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Farm-to-market road

March 03, 2023

In the United States, a farm-to-market road or ranch-to-market road (sometimes farm road or ranch road for short) is a state highway or county road that connects rural or agricultural areas to market towns. These are better quality roads, usually a highway, that farmers and ranchers use to transport products to market towns or distribution centers. Historically used throughout the country, today the term is primarily associated with a large state-maintained highway system in Texas.

FM 218 outside Hamilton, Texas, a typical Texas farm-to-market road

History

By 1930, counties and townships across the U.S. had built a large number of farm-to-market roads, many of which were in need of repairs and safety improvements. The Chief of the Bureau of Public Roads, Thomas Harris MacDonald, considered this need to be driven not by insufficient funding but by inefficient planning and inadequate equipment on the part of thousands of counties. He advocated for an expansion of state-maintained highway systems through the federal-aid highway program, so that counties could focus on maintaining fewer roads to a higher level of service.[1]

Texas

Main category: Farm to Market Roads in Texas

This term is most closely associated with Texas, where Farm to Market Road and Ranch to Market Road indicate roadways that are part of the state's system of secondary and connecting routes, built and maintained by the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT). Texas established this system in 1949 to improve access to rural areas. As with other state-maintained highways in Texas, all Farm or Ranch to Market roads are paved. The system consists primarily of two-lane roads, although some segments have an additional number of lanes, while some have been upgraded to freeways. Speed limits along these roads vary, but may be as high as 75 miles per hour (121 km/h) in rural areas,[2] such as in Andrews and Pecos counties (for example, along FM 1788, FM 1776, and FM 1053).[3]

History

The first farm-to-market road in Texas was completed in January 1937 during the Great Depression. It connected Mount Enterprise and the former community of Shiloh in Rusk County. The route was 5.8 miles (9.3 km) long and was constructed at a cost of $48,015.12 ($939,000 today). This route is now part of Texas State Highway 315.[4]

The first officially designated highway, FM 1, was authorized in San Augustine County in 1941 to connect US 96 near Pineland to a sawmill belonging to the Temple Lumber Company at Magasco.[5][6] The first Ranch to Market Road was designated in 1942.[7]

In 1945, the highway commission authorized a three-year pilot program for the construction of 7,205 miles (11,595 km) of farm-to-market roadways, with cost to be shared equally by the state and federal governments.[8] As the program grew, efforts were made by legislators from rural areas, including State Senator Grady Hazlewood of Amarillo, to expand the farm-to-market road network in the late 1940s.[9] The funding was to have come from an increase in the fuel tax, as proposed by State Senator Grover Morris in 1947. Although polls suggested that a majority of Texas residents were in favor of such a tax,[10] this measure was stymied by lobbyists, who supported such funding for arterial roads.[11]

The popularity of the program and the perceived need to connect the vast, isolated central and western areas of the state prompted the passing of the Colson-Briscoe Act in 1949, sponsored by State Senator E. Neveille Colson and State Representative Dolph Briscoe.[12] This legislation appropriated funding for the creation of an extensive system of secondary roads to provide access to the rural areas of the state and to allow farmers and ranchers to bring their goods to market, reserving a flat $15 million per year ($200 million today) plus 1 cent per gallon of gasoline sold in the state for local highway construction.[6]

By 1957, the system had grown to over 31,000 miles (50,000 km).[13] In 1962, the Texas legislature adjusted the appropriated funding amount to $23 million annually ($200 million today), through federal fund matching, and expanded the farm-to-market system from 35,000 to 50,000 miles (56,000 to 80,000 km).[14][15] By 1964, the system's mileage exceeded that of all other federal and state routes combined.[16] The system now accounts for over half of the mileage maintainted by TxDOT.[17]

Identification

 
The sign for FM 1960, a farm-to-market road near Houston, Texas

Signs designating a Farm to Market or Ranch to Market road are a black square background containing a white shape of the state of Texas, with the words "FARM ROAD" or "RANCH ROAD" appearing in white text on the background and the route number in black text within the shape of Texas.[18] Guide signs (the large green signs usually found along highways in the United States) designating these roads use a simple white rectangle with the abbreviation "F.M." or "R.M." and the route number appearing below the abbreviation in black text.[19]

