U.S. Route 281 (US 281) is a north–south

United States Numbered Highway The United States Numbered Highway System (often called U.S. Routes or U.S. Highways) is an integrated network of roads and highways numbered within a nationwide grid in the contiguous United States. As the designation and numbering of these h ...

. At it is the longest continuous three-digit U.S. Route. The highway's northern terminus is at the International Peace Garden, north of Dunseith, North Dakota, at the

Canadian border The borders of Canada include: * To the south and west: An international boundary with the United States, forming the Canada–United States border, longest shared border in the world, ; (Informally referred as the 49th parallel north which make ...

, where it continues as Highway 10. The route between Dunseith and the border is shared with North Dakota Highway 3. US 281 has two southern termini. The western terminus, known as International Blvd. in Hidalgo, begins from the McAllen-Hidalgo International Bridge. The southern eastern terminus of US 281 is in

Brownsville, Texas Brownsville ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat of Cameron County, Texas, Cameron County, located on the western Gulf Coast in South Texas, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border, border with Matamoros, Tamaulipas ...

, just short of the

Mexican border Mexico shares international borders with three nations: *To the north the United States–Mexico border, which extends for a length of through the states of Baja California, Sonora, Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo León and Tamaulipas. *To the sou ...

ending on Bus. 77. The two spurs come together at South Cage Blvd in Las Milpas, Texas going north into

Pharr, Texas Pharr is a city in Hidalgo County, Texas, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 79,715, and in 2022, the estimated population was 80,187. Pharr is connected by bridge to the Mexican city of Reynosa, Tamaulipas. Pharr is ...

. Thus, US 281 is the only continuous three-digit US route to extend from the Canadian border to the Mexican border. The original ''Military Telegraph Road'' was incorporated into the US-281 route. US 281 is a "child" of US 81. As a result of decommissioning portions of the parent route that have been superseded by concurrent Interstate Highways, the length of US 281 is greater than that of its parent, and US 281 no longer connects to its "parent", US 81.

Route description

Texas

US 281, beginning at the west, or the lower Rio Grande Valley, at an intersection with Business US 77 and SH 48 about from the Mexico border. It travels along close to the border through the Rio Grande Valley. At the east, or Upper Rio Grande Valley, turning north from Hidalgo, travelling through Las Milpas, Pharr, Edinburg, and many small towns while also having a Border Patrol checkpoint in Brooks County south of Falfurrias, Texas. It is alternating as a divided highway and main street, until joining I-37. It splits with I-37 and travels through Pleasanton as Business 281, travelling north to

San Antonio San Antonio ( ; Spanish for " Saint Anthony") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in Greater San Antonio. San Antonio is the third-largest metropolitan area in Texas and the 24th-largest metropolitan area in the ...

. In San Antonio, US 281 overlaps I-410 on the south side of the city until the interchange with I-37. US 281 and I-37 then overlap north into downtown San Antonio until I-37 ends at

I-35 Interstate 35 (I-35) is a major Interstate Highway in the central United States. As with most primary Interstates that end in a five, it is a major cross-country, north–south route. It stretches from Laredo, Texas, near the Mexico–Uni ...

. US 281 continues north from downtown San Antonio as a freeway, intersecting I-410 again on the north side of the city, with access to the San Antonio International Airport. A project to construct a stack interchange at I-410 (the "San Antonio Web") was completed June 9, 2008; formerly there was no direct access between the two freeways and surface streets were required travel between the freeways. North of San Antonio, US 281 is not a freeway and forms the Main Street of

Blanco Blanco (''white'' or ''blank'' in Spanish) or Los Blancos may refer to: People *Blanco (surname) Fictional characters *Blanco, a hobbit in J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth *Blanco Webb, character in the BBC sitcom ''Porridge'' *Graboid#El Blanco, ...

. It overlaps US 290 south of Johnson City. US 290 continues toward Austin, so US 281 and US 290 between San Antonio and Austin are available as a scenic and less congested alternate to I-35. North of San Antonio, US 281 continues through central and north-central Texas, passing through many towns, including Stephenville, Mineral Wells and Jacksboro before reaching

Wichita Falls Wichita Falls ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Wichita County, Texas, United States. It is the principal city of the Wichita Falls metropolitan statistical area, which encompasses all of Archer, Clay, and Wichita Counties. According to ...

, where the highway begins a concurrency with

I-44 Interstate 44 (I-44) is an Interstate Highway in the central United States. Although it is nominally an east–west road as it is even-numbered, it follows a more southwest–northeast alignment. Its western terminus is in Wichita Falls, T ...

north across the Red River into

Oklahoma Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...

