US Highway 285 — Death Highway
Denver, CO to Fort Stockton, TX (New Mexico–Texas Oilfield Corridor)
US-285 through southeastern New Mexico and West Texas is known to emergency responders and truckers as the Death Highway. The corridor between Roswell, Carlsbad, and the Texas border carries an enormous volume of oilfield support traffic — oversized loads, water tankers, and equipment trucks operating on fatigue-inducing long shifts in the Permian Basin energy sector. The combination of two-lane road segments, high-speed rural driving, head-on collision exposure, and intense oilfield truck volumes has produced a per-mile fatality rate among the highest of any US highway.
Length
850 miles
850 miles
Risk Rating
CRITICAL
CRITICAL
Risk Factors
Oilfield truck traffic — fatigued drivers on long shifts
High-speed two-lane segments with no median barrier
Head-on collision exposure during passing maneuvers
Permian Basin oversize/overweight loads
Desert heat — tire stress and driver fatigue
Limited services and emergency response in remote sections
Notorious Segments
- Roswell to Carlsbad, NM (oilfield support corridor)
- Carlsbad to Pecos TX (Texas border crossing)
- Artesia NM area — high-density oilfield traffic
Connected Hubs
Regions
United States
South
New Mexico
Texas