U.S. Route 287 in Colorado

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This article is about the section of U.S. Route 287 in Colorado. For the entire route, see U.S. Route 287.

U.S. Highway 287

US 287 highlighted in red
Route information
Auxiliary route of US 87
Maintained by CDOT
Length385.22 mi[1] (619.95 km)
Major junctions
South end US 287 / US 385 / SH-3 at the Oklahoma state line
Major intersections
North end US 287 at the Wyoming state line
Location
CountryUnited States
StateColorado
CountiesBaca, Prowers, Kiowa, Cheyenne, Lincoln, Elbert, Arapahoe, Denver, Adams, Broomfield, Boulder, Larimer
Highway system
  • Colorado State Highway System
← US 285→ SH 291

U.S. Highway 287 (US 287) is the portion of a north-south highway in Colorado that travels from the Oklahoma state line just south of Campo to the Wyoming state line north of Fort Collins.

Route description

View south along U.S. Highway 287 in Larimer County, Colorado

Heading from the Oklahoma border, US 287 and US 385, upon entering the state, pass through Campo, and make an interchange with US 160 south of Springfield. In Lamar and Carlton, the highways split at an interchange with US 50, where US 287 continues north, this time concurrent with US 50. Just outside the town the highways make a sharp turn toward the west, and the road heading north is SH 196. South of Wiley, US 50 heads west, while US 287 turns north toward Wiley. East of Eads, Colorado US 287 turns toward the west again, briefly merging with SH 96. In Eads SH 96 continues west, while US 287 moves north. Just east of Kit Carson, US 287 again turns toward the west and merges with US 40. East of Limon, the two highways make two interchanges with I-70 before entering Limon. After a brief concurrency with US 24, the two highways merge with I-70. Near the outskirts of Aurora US 36 merges with the group of highways as well.

View south along U.S. Highway 287 entering Kiowa County

Just past E-470, I-70 and US 36 split to follow a more northerly course, while US 287 and US 40 continue west into Downtown Denver on Colfax Avenue. The I-25, US 6, US 87, and US 85 interchange marks US 287's second junction with its parent route, US 87. Shortly thereafter, at a cloverleaf interchange with Federal Boulevard, SH 88 runs south, US 40 continues west, and US 287 turns north on Federal Boulevard. After crossing I-76 and then US 36 for a second time, US 287 turns west onto 120th Avenue where it overlaps SH 128. Just before meeting US 36 again in Broomfield, US 287 bends back to the north, leaving SH 128 to continue west. At Baseline Road in Lafayette, SH 7 joins US 287 for about a mile, before it splits to the west on Arapahoe Avenue towards Boulder. US 287 intersects SH 119 as it enters Longmont on the very busy Main Street, then intersects SH 66 at the north edge of town. The road bypasses Berthoud en route to Loveland, where US 287 splits into the pair of one-way streets. US 287 passes through Fort Collins on College Avenue, merging with SH 14 at Jefferson Street. On the edge of the mountains, SH 14 splits and heads west into Poudre Canyon, while US 287 continues north into Wyoming. The section of US 287 between Fort Collins, Colorado and Laramie, Wyoming carries very heavy truck traffic and was once considered dangerous.[2]

US 287 northbound concurrent with I-70 BL and US 40 on Colfax Avenue in Denver

History

The original US 287 only traveled from Denver past the Wyoming state line in 1935. In 1940, US 287 was expanded past the Oklahoma state line (to Port Arthur, Texas), replacing US 285.

After a head-on crash on the highway in 2001, there were people lobbying for a widening of US 287 at the Wyoming state line. Their request was answered in April 2009.[2] Throughout 2012, the highway was expanded to three lanes north of Fort Collins, was resurfaced, and contained shoulders to prevent such accidents.[1]

Junction list

CountyLocationmi[3]kmDestinationsNotes
Baca​0.0000.000


 US 287 south / US 385 south / SH-3 east – Boise City, Dumas		Continuation into Oklahoma
​28.77746.312 US 160 – Trinidad, Johnson City
​40.77265.616
 SH 116 east – Two Buttes
ProwersLamar77.639124.948