As a result of population growth and the expansion of urban areas, many Farm to Market and Ranch to Market roads that originally served rural areas now serve urban areas, sometimes exclusively. An effort was made to rename such roads "Urban Roads" on June 27, 1995, but residents opposed the effort, arguing that removing the "Farm" and "Ranch" from the designations was "un-Texan," and that the cost of changing signage was not justified. Other than a few route markers, such as on FM 1315 near Victoria, most signs were not changed, and TxDOT abandoned the idea to do so.[20] While the Farm to Market and Ranch to Market route markers remained in use, the state tracked these Urban Roads separately in its highway designation files. For example, the mileage of FM 544 in the Plano area was transferred from FM 544 to UR 544 in 1995.[21][22] As part of the state highway system, Urban Roads were eligible for state maintenance; however, unlike rural Farm to Market and Ranch to Market roads, they did not receive state funding for expansion.[23] On November 15, 2018, the Urban Road system was cancelled, and all roads on this system reverted back to their previous FM and RM designations.[24][25] For example, UR 544 was redesignated as FM 544.

 
Distribution of Farm to Market (green) and Ranch to Market (brown) Roads

Farm to Market and Ranch to Market roads are numbered as a single set of roads; thus, there is not an FM and an RM route with the same number.[26] Urban Roads were designated with the same route numbers as the FM or RM routes from which the mileage was transferred.[27]

Ranch Road 1, which runs near the former ranch home of former President Lyndon B. Johnson, is signed with a Ranch to Market Road route marker, but it is not part of this system; rather, it is the only roadway that TxDOT has designated as a "Ranch Road".[4]

  •  

    Route marker: FM 1719 route marker in Potter County (left) alongside route markers for U.S. 87 and U.S. 287 (right)

  •  

    Guide sign: destination sign along Interstate 35 showing typical signage for a Farm to Market Road (right), along with signage for a State Highway Loop (left) and a State Highway (center) for comparison

Business routes

 
Route marker for Business Farm to Market Road 1960

Texas currently has two signed business routes of Farm to Market Roads: Business RM 1431 in Burnet County and Business FM 1960 in Harris County.[28][29] Both business routes are former alignments that have been bypassed by newer routings. A third business route, Business FM 1187 in Tarrant County, was designated from 2004 to 2016.[30]

Other states

Missouri has a similar state-operated system of farm-to-market roads, called Missouri supplemental routes. Missouri uses single (e.g., "A", "B", etc.) and double letters (e.g., "AA", "BB", etc.).[citation needed]

Iowa also has a farm-to-market road system. Those roads are under county jurisdiction,[31] but are eligible for state aid from a dedicated fund.[32]

Louisiana has a farm-to-market road system. The 1955 renumbering renumbered all routes based on an A-B-C system of route classification: A is primary, B secondary, and C farm-to-market. All routes 300 through 1266 are classified C routes.[33][circular reference]

