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U.S. Route 287

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U.S. Route 287

U.S. Route 287 (US 287) is a north–south (physically northwest–southeast) United States highway. At 1,791 miles (2,882 km) long,[citation needed] it is the second longest three-digit U.S. Route, behind US 281. The highway is broken into two segments by Yellowstone National Park, where unnumbered park roads serve as a connector.

The highway's northern terminus is in Choteau, Montana, 100 miles (160 km) south of the Canadian border, at an intersection with US 89. Its southern terminus (as well as those of US 69 and US 96) is in Port Arthur, Texas at an intersection with State Highway 87 (SH 87), five miles (8 km) up the Sabine River from the Gulf of Mexico. It intersects its parent route US 87 twice, overlapping it from Amarillo to Dumas, Texas, and then crossing it in Denver, Colorado.

US 287 originates at its southern terminus in Port Arthur as a branch of SH 87. From Port Arthur, US 287 runs concurrently with US 69 and US 96 to Lumberton, where US 96 diverges to the northeast and the co-signed US 287/US 69 continues northwesterly until US 287 and US 69 diverge in Woodville. Continuing northwesterly, US 287 merges with Interstate 45 (I-45) in Corsicana and follows the Interstate to Ennis, where it branches off and continues through Waxahachie, crossing I-35E and continuing north through Tarrant County, where it encounters and briefly merges with three different Interstates (I-820, I-20, and I-35W). From Fort Worth, US 287 continues north to Wichita Falls and continues just south of the Oklahoma border before entering the Texas Panhandle. A section of US 287, between Midlothian and Waxahachie, was dedicated as the Chris Kyle Memorial Highway, in honor of fallen SEAL Chris Kyle, whose hometown was Midlothian.

The highway continues through Amarillo, where it intersects I-40, and then runs north to Kerrick and crosses into neighboring Oklahoma.

In Oklahoma, US 287 remains within Cimarron County, located at the end of the Panhandle. After crossing the state line north of Kerrick, Texas, the highway intersects SH 171 at its southern terminus. US 287 continues northwesterly, crossing the Beaver River, toward Boise City, the county seat. On the east side of town, the highway formerly ran concurrently with US 56, US 64, US 412, and SH 3. These five highways then entered the traffic circle in downtown Boise City. US 287 emerged from the north side of the circle, as well as US 385 and SH 3. Now US 287 bypasses town to the east. These three highways (US 287, US 385, SH 3) head north to the Colorado state line. SH 3 ends there, while US 287 and US 385 continue onward into Colorado.

From Oklahoma, US 287 and US 385 enter into a very rural part of Colorado. They continue in a north/northwest direction through the state. The two highways pass through the town of Campo, and make an interchange with US 160 on the outskirts of Springfield. In Lamar and Carlton, the highways make an interchange with US 50. Here US 385 heads east on US 50, and US 287/US 50 continue to the north. 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, US 287 turns toward the west again, briefly merging with SH 96. In Eads, SH 96 continues toward the west, while US 287 turns toward the north. Near Kit Carson, US 287 again turns toward the west and merges with US 40. Near Limon, the two highways make two interchanges with I-70 before passing through Limon. Then the two highways merge with I-70. Near the outskirts of Denver US 36 merges with the group of highways making the road, I-70/US 287/US 36/US 40.

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; the other is in Texas. Shortly thereafter, at a cloverleaf interchange with Federal Boulevard, SH 88 runs south, US 40 continues west on Colfax, and US 287 turns toward the north on Federal Boulevard. After crossing US 36 (Denver–Boulder Turnpike), 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 which continues west through an interchange with SH 121 and US 36. At Baseline Road in Lafayette, SH 7 joins US 287 for about a mile, before SH 7 splits to the west on Arapahoe Avenue towards Boulder. It intersects SH 119 as it enters Longmont on Main Street, and then it intersects SH 66 at the north edge of town. In 2021 the Colorado State Senate Joint Resolution 21-018 designated the section of U.S. 287 between SH 66 in Longmont and SH 402 in Loveland as the SPC Gabriel David Conde Memorial highway. Gabriel Conde was a Berthoud High School graduate and a student at the Colorado School of Mines who joined the U.S. Army in 2015. He was killed in action in Afghanistan in April 2018. The road bypasses Berthoud en route to Loveland, where US 287 splits into the pair of one-way streets Lincoln Avenue (northbound) and Cleveland Avenue (southbound). It then divides the Loveland cemetery. This is the only cemetery in the US with a US Highway dividing it.[citation needed] Continuing north, US 287 passes through Fort Collins on College Avenue, merging with SH 14 at Jefferson Street. On the edge of the mountains at Ted's Place, SH 14 splits and heads west into Poudre Canyon, while US 287 continues north into Wyoming.

The section of US 287 between Fort Collins and Laramie, Wyoming, carries very heavy truck traffic and is regarded as quite dangerous. A 2023 Colorado Department of Transportation report found the highway has above-average crash rates, making the highway a good candidate for more safety improvements. The 30-mile section from north of Fort Collins to the Wyoming line has had 570 crashes, including 15 fatal wrecks since 2019, and at least 15 students from the University of Wyoming in Laramie have died on the road since 2000.

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