Texas State Highway 16

State Highway 16
Route information
Maintained by TxDOT
Length:	541.8 mi[1] (871.9 km)
Existed:	before 1939 – present
Major junctions
South end:	US 83 in Zapata
	I-69W / US 59 in Freer I-410 in San Antonio I-35 in San Antonio US 90 in San Antonio I-10 in Kerrville US 87 / US 290 in Fredericksburg US 190 in San Saba US 84 / US 183 in Goldthwaite US 67 / US 377 in Comanche I-20 near Strawn US 180 from Metcalf Gap to Brad US 380 in Graham
North end:	US 281 south of Wichita Falls
Highway system
Highways in Texas Interstate US State Toll Loops Spurs FM/RM Park Rec ← SH 15 SH 17 → ← SH 345 SH 346 SH 347 →

State Highway 16, or SH 16, is a south–north state highway that runs from Zapata on the Texas-Mexico boundary to U.S. Highway 281 24 miles (38.6 km) south of Wichita Falls. It is the longest state highway in Texas at almost 542 miles, but is only the 9th longest highway overall in the state.^[2]

Route description

SH 16 begins at an intersection at US 83 in Zapata. The route continues through south Texas ranchlands, then to the north through San Antonio's far south side. The routes enters San Antonio from the southeast, and goes around the west side of the city concurrent with Interstate 410. The route veers to the northwest as it passes through Bandera, Kerrville, and Fredericksburg, and then reaches the Texas Hill Country. After passing through the cities of Comanche and Llano, it continues north through ranchland and farms. Its next intersection is with I-20 south of the town of Strawn. It continues to the northwest, wrapping around the northern and eastern sides of Possum Kingdom Lake. It reaches an intersection with US 380 in the town of Graham. In North Texas, the highway finally reaches its final terminus between Antelope and Windthorst, almost 542 miles from its starting point.

Previous routes

SH 16 was one of the original twenty six state highways proposed in 1917, overlaid on top of the Fort Worth-Oklahoma Highway. From 1917 the routing mostly followed present day Interstate 35W from Fort Worth to Denton. It continued on, routed along present day Interstate 35 from Fort Worth through to Oklahoma. By 1919, the route was cancelled. It was then reassigned to the future route of U.S. Highway 181 (which was routed over it in 1926) from San Antonio to Corpus Christi. SH 16 then went west on SH 44 to Robstown, south on U.S. Highway 77, and west on SH 285. This route replaced portions of SH 9 and SH 12. It was reassigned by 1932 to a new section between Santa Anna and Brady over previous SH 107 and was rerouted over SH 51 from Crowell to the Oklahoma State line. By 1939, the section from Brady to Santa Anna was promptly reassigned to U.S. Highway 183.

SH 16 was designated by 1939 from south of Graham to near Buena Vista south of San Antonio, replacing SH 81. In 1965 the road was significantly extended via its current routing to Zapata, replacing State Highway 346 from San Antonio to Jourdanton, and was rerouted over Interstate 410 in San Antonio. SH 16 also replaced portions of SH 173 and FM 496.^[3] In 1969, SH 16 extended north to US 281, replacing portions of SH 254 and FM 61.