Oklahoma

US 281 enters the state of Oklahoma at the Red River bridge north of Burkburnett, Texas on a route concurrent with

starting in

. About north of the Red River, US 281 leaves I-44 at Randlett and follows a two-lane roadway parallel to the newer I-44, which becomes the Wichita Falls–Lawton section of the H.E. Bailey Turnpike, from Randlett to a point south of Lawton. Through the Lawton/Fort Sill metropolitan area, US 281 again overlaps a toll-free section of I-44, while the former US 281 alignment through the city of Lawton is designated as Business US 281 between I-44 exits 34 and 39B. About north of downtown Lawton, US 281 departs from I-44 to continue north through the cities of Apache, Anadarko, Gracemont, Binger and Hinton. About north of its junction with I-40 near Hinton, US 281 crosses a 1930s-vintage 38-span steel pony truss bridge over the South Canadian River that served traffic of the former east–west US 66 before that highway was superseded by I-40 in the 1960s. A section of US 281's paving from north of I-40 to a point south of Geary is the original concrete surface of US 66. Through central and northern Oklahoma, US 281 then proceeds through the cities of Geary, Watonga, Seiling, Waynoka and Alva. The highway crosses the Kansas state line about north of Alva at Hardtner, Kansas.

Kansas

Passing largely through sparsely populated areas of central Kansas, US 281 enters the state at Hardtner in Barber County and passes through Medicine Lodge,

Pratt Pratt is an English surname. Notable people with the surname include: A–F * Abner Pratt (1801–1863), American diplomat, jurist, politician, and lawyer * Al Pratt (baseball) (1847–1937), American baseball player * Andy Pratt (baseball) (bor ...

, St. John and Great Bend, the only city along the route in Kansas which has more than 7,000 people. Along its venture through southern Kansas, US 281 intersects several major east–west routes: first US 54 and US 400, which heads east to Wichita and west to

Dodge City Dodge City is a city in and the county seat of Ford County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 27,788. It was named after nearby Fort Dodge, which was named in honor of Grenville Dodge. The city ...

, Garden City and Liberal; US 50, which veers east to Hutchinson and west to Garden City; and US 56, heading to Dodge City westbound and Overland Park eastbound. Following a four-mile (6 km) concurrency with K-4 near Hoisington, the highway intersects

I-70 Interstate 70 (I-70) is a major east–west Interstate Highway in the United States that runs from I-15 near Cove Fort, Utah, to I-695 and Maryland Route 570 (MD 570) in Woodlawn, just outside Baltimore, Maryland. I-70 appr ...

at Russell before joining K-18 near

Paradise In religion and folklore, paradise is a place of everlasting happiness, delight, and bliss. Paradisiacal notions are often laden with pastoral imagery, and may be cosmogonical, eschatological, or both, often contrasted with the miseries of human ...

for an concurrency. The two highways split at Luray, and US 281 turns north into Osborne County, passing through the town of Osborne before joining US 24 and K-9 for another concurrency. US 281 joins US 36 at Smith Center, turning east before the two highways split; US 281 turns north for its final stretch in the state, passing through

Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...

. All sections of US 281 in Kansas are two-lane. The last stretches of the highway overlaid with bricks, through downtown Pratt and Hoisington, were recently resurfaced with concrete.

Nebraska

US 281 enters Nebraska south of

Red Cloud Red Cloud (; – December 10, 1909) was a leader of the Oglala Lakota from 1865 to 1909. He was one of the most capable Native American opponents whom the United States Army faced in the western territories. He led the Lakota to victory over ...

and meets US 136 there. It continues north to

Hastings Hastings ( ) is a seaside town and Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in East Sussex on the south coast of England, east of Lewes and south east of London. The town gives its name to the Battle of Hastings, which took place to th ...

and meets US 6 and US 34. Between Hastings and Grand Island, US 281 overlaps US 34 and is designated as the

Tom Osborne Thomas William Osborne (born February 23, 1937) is an American former football player, coach, college athletics administrator, and politician from Nebraska. He served as head football coach of the Nebraska Cornhuskers from 1973 to 1997 (25 sea ...

Expressway after the former Nebraska Cornhuskers football coach and U.S. Representative, who is a native of Hastings. At Grand Island, US 281 intersects

I-80 Interstate 80 (I-80) is an east–west transcontinental freeway that crosses the United States from San Francisco, California, to Teaneck, New Jersey, in the New York metropolitan area. The highway was designated in 1956 as one of the ori ...

, loses US 34 and intersects US 30. US 281 continues north of Grand Island to St. Libory as American Legion Memorial Highway. From there northward, US 281 is a two-lane undivided highway passing mostly through unpopulated areas, with the exception of the regional trade center O'Neill, where it junctions US 20 and US 275. US 281 exits the state north of Spencer.

