Until the late 1930s, the route designation belonged to a highway in central Texas along the route of present-day US 290. The current route predates the Texas highway system having been a portion of several historic auto trails. The route was included at the creation of the state system as part of SH 1. With the establishment of the U.S. numbered highway system, the route became US 80 and the SH 1 designation was eventually dropped. SH 20 was designated over the route when US 80 was relocated over I-10 before it too was decommissioned in western Texas.
The current SH 20 was originally a part of the former SH 1, a route that from the current eastern terminus of the present route continued on through Van Horn, Odessa, Midland, Abilene, Fort Worth, and Dallas before entering Arkansas at Texarkana. This route was also one of the original routes planned in 1917,[4] and remained largely unchanged until the end of the 1930s.[4][5][6][7][8][9][10]
US 80
In 1927, US 80 was designated over the route of SH 1 from the New Mexico state line at Anthony to Dallas and then proceeding east to the Louisiana state line east of Waskom.[11] The highway carried both the US 80 and SH 1 designations until the 1939 general redescription of the state highway system when SH 1 was decommissioned outside the city of Dallas.[12] In 1944, the full length of US 80 within Texas was designated as the Veterans of World War II Highway.[11] US 80 was relocated over I-10 through El Paso on April 2, 1969, and its former route was then renamed SH 20.[1] US 80 was decommissioned west of Dallas on August 28, 1991.[11]
Route description
SH 20 begins where NM 460 (Co-signed with NM 478), also called Anthony Drive, reaches the state line between Anthony, New Mexico and Anthony, Texas in the El Paso area's Upper Valley. The route proceeds south through Anthony along Main Street passing Federal Correctional Institution, La Tuna. The route then enters Vinton where it becomes Doniphan Drive. Further south in Canutillo the route intersects Loop 375, El Paso's beltway. After entering the city of El Paso, the route intersects SH 178 which connects the route via NM 136 to the international border with Mexico south of Santa Teresa, New Mexico. Further south, SH 20 turns off of Doniphan Drive and onto Mesa Street and soon after crosses the I-10 freeway which also carries US 85 and US 180 at this point. The route continues to the southeast passing through the foothills of the Franklin Mountains. The route then passes the University of Texas at El Paso and Sun Bowl Stadium before entering central El Paso.[13]
In central El Paso, the route crosses I-10 and US 180 again and then soon after turns northeast on Texas Avenue where the route crosses Santa Fe and Stanton Streets leading to the Paso del Norte International Bridge and Good Neighbor International Bridge to Ciudad Juárez. SH 20 then turns east along Alameda Avenue. The route then crosses Loop 478 before crossing the mostly unsigned I-110 and US 54 at the Patriot Freeway which leads to the international Bridge of the Americas. The route crosses US 62 at Paisano Dr. before the route turns southeast at Ascarate Park and enters the Lower Valley.[13]
In Hudspeth County, the route intersects Spur 148 which passes through central Fort Hancock. A short distance later, the route intersects FM 1088 which connects Fort Hancock to the Fort Hancock – El Porvenir International Bridge. At McNary, the route intersects FM 2217 which continues along the Lower Valley, and then terminates at I-10.[13]
