Route 66's Branches (spurs)
Index to this page
What is a Spur
The Texas Department of Transportation defines a U. S. Highway Spur as " A highway so designated by AASHTO; usually begins on a U. S. Highway and ends on an off-system roadway." The AASHTO, or American Association of State Highways and Transportation Officials, is a board composed of state transportation officials who approve requests to make any changes to an Interstate or U. S. Highway.
Spur numbering system
Spurs are designated with a three-digit number (applied to two-digit U.S. Highways). The spurs are numbered from east to west, and from north to south. For instance, U.S. Route 60 has a spur designated as U.S. 160 in Missouri, and further west, in Oklahoma, is the spur U.S. 260, followed by U.S. 360 in Texas.
There are some exceptions. For instance, in the case of U.S. Route 1, it has its first, and northernmost spur in Brunswick, Maine (see map) but it is numbered U.S. 201 because the number U.S. 101, was assigned to the westernmost U.S. Highway, that runs along the Pacific coast from Washington to California. The next spur on U.S. 1 is in Biddles Corner, Delaware, and was designated U.S. 301 (see map).
Spur trivia
Length
Spurs can be long, U.S. 160 stretches from Poplar Bluff, Missouri to Tuba City, Arizona, crossing Missouri, Kansas, Colorado, and northwestern Arizona, it is 1,465 mi long (2,358 km).
Another spur, U.S. 191, is longer than its parent (U.S. 91); it is split into two segments at Yellowstone National Park (highways are not signed within the park). The northern segment is 442 miles long (711 km) and reaches the Canadian border. The southern segment is 1,102 miles long (1.773 km) and reaches the Mexican border. It is a major north-south highway. The original US 91 was replaced by I-15 and decommissioned along most of its course (it ran from Long Beach, California to Coutts, Alberta, Canada, roughly 1,430 miles. Now, only a small section of U.S. 91 survives (Brigham City, Utah, to Idaho Falls, Idaho) with a length of 172 miles (278 km)
The shortest spur is the Orondo Spur on U.S. 97 in Orondo, Washington: 0.24 miles long (0.4 km), pictured below (see map)
Spurs can be ghosts of long-gone highways
Spurs are dynamic; some have been eliminated, absorbed by later U.S. Highways. This happened to U.S. 266, 366, and 566. They became part of other U.S. highways. Others are renumbered, like U.S. 666. Others survive their "parents", like U.S. 166, which still exists even though Route 66 was decommissioned in 1985.
The same happened to U.S. 199, which survives after its parent (U.S. 99, replaced by I-5, was decommissioned in 1972). Another spur, U.S. 299 was eliminated in 1964 and became State Highway 299 in California. Another spur, U.S. 399, was replaced by other state highways.
Some spurs are connected to their "parents" through other spurs, or not at all, for example, U.S. 266 existed isolated and disconnected from Route 66 from 1930 to 1985. And it still exists.
U.S. 422, a spur of U.S. Route 22, is split into two disconnected segments! (an eastern one, and a western one). Neither link with their parent (see map below).
The Six Spurs of Route 66
Route 66 had six spurs numbered 166 to 666. Some of which have survived even though their parent highway was decommissioned. We list them below, and further down we describe them in detail.
- US 166, still exists between Baxter Springs and Caldwell, KS. At one time, it reached Springfield MO.
- US 266, still exists between Henryetta and Warner in OK. only 43 miles long. At one time, it reached Oklahoma City.
- US 366. Gone. Ran from Amarillo in TX through Clovis, Lincoln, and Alamogordo in NM, all the way to El Paso, TX.
- US 466. Gone. James Dean was killed on this highway. It ran from US 101 on the Californian coast all the way to Barstow, CA, across to Las Vegas, Nevada, and then to Kingman, AZ, where it met U.S. 66
- US 566. Gone. From Lincoln to Socorro in New Mexico.
- US 666. Gone. Now renumbered US 491, changed because 666 is "Satan's number", it was considered the Route of the Beast.
U.S. Highway 166
>> See the interactive map of U.S. 166
The map shows the current, existing segment, marked with a red line. The former, and now eliminated, alignment east of Joplin, Missouri, is marked with a pink line.
Current length: 164 mi (264 km). Length of the eliminated segment: 94 mi. (150 km).
It is one of two surviving spurs of Route 666. It was created in 1926 and originally ran from South Haven to Baxter Springs in Kansas. In 1945, it was extended eastwards through Joplin, Missouri, all the way to Springfield, MO. It survived until 1966 when, after the completion of I-44 in this region, its eastern terminus was moved to its junction with U.S. 400 in Kansas.
