Farm to Market Road 171

Farm to Market Road 171
Route information
Maintained by TxDOT
Length	37.212 mi [1] [lower-alpha 1]  (59.887 km)
Existed	1945–present
Major junctions
West end	Bus. US 287 in Wichita Falls
Major intersections	SH 240 in Wichita Falls SH 79 in Byers
East end	FM 2332
Location
Country	United States
State	Texas
Counties	Wichita, Clay
Highway system
Highways in Texas Interstate US State Toll Loops Spurs FM/RM Park Rec
← FM 170 → FM 172

Farm to Market Road 171 (FM 171) is a farm to market road in Wichita and Clay counties, Texas. ^[1]

Route description

FM 171 begins in Wichita Falls at an intersection with Bus. US 287 north of the Wichita River. ^[2] The route travels east on Lincoln Street to SH 240. These two routes are concurrent northbound along King Boulevard before FM 171 turns back to the northeast along Jefferson Street. In the outskirts of Wichita Falls, FM 171 intersects FM 1740 and then FM 890, which provides access to Sheppard AFB. From here, the roadway is known as the Upper Charlie Road (as opposed to FM 1740, referred to as Lower Charlie Road or simply Charlie Road). The route crosses the Wichita–Clay county line and meanders through the farming areas of Clay County. It intersects FM 1177 and then FM 2393 near Thornberry. ^[3] The highway turns to the east, crossing FM 810 south of the community of Charlie. FM 171 then enters Byers, where it has a brief concurrency with SH 79 through downtown, before it resumes its journey eastward. The roadway then turns southward, roughly paralleling the Red River and the Oklahoma state line, before FM 171 reaches its eastern terminus at FM 2332. ^[2]

FM 171's roadway is generally two-lane and shoulderless, except for the section in the Wichita Falls metropolitan area (from its western terminus to its junction with FM 890) and during its concurrency with SH 79 in Byers.

History

FM 171 was first commissioned in Clay County on June 11, 1945. Its original designation was from Byers across SH 148 south of Charlie to Wichita Falls. (SH 148 north of Petrolia would become FM 810 in 1948. ^[4] )The designation was extended eastward to 2.0 miles (3.2 km) east of Byers on October 31, 1957. On November 7, 1958, US 287 was rerouted in downtown Wichita Falls, and the FM 171 designation was extended along Lincoln Street to its current western terminus. The eastern terminus was extended to the south, first 2.5 miles (4.0 km) to a county road on May 2, 1962, and then 4.6 miles (7.4 km) to its current location at FM 2332 on June 1, 1965. ^[1]

On June 27, 1995, the section from the eastern terminus at US 287 Bus. to the intersection with FM 890 was transferred to Urban Road 171 (UR 171). The designation of the section reverted to FM 171 with the elimination of the Urban Road system on November 15, 2018. ^[5]

Major intersections

County	Location	mi [6]	km	Destinations	Notes
Wichita	Wichita Falls	0.0	0.0	Bus. US 287 (Scott St.)	Western terminus
		0.3	0.48	SH 240 east (King Blvd.)	West end of SH 240 concurrency
		0.5	0.80	SH 240 west (King Blvd.)	East end of SH 240 concurrency
	​	1.9	3.1	FM 1740
	​	2.9	4.7	FM 890 (E. McKinley St.)
Clay	​	11.9	19.2	FM 1177  – Cashion
	​	12.9	20.8	FM 2393  – Dean, Jolly
	​	19.1	30.7	FM 810  – Petrolia, Charlie
	Byers	27.3	43.9	SH 79 north (Main St.) – Waurika, Oklahoma	West end of SH 79 concurrency
		27.5	44.3	SH 79 south (Main St.) – Petrolia	East end of SH 79 concurrency
	​	37.6	60.5	FM 2332  – Stanfield	Eastern terminus
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi        Concurrency terminus

Notes

1. The certified length given is shorter than the actual mileage, as the TxDOT description of FM 171 considers it to be discontinuous at SH 240 and SH 79.

References

1. Transportation Planning and Programming Division (n.d.). "Farm to Market Road No. 171". Highway Designation Files. Texas Department of Transportation . Retrieved 2011-04-06.
2. Transportation Planning and Programming Division (2012). Texas County Mapbook (PDF) (Map) (2012 ed.). 1:120,000. Texas Department of Transportation. p. 388. OCLC   867856197 . Retrieved 2011-04-06.^{[ dead link ]}
3. Transportation Planning and Programming Division (2012). Texas County Mapbook (PDF) (Map) (2012 ed.). 1:120,000. Texas Department of Transportation. p. 387. OCLC   867856197 . Retrieved 2011-04-06.^{[ dead link ]}
4. Transportation Planning and Programming Division (n.d.). "Farm to Market Road No. 810". Highway Designation Files. Texas Department of Transportation . Retrieved 2011-04-06.
5. "Minute Order 115371" (PDF). Texas Transportation Commission. November 15, 2018. Retrieved August 26, 2020.
6. Google (2011-04-06). "Overview map of Farm to Market Road 171 Distances Between Interchanges" (Map). Google Maps . Google. Retrieved 2011-04-06.