Texas State Highway Spur 601 or Spur 601 is a
freeway
A controlled-access highway is a type of highway that has been designed for high-speed vehicular traffic, with all traffic flow—ingress and egress—regulated. Common English terms are freeway, motorway and expressway. Other similar terms ...
spur route in
El Paso County in the
U.S. State
In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...
of
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...
. It runs from
U.S. Route 54
U.S. Route 54 (US 54) is an east–west United States Highway that runs northeast–southwest for from El Paso, Texas, to Griggsville, Illinois. The Union Pacific Railroad's Tucumcari Line (former Southern Pacific Railroad, Southern Pacific and ...
(US 54) in
El Paso
El Paso (; "the pass") is a city in and the seat of El Paso County in the western corner of the U.S. state of Texas. The 2020 population of the city from the U.S. Census Bureau was 678,815, making it the 23rd-largest city in the U.S., the s ...
eastward to
Loop 375 in the
Fort Bliss Military Reservation. The construction of this freeway improved access to
Biggs Army Airfield
Biggs Army Airfield (formerly Biggs Air Force Base) is a United States Army military airbase located on the Fort Bliss military base in El Paso, Texas.
History Biggs Field/Biggs Army Airfield (1916–47)
On 15 June 1919, following an attack ...
and
Fort Bliss
Fort Bliss is a United States Army post in New Mexico and Texas, with its headquarters in El Paso, Texas. Named in honor of LTC William Bliss (1815–1853), a mathematics professor who was the son-in-law of President Zachary Taylor, Ft. Bliss h ...
. The route is officially known as the Liberty Expressway.
Route description
Spur 601 begins at an intersection with
U.S. Route 54
U.S. Route 54 (US 54) is an east–west United States Highway that runs northeast–southwest for from El Paso, Texas, to Griggsville, Illinois. The Union Pacific Railroad's Tucumcari Line (former Southern Pacific Railroad, Southern Pacific and ...
about 4 miles north of
Interstate 10. The route travels eastward along the former location of Fred Wilson Avenue, just north of
Fort Bliss National Cemetery
Fort Bliss National Cemetery is a United States National Cemetery in West Texas, located at Fort Bliss, a U.S. Army post adjacent to the city of El Paso. Administered by the Department of Veterans Affairs, it encompasses , and as of 2014, had o ...
. The route then jogs southeast then northeast, squeezing between the runways of
Biggs Army Airfield
Biggs Army Airfield (formerly Biggs Air Force Base) is a United States Army military airbase located on the Fort Bliss military base in El Paso, Texas.
History Biggs Field/Biggs Army Airfield (1916–47)
On 15 June 1919, following an attack ...
and
El Paso International Airport. The route then turns back to the east and reaches its eastern terminus at
Texas State Highway Loop 375
Loop 375 is a beltway that partially encircles the city of El Paso, Texas. The beltway is mostly a freeway, except for its northern section, which includes at-grade intersections. The highway passes through various areas of El Paso, funneling tr ...
.
History
Spur 601 was officially designated on August 24, 2006 on its current route.
In February 2007, the
Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) entered into a "pass-through finance" agreement to obtain funds for the construction of the route; groundbreaking was held in the same year.
On May 29, 2009, the first segment of Spur 601 opened to traffic between Global Reach Drive and Loop 375.
In 2010, then Fort Bliss commander Major General Howard Bromberg asked that the route be named the ''Liberty Expressway''; the request was approved on March 16 by the city of El Paso.
Construction of Spur 601 was completed in January 2011, and a ceremony commemorating the freeway's completion was held by TxDOT on April 27, 2011.
The construction of the route cost $368 million.
Junction list
See also
*
*
References
External links
{{osmrelation, 1704295, Texas State Highway Spur 601
601
Transportation in El Paso County, Texas