U.S. 166 in Missouri
It split from Route 66 on the eastern side of Springfield, MO. It ran aligned with U.S. 60 to Republic, MO, and then westwards. Now, it has been replaced by State Highway 174, which runs west to Mt. Vernon, MO. It is overlaid by I-44 as it enters that town. Then it runs parallel to the interstate along County Rd. H. and County Rd. 2140, and west of Exit 33, it is overlaid again by the freeway. Later, it enters Sarcoxie, MO, along Birch Rd., and follows Blackberry Rd. til it is again overlaid by the Interstate.
In Scotland, MO, it heads west along Cimarron Rd. into Joplin, MO. Later, in the 1950s, it was realigned along I-44, bypassing Joplin, but its original alignment crossed the city. It headed south along Hwy. 86, coasted and crossed Shoal Creek, following Apricot Dr. and crossed the State Line, Kansas-Missouri.
U.S. 166 in Kansas
The road continues along Apricot Dr. to Hwy 26. Here it becomes Hwy 166 (a memory of its original number), and finally, at its junction with U.S. 400, it becomes U.S. 166. From here it runs west, into Baxter Springs, Kansas.
US 66 crosses US 166
US 66 and US 166 shields
US 166 ran from South Haven to Baxter Springs in Kansas. It was extended to Springfield MO in 1945. Now it ends at I-43's Exit 1 in Missouri.
In downtown Baxter Springs, it runs along 12th Street with an east-to-west course across the city. U.S. 166 was an original route from the 1926 US Highway system, so it was born at the same time as Route 66. And this year is the 100th anniversary of both highways. Don't miss the Route 66 Centennial Celebrations 1926-2026
U.S. Highway 266
>> See the interactive map of U.S. 266
The map shows the current, existing segment, marked with a blue line. The former, and now eliminated, alignment east of Henryetta, Oklahoma, is marked with a pale blue line.
Current length: 43 mi. (69 km). Length of the eliminated segment: 94 mi. (151 km).
Oklahoma's US 266
This spur was aligned along the original State Highway 9 in 1926. It split from Route 66 in downtown Oklahoma City in front of the State Capitol building, at Lincoln Blvd. and 23rd Street, heading east. But, in 1930, it was truncated, and this segment is numbered as U.S. 62. It continued, following what now is the original course of U.S. 62. East of Okemah, OK, it continues along Old Hwy 62 into Henryetta. Just north of Exit 231 on I-40, it met U.S. 75, and both entered Henryetta.
U.S. Highway 366
>> See the interactive map of U.S. 366
The map shows the original alignment with a violet line. It was replaced by other numbered U.S. highways.
Texas and New Mexico's US 366 ❌
US 366 was eliminated (❌)
It was designated as one of the original highways of the United States Numbered Highways system in 1926. It forked off from Route 66 in downtown Amarillo at the 6th Street alignment. It was realigned in 1931 as the highway was paved, and in 1935, it was replaced by U.S. 54 between El Paso, Texas, and Tularosa, New Mexico, from there it was replaced by U.S. 70 to Alamogordo, Roswell, and Clovis. And finally by U.S. 60 from Clovis, into Texas, and north all the way to Amarillo, TX.
U.S. 566 and U.S. 366
Both spurs of Route 66, U.S. 366 and U.S. 566, met in New Mexico. As we will see below, U.S. 566 was disconnected from U.S. 66.
U.S. Highway 566
>> See the interactive map of U.S. 566
The map shows its alignment, marked with a yellow line.
New Mexico's US 566 ❌
US 566 was eliminated (❌)
Designated in 1926, it was short-lived, as it was decommissioned in 1931 and replaced entirely by U.S. 380. It ran from a spot south of Socorro, New Mexico, San Antonio, at what is now I-25's exit 139, all the way to Hondo, NM.
Numbering Anomaly
Interestingly, its sequence in the numbering from east to west is out of place (it preceded U.S. 466, located further west). The reason for this is that U.S. 466 was originally planned as the highway that later was renumbered U.S. 85. But the story is more complex, and is linked to the renumbering of Route 66 in 1926 (more on this below).
Route 66 was almost named Route 60: impact on its spurs
The U.S. Numbered Highway System originally decided that transcontinental highways were to be numbered as multiples of 10. Like U.S. 20, 50, or 90. Cyrus Avery and John Woodruff, the promoters of the Chicago to Los Angeles highway (that would become Route 66), wanted it to be numbered U.S. 60, figuring that it would be easier for the drivers to remember it.