South Dakota

US 281 enters South Dakota in Gregory County. Just north of the South Dakota-Nebraska border, it is cosigned with US 18. It crosses the

Missouri River The Missouri River is a river in the Central United States, Central and Mountain states, Mountain West regions of the United States. The nation's longest, it rises in the eastern Centennial Mountains of the Bitterroot Range of the Rocky Moun ...

at Fort Randall Dam. Just south of

Armour Armour (Commonwealth English) or armor (American English; see American and British English spelling differences#-our, -or, spelling differences) is a covering used to protect an object, individual, or vehicle from physical injury or damage, e ...

, US 18 leaves the US 281 alignment. North of Armour, US 281 makes a short jaunt west on South Dakota Highway 44, then continues north. US 281 and

I-90 Interstate 90 (I-90) is an east–west transcontinental freeway and the longest Interstate Highway in the United States at . It begins in Seattle, Washington, and travels through the Pacific Northwest, Mountain states, Mountain West, Great Pla ...

intersect at Plankinton. On both sides of Wolsey, US 14 is cosigned with US 281 for a stretch of - from 3 miles south of Wolsey to 4 miles north of town. US 281 becomes an expressway at South Dakota Highway 20. This expressway continues through

Aberdeen Aberdeen ( ; ; ) is a port city in North East Scotland, and is the List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, third most populous Cities of Scotland, Scottish city. Historically, Aberdeen was within the historic county of Aberdeensh ...

to a point near Westport. South Dakota Highway 10 is cosigned with US 281 for near

Barnard Barnard is a surname of Old English origin, derived from the Anglo-Saxons, Anglo-Saxon given name "Beornheard". It is composed of two elements: "Beorn," meaning "young warrior" or "bear," and "heard," meaning "hardy," "brave," or "strong." In some ...

. It exits the state north of

Frederick Frederick may refer to: People * Frederick (given name), the name Given name Nobility = Anhalt-Harzgerode = * Frederick, Prince of Anhalt-Harzgerode (1613–1670) = Austria = * Frederick I, Duke of Austria (Babenberg), Duke of Austria fro ...

. US 281 was recently realigned in the city of Aberdeen. A bypass was built that travels on the west side of Aberdeen, and the US 281 designation was moved onto that new roadway. It runs north from US 12 and connects with the old alignment south of 24th Avenue Northeast. The South Dakota section of US 281, with the exception of concurrencies with US 18 and US 14, is defined at South Dakota Codified Laws § 31-4-229.

North Dakota

In North Dakota, US 281 is a major north–south artery. It enters south of Ellendale and intersects I-94 and US 52 at Jamestown. US 281 and US 52 remain paired together to Carrington. From there, US 281 continues northward through Sheyenne. north of Sheyenne, the highway curves in order to go around Devil's Lake, and it then continues to west of Minnewaukan, North Dakota. From there it goes to North Dakota Highway 5 at Rocklake. US 281 follows ND 5 westward to Dunseith, where the highway turns north in concurrence with North Dakota Highway 3 to its end at the Canadian border in the International Peace Garden. The northernmost section of US 281 passes through North Dakota's Turtle Mountains. Recently, US 281 was rebuilt near Minnewaukan, North Dakota to accommodate flooding close to the city.

Future

US 281 will be upgraded between US 59 in George West in Texas to I-2 in Pharr to become I-69C, a spur of I-69. An segment exists running from Business US 281 in Edinburg to I-2 in Pharr. US 281 between Grand Island and St. Paul in Nebraska is planned to be a four-lane expressway for its entire length. Currently, some sections are still two lanes, with stubs and grading in place for expansion to four lanes in these areas.

Major intersections

;Texas : in Brownsville : in Pharr. I-69C/US 281 travels concurrently to Edinburg. They will travel concurrently to George West : in George West : north of Three Rivers. The highways travel concurrently to southeast of Pleasanton. : in

. The highways travel concurrently through San Antonio. : in San Antonio. I-37/US 281 travels concurrently through San Antonio. : in San Antonio : in San Antonio : in San Antonio : south-southeast of Johnson City. The highways travel concurrently to Johnson City. : in

Lampasas Lampasas ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Lampasas County, Texas, United States. Its population was 7,291 at the 2020 census. Lampasas is part of the Killeen–Temple–Fort Hood metropolitan statistical area. History For his ...

. The highways travel concurrently through Lampasas. : in Evant : in Stephenville : in Stephenville : south-southeast of Brazos : in Mineral Wells : south-southeast of Jacksboro. The highways travel concurrently to Jacksboro. : in

. The highways travel concurrently through Wichita Falls. : in Wichita Falls. US 277/US 281 travels concurrently to east of Medicine Park, Oklahoma. : in Wichita Falls. The highways travel concurrently to west-southwest of

Randlett, Oklahoma Randlett is a town in Cotton County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 289 as of the 2020 United States census. Randlett is located about 22 driving miles south-southwest of the county seat of Walters, and is at the corner where U ...