Ohio's farm-to-market roads were maintained by the state Department of Highways but built to only a county road standard. In 1939, the state spent $1.47 million (equivalent to $22.8 million in 2021[34]) to improve 74,417 centerline miles (119,763 km) of farm-to-market roads.[35] In 1940, the department launched a farm-to-market road improvement program alongside the usual maintenance program; it improved 742 miles (1,194 km) of roadway at a cost of $9.59 million, including funds from the Works Progress Administration.[36]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Counties Try To Build Roads Without Engineering Direction And Proper Equipment". The Cincinnati Enquirer. February 23, 1930. p. 4 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. ^ Richardson, Robin Y. (June 18, 2013). "New speed limit signs being posted". Marshall News Messenger. Retrieved October 28, 2022.
  3. ^ Clark, James (March 16, 2022). "NTSB opens investigation in Andrews deadly van crash". EverythingLubbock.com. Retrieved October 28, 2022. [NTSB spokesperson Eric] Weiss also said, 'FM 1788 is a two-lane, two-way asphalt roadway with a 75-mile-an-hour speed limit.'
  4. ^ a b Staff. "Farm/Ranch to Market Facts". Texas Department of Transportation. Retrieved February 26, 2008.
  5. ^ Transportation Planning and Programming Division (n.d.). "Farm to Market Road No. 1". Highway Designation Files. Texas Department of Transportation. Retrieved April 8, 2011.
  6. ^ a b Burka, Paul (April 1983). "Texas Primer: The Farm-to-Market Road". Texas Monthly. 11 (4): 134.
  7. ^ Courtney, David (August 2022). "The Texanist: What's the Difference Between a Farm to Market Road and a Ranch to Market Road?". Texas Monthly. 47 (8). Retrieved October 27, 2022.
  8. ^ "Texas to improve farm to market roads". Harper Herald. June 15, 1945. p. 3. Retrieved April 8, 2011.
  9. ^ Followwill-Line, Robyn (May 19, 2000). "Grady Hazlewood". Amarillo Globe-News. Retrieved April 8, 2011.
  10. ^ Belden, Joe (November 24, 1946). "'Out of the Mud' by Hiking Tax On Gas Is Desire of Majority". Austin American. ProQuest 1611714314. (subscription required)
  11. ^ Smith, Griffin Jr. (April 1974). "The Highway Establishment and How It Grew". Texas Monthly. 2 (4): 86.
  12. ^ Texas Transportation Institute. . Texas A&M University System. Archived from the original on February 20, 2011. Retrieved April 8, 2011.
  13. ^ "Giant Road Plans Told". Austin Statesman. November 2, 1957. ProQuest 1613523821. (subscription required)
  14. ^ Kite, Kirk: Highway Development from the Handbook of Texas Online. Retrieved April 7, 2011.
  15. ^ Texas Department of Transportation. "TxDOT History: 1970 to 1951". Retrieved April 8, 2011.
  16. ^ "State Sets Big F-M Road Push". Austin Statesman. May 7, 1964. ProQuest 1522273918. (subscription required)
  17. ^ "Pocket Facts" (PDF). Texas Department of Transportation. 2021. Retrieved October 29, 2022.
  18. ^ "Standard Highway Sign Designs for Texas" (PDF) (Revision 4, 2012 ed.). Texas Department of Transportation. May 2021. p. 3–14. Retrieved October 28, 2022.
  19. ^ Texas Department of Transportation (October 2008). Freeway Signing Handbook. pp. 4–9 to 4–10. Retrieved April 8, 2011.
  20. ^ Hughes, Sharon (July 16, 1995). "Highway officials nix urban road designation". Victoria Advocate. Associated Press. Retrieved April 7, 2011.
  21. ^ Transportation Planning and Programming Division (n.d.). "Farm to Market Road No. 544". Highway Designation Files. Texas Department of Transportation. Retrieved April 7, 2011.
  22. ^ Transportation Planning and Programming Division (n.d.). "Urban Road No. 544". Highway Designation Files. Texas Department of Transportation. Retrieved April 7, 2011.
  23. ^ Babineck, Mark (August 18, 2007). "Tex-Arcana: What's a farm-to-market road?". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved April 8, 2011.
  24. ^ "Minute Order 115371" (PDF). Texas Department of Transportation. November 15, 2018. Retrieved January 4, 2019.
  25. ^ "Agenda" (PDF). Texas Transportation Commission. November 15, 2018. Retrieved November 10, 2018.
  26. ^ Greig, Jane S. (August 12, 1997). "RR, RM, FM? Signs along 620 explained". Austin American Statesman. ProQuest 255539235. (subscription required)
  27. ^ Texas Department of Transportation. "Highway Designations Glossary". Retrieved April 8, 2011.
  28. ^ Transportation Planning and Programming Division (n.d.). "Business Farm to Market Road No. 1431-J". Highway Designation Files. Texas Department of Transportation. Retrieved April 7, 2011.
  29. ^ Transportation Planning and Programming Division (n.d.). "Business Farm to Market Road No. 1960-A". Highway Designation Files. Texas Department of Transportation. Retrieved April 7, 2011.
  30. ^ Transportation Planning and Programming Division (n.d.). "Business Farm to Market Road No. 1187-C". Highway Designation Files. Texas Department of Transportation. Retrieved April 7, 2011.
  31. ^ Iowa Code 2003: Section 306.3. Retrieved March 28, 2006
  32. ^ Iowa Code 2001: Section 312.5. Retrieved March 28, 2006.
  33. ^ 1955 Louisiana Highway renumbering
  34. ^ Johnston, Louis; Williamson, Samuel H. (2023). "What Was the U.S. GDP Then?". MeasuringWorth. Retrieved January 1, 2023. United States Gross Domestic Product deflator figures follow the Measuring Worth series.
  35. ^ "Ohio Builds Up Rural Road System". East Liverpool Review. East Liverpool, Ohio. February 6, 1940. p. 5 – via Newspapers.com.
  36. ^ "742 Miles Rural Roads Finished Or Being Built By Ohio Highway Dept". The Union County Journal. Marysville, Ohio. August 19, 1940. pp. 1–2 – via Newspapers.com. [1]