Major intersections

County	Location	mi	km	Destinations	Notes
Zapata	Zapata			US 83 / FM 496 west – Rio Grande City, Laredo
Jim Hogg	​			FM 649 north – Mirando City	South end of FM 649 overlap
	Randado			FM 649 south – Rio Grande City	North end of FM 649 overlap
	South Fork Estates			FM 3073 west
	Hebbronville			SH 285 east – Falfurrias
				SH 359 east (Galbraith Street) – San Diego	South end of SH 359 overlap
				SH 359 west (Viggie Street) – Laredo	North end of SH 359 overlap
Duval	​			FM 2295 east / FM 310 – Benavides
	​			SH 339 south – Benavides
	Freer			US 59 / SH 44 – Laredo, San Diego, George West	Future I-69W
	​			FM 2359 east to US 59
McMullen	​			FM 624 – Cotulla, Orange Grove
	​			FM 1962 east
	Tilden			SH 72 east – Three Rivers, Choke Canyon State Park	South end of SH 72 overlap
	​			SH 72 west – Fowlerton	North end of SH 72 overlap
	​			FM 3445 east – James E. Daughtrey Wildlife Management Area
	​			FM 791 east – Campbellton
Atascosa	​			FM 3387 east
	​			FM 140 – Charlotte, Christine
	Jourdanton			FM 1332 west
				SH 97 – Charlotte, Pleasanton
	​			Loop 162 west to SH 97
	​			SH 173 north – Devine
	​			FM 3350 east – Pleasanton, Pleasanton Municipal Airport
	Poteet			Loop 282 north – Poteet
				Loop 282 south / FM 476 east – Poteet	South end of FM 476 overlap
				FM 476 west – Rossville	North end of FM 476 overlap
Bexar	San Antonio			Loop 1604 (Anderson Loop) – Somerset, Elmendorf	interchange
				Watson Road / Lone Star Pass - Toyota Plant	former Spur 66 east
				I-410 east / SH 130 north / Spur 422 north (Palo Alto Road) – Palo Alto College	South end of I-410 / SH 130 overlap; SH 16 south follows exit 49
		see I-410
				I-410 east / Spur 421 south (Bandera Road) / Evers Road – San Antonio	Interchange; north end of I-410 overlap; SH 16 north follows exit 13
	Leon Valley			Wurzbach Road
				Spur 471 west (Grissom Road)	former FM 471 south
	San Antonio			Eckhert Road	former FM 1517 east
				Loop 1604 (Anderson Loop) to I-10 / FM 471 – University of Texas at San Antonio	interchange
	Helotes			FM 1560 north (Hausman Road)	South end of FM 1560 overlap
				FM 1560 south	North end of FM 1560 overlap
	San Geronimo			SH 211 south to FM 471
Medina	​			PR 37 west – Medina Lake
Bandera	​			SH 46 east – Boerne
	Pipe Creek			FM 1283 south to PR 37 – Medina Lake
	Bandera			SH 173 south – Hondo, Hill Country State Natural Area	South end of SH 173 overlap
				SH 173 north – truck route to Kerrville	North end of SH 173 overlap
	​			FM 470 west – Tarpley, Utopia
	​			RM 2828 east to SH 173
	Medina			RM 337 west – Vander Pool
	​			FM 2107 west
Kerr	​			FM 1273 west (Upper Turtle Creek Road)
	​			FM 2771 east (Lower Turtle Creek Road / truck route) to SH 173
	Kerrville			SH 173 south to Loop 534 – truck route to Bandera, Kerrville-Schreiner Regional Park
				Loop 98 west (Thompson Drive South)
				SH 27 (Main Street) – Ingram, Schreiner University, Center Point
				FM 1341 east (Golf Avenue)
				Loop 534 (Veterans Highway) to SH 173 – Kerrville-Schreiner Regional Park, Airport
				I-10 – Junction, San Antonio	I-10 exit 508
Gillespie	Fredericksburg			FM 2093 west
				US 87 north / US 290 west (Main Street) – Mason, Junction	South end of US 87 / US 290 overlap
				US 87 south / US 290 east (Main Street) – San Antonio, Austin	North end of US 87 / US 290 overlap
	Eckert			RM 1323 east – Willow City
Llano	​			RM 965 south – Enchanted Rock State Natural Area
	Llano			RM 2323 south – Prairie Mountain
				SH 71 east – Austin	South end of SH 71 overlap
				RM 152 west (Main Street) – Castell
				SH 29 / SH 71 west (Young Street) – Mason, Brady, Burnet	North end of SH 71 overlap
San Saba	Cherokee			RM 501 east – Bend	South end of RM 501 overlap
				RM 501 west – Pontotoc	North end of RM 501 overlap
	San Saba			US 190 – Brady, Lampasas
	​			FM 1480 east – Pecan Grove
	​			FM 500 west – Regency Bridge
Mills	​			FM 3023
	Goldthwaite			US 183 south – Lampasas, Austin	south end of US 183 overlap
				Loop 15 east to US 84 east / FM 572 – Waco
				FM 574 west
	​			US 84 east – Evant, Gatesville, Waco	south end of US 84 overlap
	Durenville			US 84 west / US 183 north – Brownwood	north end of US 84 / US 183 overlap
	​			FM 218 west – Zephyr	south end of FM 218 overlap
	Priddy			FM 218 east – Pottsville, Hamilton	north end of FM 218 overlap
Comanche	​			FM 1476 north – Newburg
	​			FM 3200 south
	Comanche			FM 590 south – Zephyr
				US 67 / US 377 / SH 36
				FM 2247 north (West Wrights Avenue)
				FM 3381 east
	​			FM 2861 east
	Downing			FM 2318 east	south end of FM 2318 overlap
				FM 2318 west	north end of FM 2318 overlap
	De Leon			FM 587 west (West Sipe Springs Road)
				SH 6 east (East Navarro Street) – Dublin	south end of SH 6 overlap
				SH 6 west – Gorman	north end of SH 6 overlap
	​			FM 2921 west
	​			FM 2156 east – Victor
Eastland	Desdemona			FM 8 – Gorman, Eastland, Stephenville
	​			I-20 – Abilene, Fort Worth	I-20 exit 361
Palo Pinto	Strawn			FM 2372 west / Davidson Cemetery Road
				SH 108 south – Mingus
	​			FM 207 west – Necessity
	Metcalf Gap			US 180 east – Palo Pinto, Mineral Wells	south end of US 180 overlap
	Brad			US 180 west – Breckenridge, Possum Kingdom State Park	north end of US 180 overlap
	​			FM 2353 north
	​			PR 36 west – Possum Kingdom Lake
	​			SH 254 east – Graford
	​			FM 2353 south – Possum Kingdom Lake
	​			Loop 533 north
	​			SH 337 south – Graford, Mineral Wells
	​			Loop 533 south
Young	​			FM 1191 north
	Graham			FM 1287 south – Ivan
				US 380 east / SH 67 south – Fort Belknap	south end of US 380 overlap
				US 380 west – Throckmorton	north end of US 380 overlap
				FM 2652 north
				FM 3491 south
	​			FM 2075 east
	Loving			SH 114 – Olney, Jacksboro
	Markley			FM 1769 south
Archer	​			US 281 – Wichita Falls, Jacksboro
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

References

1. Transportation Planning and Programming Division (n.d.). "State Highway No. 16". Highway Designation Files. Texas Department of Transportation. Retrieved August 7, 2013.
2. "State Highway, Loop, and Spur Facts". Texas Department of Transportation. Retrieved August 7, 2013.
3. Transportation Planning and Programming Division (n.d.). "State Highway No. 346". Highway Designation Files. Texas Department of Transportation. Retrieved August 7, 2013.