. ;Oklahoma : west-southwest of Randlett. US 70/US 281 travels concurrently to Randlett. : in Walters : northwest of

Geronimo Gerónimo (, ; June 16, 1829 – February 17, 1909) was a military leader and medicine man from the Bedonkohe band of the Ndendahe Apache people. From 1850 to 1886, Geronimo joined with members of three other Central Apache bands the Tchihen ...

. The highways travel concurrently to east of Medicine Park. : in Lawton. The highways travel concurrently to Anadarko. : in Hinton : in Geary. The highways travel concurrently to Seiling. : in Seiling. The highways travel concurrently to

Chester Chester is a cathedral city in Cheshire, England, on the River Dee, Wales, River Dee, close to the England–Wales border. With a built-up area population of 92,760 in 2021, it is the most populous settlement in the borough of Cheshire West an ...

. : south of Waynoka : in Alva. The highways travel concurrently through Alva. ;Kansas : west-southwest of Medicine Lodge. The highways travel concurrently to Medicine Lodge. : in

: south of St. John : in Great Bend : south of Russell : in Osborne. The highways travel concurrently to south of Portis. : in Smith Center. The highways travel concurrently to south of

. ;Nebraska : in

: in

. US 6/US 281 travels concurrently through Hastings. US 34/US 281 travels concurrently to Grand Island. : south of Grand Island : in Grand Island. The highways travel concurrently from the junction of US 34/US 281 to the north end of Grand Island. : in O'Neill. US 20/US 281 travels concurrently through O'Neill. ;South Dakota : east-southeast of Fairfax. The highways travel concurrently to south of

. : southeast of Plankinton : south-southeast of Wolsey. The highways travel concurrently to north-northwest of Wolsey. : in Redfield. The highways travel concurrently through Redfield. : in

;North Dakota : in Jamestown. I-94/US 281 travels concurrently through Jamestown. US 52/US 281 travels concurrently to Carrington. : west-northwest of Churchs Ferry. The highways travel concurrently to west of Churchs Ferry. : at the

Canada–United States border The international border between Canada and the United States is the longest in the world by total length. The boundary (including boundaries in the Great Lakes, Atlantic, and Pacific coasts) is long. The land border has two sections: Canada' ...

north-northeast of Dunseith

Bypass

U.S. Route 281 Alternate was a long

alternate Alternative or alternate may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * Alternative (''Kamen Rider''), a character in the Japanese TV series ''Kamen Rider Ryuki'' * Alternative comics, or independent comics are an alternative to mainstream superh ...

of U.S. Route 281 running within the northeastern and eastern portions of

Great Bend, Kansas Great Bend is a city in and the county seat of Barton County, Kansas, United States. It is named for its location at the point where the course of the Arkansas River bends east then southeast. As of the 2020 census, the population of the c ...

. US-281 Alternate was formed in 1955 and was decommissioned about 1983. Since then it has been known as US 281 Bypass, which is mostly unsigned, two-lane surface

highway A highway is any public or private road or other public way on land. It includes not just major roads, but also other public roads and rights of way. In the United States, it is also used as an equivalent term to controlled-access highway, or ...

bypasses downtown Great Bend. The only visible indication of this being a bypass is via street signs along intersecting streets; thus it is not a true

bypass route A bypass is a road or highway that avoids or "bypasses" a built-up area, town, or village, to let through traffic flow without interference from local traffic, to reduce congestion in the built-up area, to improve road safety and as replacement ...

, but a local street that is named as a bypass.

Route description

281 Bypass begins its journey near the intersection of 10th ( US-56/

K-96 K96 or K-96 may refer to: *K-96 (Kansas highway) K-96 is a state highway in central and southern Kansas. Its western terminus is at the Colorado state line east of Towner, Colorado, where it continues as Colorado State Highway 96; its easte ...

/ K-156) and Pine Streets. 10th Street, which is normally east–west, travels slightly southwest-northeast for one block with its intersection with the bypass. The bypass travels mostly to the northwest until near Park and Frey Streets. Then, it steers towards the north-northwest. After intersecting with 22nd Street, 281 Bypass starts to curve to the west until it intersects with 24th Street. It remains unsigned on 24th Street until its northwestern terminus with its parent route on Main Street (US-281). The northwestern terminus of U.S. Highway 281 Bypass is directly adjacent to Brit Spaugh Park in Great Bend.

References

External links

Endpoints of U.S. Highway 281
{{US 81 81-2 81-2 81-2 81-2 281

Route description

Texas

Oklahoma

Kansas

Nebraska

South Dakota

North Dakota

Future

Major intersections

Bypass

Route description

See also

Related routes

References

External links