External links

  • Texas Department of Transportation

March 03, 2023
farm, market, road, united, states, farm, market, road, ranch, market, road, sometimes, farm, road, ranch, road, short, state, highway, county, road, that, connects, rural, agricultural, areas, market, towns, these, better, quality, roads, usually, highway, th. In the United States a farm to market road or ranch to market road sometimes farm road or ranch road for short is a state highway or county road that connects rural or agricultural areas to market towns These are better quality roads usually a highway that farmers and ranchers use to transport products to market towns or distribution centers Historically used throughout the country today the term is primarily associated with a large state maintained highway system in Texas FM 218 outside Hamilton Texas a typical Texas farm to market road Contents 1 History 2 Texas 2 1 History 2 2 Identification 2 3 Business routes 3 Other states 4 See also 5 References 6 External linksHistory EditBy 1930 counties and townships across the U S had built a large number of farm to market roads many of which were in need of repairs and safety improvements The Chief of the Bureau of Public Roads Thomas Harris MacDonald considered this need to be driven not by insufficient funding but by inefficient planning and inadequate equipment on the part of thousands of counties He advocated for an expansion of state maintained highway systems through the federal aid highway program so that counties could focus on maintaining fewer roads to a higher level of service 1 Texas EditMain category Farm to Market Roads in Texas This term is most closely associated with Texas where Farm to Market Road and Ranch to Market Road indicate roadways that are part of the state s system of secondary and connecting routes built and maintained by the Texas Department of Transportation TxDOT Texas established this system in 1949 to improve access to rural areas As with other state maintained highways in Texas all Farm or Ranch to Market roads are paved The system consists primarily of two lane roads although some segments have an additional number of lanes while some have been upgraded to freeways Speed limits along these roads vary but may be as high as 75 miles per hour 121 km h in rural areas 2 such as in Andrews and Pecos counties for example along FM 1788 FM 1776 and FM 1053 3 History Edit The first farm to market road in Texas was completed in January 1937 during the Great Depression It connected Mount Enterprise and the former community of Shiloh in Rusk County The route was 5 8 miles 9 3 km long and was constructed at a cost of 48 015 12 939 000 today This route is now part of Texas State Highway 315 4 The first officially designated highway FM 1 was authorized in San Augustine County in 1941 to connect US 96 near Pineland to a sawmill belonging to the Temple Lumber Company at Magasco 5 6 The first Ranch to Market Road was designated in 1942 7 In 1945 the highway commission authorized a three year pilot program for the construction of 7 205 miles 11 595 km of farm to market roadways with cost to be shared equally by the state and federal governments 8 As the program grew efforts were made by legislators from rural areas including State Senator Grady Hazlewood of Amarillo to expand the farm to market road network in the late 1940s 9 The funding was to have come from an increase in the fuel tax as proposed by State Senator Grover Morris in 1947 Although polls suggested that a majority of Texas residents were in favor of such a tax 10 this measure was stymied by lobbyists who supported such funding for arterial roads 11 The popularity of the program and the perceived need to connect the vast isolated central and western areas of the state prompted the passing of the Colson Briscoe Act in 1949 sponsored by State Senator E Neveille Colson and State Representative Dolph Briscoe 12 This legislation appropriated funding for the creation of an extensive system of secondary roads to provide access to the rural areas of the state and to allow farmers and ranchers to bring their goods to market reserving a flat 15 million per year 200 million today plus 1 cent per gallon of gasoline sold in the state for local highway construction 6 By 1957 the system had grown to over 31 000 miles 50 000 km 13 In 1962 the Texas legislature adjusted the appropriated funding amount to 23 million annually 200 million today through federal fund matching and expanded the farm to market system from 35 000 to 50 000 miles 56 000 to 80 