This week, local and state officials joined members of Congress to celebrate an expansion of Interstate 27. The highway currently connects Amarillo and Lubbock and has now been extended four miles south of Lubbock, running concurrently with U.S. 87.
The expansion is part of the "Ports to Plains Corridor" which ultimately intends to build Interstate 27 north through the Oklahoma Panhandle, eastern Colorado, western Nebraska, South Dakota and North Dakota, ending at the Candian border. In Texas, Interstate 27 could ultimately extend to Big Spring, along Interstate 20, and south through San Angelo and Del Rio, ending at the Mexican border in Eagle Pass.
"I don't think there's a bigger project, a more visionary initiative, that will be more transformational for our region and the country than what we're talking about today," Congressman Jodey Arrington said at a ribbon cutting of the four mile extension this week.
Arrington said the extension of Interstate 27 will connect farms and oil produced in West Texas to the marketplace.
"We're not going to make America great again unless we keep America energy independent and food secure," he said.
Senator Ted Cruz said Interstate 27 can help keep commerce moving and attract additional economic growth to Texas.
"This is part of how we keep Texas prosperous," he said. "This is a major step forward for Lubbock, for West Texas, for the entire state."
U.S. 87 is already a limited access highway for the four miles south of Highway 289, so the only upgrades are new signs designating the route is also part of Interstate 27. Congress approved numbering the route in 2023.
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