 5–7. Retrieved October 20, 2018.
U.S. Route 60
Previous state:
Arizona		 New Mexico Next state:
Texas
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