000 km 14 15 By 1964 the system s mileage exceeded that of all other federal and state routes combined 16 The system now accounts for over half of the mileage maintainted by TxDOT 17 Identification Edit The sign for FM 1960 a farm to market road near Houston Texas Signs designating a Farm to Market or Ranch to Market road are a black square background containing a white shape of the state of Texas with the words FARM ROAD or RANCH ROAD appearing in white text on the background and the route number in black text within the shape of Texas 18 Guide signs the large green signs usually found along highways in the United States designating these roads use a simple white rectangle with the abbreviation F M or R M and the route number appearing below the abbreviation in black text 19 As a result of population growth and the expansion of urban areas many Farm to Market and Ranch to Market roads that originally served rural areas now serve urban areas sometimes exclusively An effort was made to rename such roads Urban Roads on June 27 1995 but residents opposed the effort arguing that removing the Farm and Ranch from the designations was un Texan and that the cost of changing signage was not justified Other than a few route markers such as on FM 1315 near Victoria most signs were not changed and TxDOT abandoned the idea to do so 20 While the Farm to Market and Ranch to Market route markers remained in use the state tracked these Urban Roads separately in its highway designation files For example the mileage of FM 544 in the Plano area was transferred from FM 544 to UR 544 in 1995 21 22 As part of the state highway system Urban Roads were eligible for state maintenance however unlike rural Farm to Market and Ranch to Market roads they did not receive state funding for expansion 23 On November 15 2018 the Urban Road system was cancelled and all roads on this system reverted back to their previous FM and RM designations 24 25 For example UR 544 was redesignated as FM 544 Distribution of Farm to Market green and Ranch to Market brown Roads Farm to Market and Ranch to Market roads are numbered as a single set of roads thus there is not an FM and an RM route with the same number 26 Urban Roads were designated with the same route numbers as the FM or RM routes from which the mileage was transferred 27 Ranch Road 1 which runs near the former ranch home of former President Lyndon B Johnson is signed with a Ranch to Market Road route marker but it is not part of this system rather it is the only roadway that TxDOT has designated as a Ranch Road 4 Route marker FM 1719 route marker in Potter County left alongside route markers for U S 87 and U S 287 right Guide sign destination sign along Interstate 35 showing typical signage for a Farm to Market Road right along with signage for a State Highway Loop left and a State Highway center for comparisonBusiness routes Edit Route marker for Business Farm to Market Road 1960 Texas currently has two signed business routes of Farm to Market Roads Business RM 1431 in Burnet County and Business FM 1960 in Harris County 28 29 Both business routes are former alignments that have been bypassed by newer routings A third business route Business FM 1187 in Tarrant County was designated from 2004 to 2016 30 Other states EditMissouri has a similar state operated system of farm to market roads called Missouri supplemental routes Missouri uses single e g A B etc and double letters e g AA BB etc citation needed Iowa also has a farm to market road system Those roads are under county jurisdiction 31 but are eligible for state aid from a dedicated fund 32 Louisiana has a farm to market road system The 1955 renumbering renumbered all routes based on an A B C system of route classification A is primary B secondary and C farm to market All routes 300 through 1266 are classified C routes 33 circular reference Ohio s farm to market roads were maintained by the state Department of Highways but built to only a county road standard In 1939 the state spent 1 47 million equivalent to 22 8 million in 2021 34 to improve 74 417 centerline miles 119 763 km of farm to market roads 35 In 1940 the department launched a farm to market road improvement program alongside the usual maintenance program it improved 742 miles 1 194 km of roadway at a cost of 9 59 million including funds from the Works Progress Administration 36 See also EditList of Farm to Market Roads in Texas Agricultural roadReferences Edit Counties Try To Build Roads Without Engineering Direction And Proper Equipment The Cincinnati Enquirer