New milestone for interstate expansion in West Texas

Oct. 2, 2024

By Ryan LaFontaine

LUBBOCK — The highly anticipated Ports-to-Plains Corridor initiative has hit another major milestone with the Texas Transportation Commission’s approval of a 4.2-mile designation expanding Interstate 27, between Lubbock and Lamesa.

The Commission approved the expansion in its

26 meeting, saying this designation would improve traffic flow and public safety. Advocates of the corridor say the designation will be a boon for the communities it serves.

“This designation breathes new hope into our vision in San Angelo, Texas,” said Brenda Gunter, San Angelo mayor and the chairwoman of the I-27 Advisory Committee. “Approving this designation is not just symbolic but a critical first step toward making construction of the I-27 system in Texas a reality.”

The expansion will run concurrently with U.S. Highway 87 from the current I-27 terminus in Lubbock to 0.1 mile north of County Road 7500.

“This is a day the Ports-to-Plains Alliance has long awaited,” said Lauren Garduno, president and CEO of the Ports-to-Plains Alliance. “Thanks to the collaborative efforts of TxDOT, the Texas State Legislature, and Congress, we have reached this important milestone.”

As part of a sweeping $1.5 trillion appropriations bill in 2022, the Port-to-Plains Corridor from Raton, New Mexico to Laredo, Texas was added to the federal Interstate Highway System. It marks the first step for I-27 to expand from its current Lubbock-to-Amarillo route southward to the Mexican border at Laredo, through the Texas Panhandle, and eventually north to the Canadian border.

Signs will soon be installed along the new portion of I-27.