 US 50 east / US 385 north / Santa Fe Trail Scenic Byway (Olive Street) – Granada		Northern end of US 385 overlap; southern end of US 50 overlap
​85.188–
85.451		137.097–
137.520
 US 50 west – La Junta		Interchange; northern end of US 50 overlap; left exit northbound, left entrance southbound
​87.371140.610
 SH 196 west
Kiowa​110.590177.977
 SH 96 east – Tribune, Sand Creek Massacre National Historic Site		Southern end of SH 96 overlap
Eads113.420182.532
 SH 96 west – Ordway		Northern end of SH 96 overlap
Cheyenne​133.240214.429
 US 40 east – Cheyenne Wells		Southern end of US 40 overlap
Kit Carson134.149215.892
 SH 59 north – Seibert
​153.819247.548 SH 94 – Colorado Springs
Lincoln​193.281311.056
 I-70 BL begins / US 24 east / I-70		Southern end of I-70 Bus./US 24 overlap; I-70 exit 363
Limon194.552313.101 I-70 – Weigh StationI-70 exit 361
194.950313.742
 SH 71 north (1st Street) – Brush		Eastern end of SH 71 overlap
196.007315.443
 SH 71 south (Indiana Avenue) – Ordway		Western end of SH 71 overlap
197.031317.091
 US 24 west – Colorado Springs		Northern end of US 24 overlap
197.579317.973

 I-70 BL ends / I-70 east – Weigh Station		Northern end of I-70 Bus. overlap; southern end of I-70 overlap; I-70 exit 359
See I-70
Arapahoe–Adams
county line		Aurora266.715429.236
 I-70 BL begins / I-70 (US 36) – Denver		Northern end of I-70 overlap; southern end of I-70 Bus. overlap; no southbound access to I-70 west; I-70 exit 288; serves Denver International Airport
Arapahoe272.516438.572 I-225I-225 exit 10
City and County of Denver278.232447.771 SH 2 (Colorado Boulevard)
282.065453.940 I-25 (US 6 / US 85 / US 87) / Auraria Parkway – Ft. Collins, Colorado SpringsI-25 exit 210A
282.700454.962
 SH 88 south (Federal Boulevard south)		Interchange


 I-70 BL west / US 40 west (Colfax Avenue west)		Interchange; northern end of I-70 Bus./US 40 overlap
285.752459.873 I-70 – Grand JunctionI-70 exit 272
AdamsBerkley286.913461.742 I-76 – Fort MorganI-76 exit 3
Westminster289.367465.691 US 36 (Denver-Boulder Turnpike) – Boulder, DenverInterchange
​294.711474.291
 SH 128 east (120th Avenue east)		Southern end of SH 128 overlap
City and County of Broomfield298.100479.745

 SH 121 south / SH 128 west		Interchange; northern end of SH 128 overlap
Broomfield–Boulder
county line		Broomfield–Lafayette line300.886484.229 Northwest ParkwayNorthwest Pkwy. exit 52
BoulderLafayette301.825485.740
 SH 42 west (Empire Road) – Louisville
304.273489.680
 SH 7 east (Baseline Road) – Brighton		Southern end of SH 7 overlap
305.361491.431
 SH 7 west (Arapahoe Road) – Boulder		Northern end of SH 7 overlap
​310.390499.524 SH 52 – Niwot, Dacono, Fort Lupton
Longmont314.902506.786
 SH 119 (Ken Pratt Boulevard) to I-25 – Boulder
318.326512.296 SH 66 – Estes Park, Platteville, Ute Creek Golf Course
LarimerBerthoud325.529523.888
 SH 56 east – Museum, Berthoud Business District
Campion329.160529.732BerthoudInterchange; southbound exit and northbound entrance, exit ramp includes direct entrance back onto US 287 north
330.023531.121
 SH 60 east (SE 42nd Street)
Loveland332.028534.347
 SH 402 east (14th Street SE)
334.053537.606 US 34 (Eisenhower Boulevard) – Estes Park, GreeleyServes McKee Medical Center
Fort Collins339.128545.774

 SH 392 east (Carpenter Road) to I-25
346.874558.240

 SH 14 east (Jefferson Street) to I-25 – Ault, Denver		Southern end of SH 14 overlap
348.635561.074
 SH 1 north (Terry Lake Road)
​355.856572.695
 SH 14 west (Cache La Poudre-North Park Scenic Byway) – Walden, Poudre Canyon		Northern end of SH 14 overlap
​385.223619.956
 US 287 north – Laramie		Continuation into Wyoming
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

See also


References

  1. ^ a b "Colorado US 287". Retrieved February 12, 2016.
  2. ^ a b "Wyo begins widening 287". Casper Star-Tribune. Associated Press. April 19, 2009. Retrieved August 22, 2016.
  3. ^ "Highway Data Explorer". OTIS: Online Transportation Information System. Colorado Department of Transportation. Archived from the original on September 10, 2012. Retrieved September 6, 2017.

External links

Media related to U.S. Route 287 in Colorado at Wikimedia Commons


U.S. Route 287
Previous state:
Oklahoma 		Colorado Next state:
Wyoming
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