February 23 1930 p 4 via Newspapers com Richardson Robin Y June 18 2013 New speed limit signs being posted Marshall News Messenger Retrieved October 28 2022 Clark James March 16 2022 NTSB opens investigation in Andrews deadly van crash EverythingLubbock com Retrieved October 28 2022 NTSB spokesperson Eric Weiss also said FM 1788 is a two lane two way asphalt roadway with a 75 mile an hour speed limit a b Staff Farm Ranch to Market Facts Texas Department of Transportation Retrieved February 26 2008 Transportation Planning and Programming Division n d Farm to Market Road No 1 Highway Designation Files Texas Department of Transportation Retrieved April 8 2011 a b Burka Paul April 1983 Texas Primer The Farm to Market Road Texas Monthly 11 4 134 Courtney David August 2022 The Texanist What s the Difference Between a Farm to Market Road and a Ranch to Market Road Texas Monthly 47 8 Retrieved October 27 2022 Texas to improve farm to market roads Harper Herald June 15 1945 p 3 Retrieved April 8 2011 Followwill Line Robyn May 19 2000 Grady Hazlewood Amarillo Globe News Retrieved April 8 2011 Belden Joe November 24 1946 Out of the Mud by Hiking Tax On Gas Is Desire of Majority Austin American ProQuest 1611714314 subscription required Smith Griffin Jr April 1974 The Highway Establishment and How It Grew Texas Monthly 2 4 86 Texas Transportation Institute Texas Transportation Hall of Honor Inductees 2005 Texas A amp M University System Archived from the original on February 20 2011 Retrieved April 8 2011 Giant Road Plans Told Austin Statesman November 2 1957 ProQuest 1613523821 subscription required Kite Kirk Highway Development from the Handbook of Texas Online Retrieved April 7 2011 Texas Department of Transportation TxDOT History 1970 to 1951 Retrieved April 8 2011 State Sets Big F M Road Push Austin Statesman May 7 1964 ProQuest 1522273918 subscription required Pocket Facts PDF Texas Department of Transportation 2021 Retrieved October 29 2022 Standard Highway Sign Designs for Texas PDF Revision 4 2012 ed Texas Department of Transportation May 2021 p 3 14 Retrieved October 28 2022 Texas Department of Transportation October 2008 Freeway Signing Handbook pp 4 9 to 4 10 Retrieved April 8 2011 Hughes Sharon July 16 1995 Highway officials nix urban road designation Victoria Advocate Associated Press Retrieved April 7 2011 Transportation Planning and Programming Division n d Farm to Market Road No 544 Highway Designation Files Texas Department of Transportation Retrieved April 7 2011 Transportation Planning and Programming Division n d Urban Road No 544 Highway Designation Files Texas Department of Transportation Retrieved April 7 2011 Babineck Mark August 18 2007 Tex Arcana What s a farm to market road Houston Chronicle Retrieved April 8 2011 Minute Order 115371 PDF Texas Department of Transportation November 15 2018 Retrieved January 4 2019 Agenda PDF Texas Transportation Commission November 15 2018 Retrieved November 10 2018 Greig Jane S August 12 1997 RR RM FM Signs along 620 explained Austin American Statesman ProQuest 255539235 subscription required Texas Department of Transportation Highway Designations Glossary Retrieved April 8 2011 Transportation Planning and Programming Division n d Business Farm to Market Road No 1431 J Highway Designation Files Texas Department of Transportation Retrieved April 7 2011 Transportation Planning and Programming Division n d Business Farm to Market Road No 1960 A Highway Designation Files Texas Department of Transportation Retrieved April 7 2011 Transportation Planning and Programming Division n d Business Farm to Market Road No 1187 C Highway Designation Files Texas Department of Transportation Retrieved April 7 2011 Iowa Code 2003 Section 306 3 Retrieved March 28 2006 Iowa Code 2001 Section 312 5 Retrieved March 28 2006 1955 Louisiana Highway renumbering Johnston Louis Williamson Samuel H 2023 What Was the U S GDP Then MeasuringWorth Retrieved January 1 2023 United States Gross Domestic Product deflator figures follow the Measuring Worth series Ohio Builds Up Rural Road System East Liverpool Review East Liverpool Ohio February 6 1940 p 5 via Newspapers com 742 Miles Rural Roads Finished Or Being Built By Ohio Highway Dept The Union County Journal Marysville Ohio August 19 1940 pp 1 2 via Newspapers com 1 External links EditTexas Department of Transportation Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Farm to market road amp oldid 1118846935, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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