But, it wasn't transcontinental, and its use was disputed by another group lobbying for a highway that followed the historical National Roosevelt Midland Trail. The board in Washington proposed naming the Chicago to Los Angeles highway Route 62 as an alternative, but Woodruff and Avery came up with number "66" and on April 30th, 1926 they sent a telegram from Springfield, MO to Washington DC requesting the use of this number: "Regarding Chicago Los Angeles road if California Arizona New Mexico and Illinois accept sixty six instead of sixty we are inclined to agree to this change. We prefer sixty six to sixty two." The request was approved in August 1926, and Route 66 was born.
The previous work by the board in October 1025 had already defined several spurs along "Route 60", which were to be numbered from east to west:
- U.S. 160: Baxter Springs, Kansas to Coffeyville, Independence.
- U.S. 260: From Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, to Okemah, Henryetta.
- U.S. 360: From Amarillo, Texas to Farwell, Clovis, New Mexico, Roswell, and El Paso.
- U.S. 460: From Los Lunas, New Mexico, to Route No. 70.
- U.S. 560: From Gallup, New Mexico, to Cortez, Colorado.
A few months later (January 1926), the Executive Committee approved a sixth branch of U.S. 60, which would link Hondo with San Antonio in NM. Because it was east of the Gallup-Cortez route, the new route was numbered U.S. 560. It did not link to U.S. 60, but it was linked to the spur U.S. 360, which connected with U.S. 60 in Amarillo, Texas. So they approved six branches for U.S. 60 and renumbered the last one, so U.S. 560 became U.S. 660.
Then, due to the number change from U.S. 60 to U.S. 66, the spurs were also renumbered, replacing "60" with "66". The spurs became 166, 266, 366, 466, 566, and 666.
But more changes were introduced; Route 466 between La Joya and Isleta was renumbered 570. Because at that time, Route 70 ran from Clovis to Socorro (along a course that was later given to Route 60), and US 570 was a natural name for this spur. Later, US 70 was realigned further south along its present course.
But, the New Mexico Highway Dept., objected that the main north-south highway coming from Canada southwards towards New Mexico turned at Raton, NM and headed southeast into Texas (see its course in this map. They requested that the whole highway from Canada to Mexico be numbered U.S. 85 and follow the Santa Fe trail to Santa Fe, and the Camino Real to Mexico. So the route from Ratón to Texas was named Route 385, and the spur formerly known as 570 was eliminated as it had become part of the US 85 alignment. The Commission agreed that, even though Route 66 would retain only five branches, its last one would retain the original number 666.
Further reading: Source
The Route of the Beast, U.S. 666
Where Superstition meets the Mother Road...
>> See the interactive map of former U.S. 666
The map shows its alignment, marked with a black line.
New Mexico, Colorado and Utah's US 666 ❌
US 666 was renumbered as a spur of U.S. 191, now known as US 491
Current length: 194 miles (312 km).
Name Change
The number 666 has a religious significance for Christians because Revelation 13:18 states the following: "This calls for wisdom: Let the one who has insight calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man, and his number is 666." The road got the nickname of "Devil's Highway" because it had a high rate of accidents. Furthermore, people stole the Route 666 shields, which were costly to replace.
On May 31, 2003, the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials approved a new number for it, and the route became U.S. 491.
It was an unsafe highway, and things were made worse by those D.U.I. But state officials seem to have believed that the deadly highway was influenced by the supernatural and voted to have the number changed for the following reasons:
WHEREAS, people living near the road already live under the cloud of opprobrium created by having a road that many believe is cursed running near their homes and through their homeland; and
WHEREAS, the number "666" carries the stigma of being the mark of the beast, the mark of the devil, which was described in the book of Revelation in the Bible; and
WHEREAS, there are people who refuse to travel the road, not because of the issue of safety, but because of the fear that the devil controls events along United States Route 666; and
WHEREAS, the economy in the area is greatly depressed when compared with many parts of the United States, and the infamy brought by the inopportune naming of the road will only make development in the area more difficult....
U.S. Highway 466
>> See the interactive map of U.S. 466
Arizona, Nevada, and California's US 466 ❌
US 466 was eliminated (❌)
Route 466 was created in 1933, and it adopted the number left vacant by former US 460 / US 470. It is another violation of the spur-numbering system.
Maximum length: 526 mi. (847 km).
It ran from Kingman, Arizona, overlapping U.S. 93 to Boulder and Las Vegas, Nevada, and then it shared roadway with U.S. 91 to Yermo, California (later replaced by I-15). From Barstow, it ran to Morro Bay, CA, ending on State Hwy. 1.
The highway is known for the car accident that killed movie actor James Dean on September 30, 1955, at the intersection of CA 41 near Cholame, CA.
In 1964, California eliminated its designation, and it was decertified in that state. Arizona did the same in 1969. The Nevada Section survived until 1971, disconnected from the main Route 66 parent alignment.
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