Washington State Route 260

State Route 260 (SR 260) is a 37.98-mile-long (61.12 km) state highway serving Franklin and Adams counties in the U.S. state of Washington. The highway begins at SR 17 west of Connell, and travels through the Washtucna Coulee to Kahlotus, forming the southern terminus of SR 21 and the northern terminus of SR 263, before a concurrency with SR 261 to SR 26 in Washtucna.

State Route 260
SR 260 is highlighted in red.
Route information
Auxiliary route of SR 26
Maintained by WSDOT
Length	37.98 mi[1] (61.12 km)
Existed	1964[2]–present
Major junctions
West end	SR 17 near Connell
Major intersections	US 395 in Connell SR 21 in Kahlotus SR 263 in Kahlotus
East end	SR 26 / SR 261 in Washtucna
Location
Country	United States
State	Washington
Counties	Franklin, Adams
Highway system
State highways in Washington Interstate US State Scenic Pre-1964 1964 renumbering Former
← SR 243 → SR 261

SR 260 had previously existed as a gravel road between Connell and Kahlotus in 1916 and was designated as Secondary State Highway 11A (SSH 11A) from Yakima to Connell and Secondary State Highway 11B (SSH 11B) from Connell to Washtucna in 1937. SSH 11A in the Connell area became an extension of SSH 11B in 1957, which in turn became SR 260 in the 1964 highway renumbering.

Route description

SR 260 begins at an intersection with SR 17 west of Connell in rural Franklin County. The highway travels east and turns southeast into Connell, traveling over a rail line owned by BNSF Railway and used on the Amtrak Empire Builder route between Pasco and Spokane.^[3][4] After intersecting U.S. Route 395 (US 395) in the busiest section of the entire route, a diamond interchange that received a daily average of 2,800 vehicles in 2011,^[5][6] the roadway continues east through the Washtucna Coulee and passes south of Sulphur Lake before entering Kahlotus. As SR 260 passes through Kahlotus, it forms the southern terminus of SR 21, going north towards Lind, and the northern terminus of SR 263, serving the Lower Monumental Dam. The road exits the city travelling east to Lake Kahlotus and Washtucna Lake, paralleling the Columbia Plateau Trail northeast to the beginning of a concurrency with SR 261.^[7] The two highways enter the Adams County city of Washtucna and become Main Street before an intersection with SR 26, where SR 260 ends and SR 261 continues to Ritzville.^[1][8]

History

The current route of State Route 260 (SR 260) first appears in a 1916 map as a road between Connell and Kahlotus.^[9] The highway was designated as part of Secondary State Highway 11A (SSH 11A) from Yakima to Connell and Secondary State Highway 11B (SSH 11B) from Connell to Washtucna in 1937, during the creation of the Primary and secondary state highway system.^[10] SSH 11A was re-aligned in 1957 and the route in the vicinity of Connell became part of SSH 11B.^[11] During the 1964 highway renumbering, SSH 11B became SR 260, being unpaved from newly created SR 17 to a short concurrency with U.S. Route 395 (US 395) ^[2][12][13]

By 1981, the entire route was paved and the concurrency with US 395 was removed and replaced by an intersection with a bypass of Connell.^[14][15] No major revisions to the route of SR 260 have occurred since the 1980s.^[16] The western section of the highway between SR 17 and Connell was considered for removal by a legislative committee in 1986.^[17]

Major intersections

SR 260 and SR 261 passing through Washtucna as Main Street before the eastern terminus of SR 260 at SR 26.

County	Location	mi[1]	km	Destinations	Notes
Franklin	​	0.00	0.00	SR 17 – Pasco, Moses Lake	Western terminus
	Connell	7.43– 7.63	11.96– 12.28	US 395 – Spokane, Pasco	Interchange
	Kahlotus	23.21	37.35	SR 21 north (Violet Avenue) – Lind, Odessa	Southern terminus of SR 21
		23.49	37.80	SR 263 south (Spokane Avenue) – Windust, Lower Monumental Dam	Northern terminus of SR 263
	​	31.54	50.76	SR 261 south to US 12 – Starbuck	West end of SR 261 overlap
Adams	Washtucna	37.98	61.12	SR 26 – Othello, Colfax	Eastern terminus; east end of SR 261 overlap
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi       Concurrency terminus

References

1. Strategic Planning Division (March 5, 2012). State Highway Log Planning Report 2011, SR 2 to SR 971 (PDF) (Report). Washington State Department of Transportation. pp. 1284–1288. Retrieved January 13, 2013.
2. "47.17.475: State route No. 260". Revised Code of Washington. Washington State Legislature. 1970. Retrieved January 13, 2013.
3. 2011 Washington State Rail System (PDF) (Map). Washington State Department of Transportation. January 2012. Retrieved January 13, 2013.
4. Passenger Rail System - Washington State (PDF) (Map). Washington State Department of Transportation. January 2012. Retrieved January 13, 2013.
5. "SR 395 - Junction SR 260" (PDF). Washington State Department of Transportation. February 28, 2011. Retrieved January 13, 2013.
6. Staff (2011). "2011 Annual Traffic Report" (PDF). Washington State Department of Transportation. pp. 162–163. Retrieved January 13, 2013.
7. Columbia Plateau Trail State Park South (PDF) (Map). Washington State Parks. Retrieved January 13, 2013.
8. "State Route 260" (Map). Google Maps. Retrieved January 13, 2013.
9. Washington: Connell Quadrangle, 1916 (Map). 1:250,000. United States Geological Survey. 1916. Retrieved January 13, 2013.
10. Washington State Legislature (March 17, 1937). "Chapter 190: Establishment of Primary State Highways". Session Laws of the State of Washington (1937 ed.). Olympia, Washington: Washington State Legislature. pp. 1007–1008. Retrieved January 13, 2013. (a) Secondary State Highway No. 11A; beginning at Connell on Primary State Highway No. 11, thence in a westerly direction by the most feasible route to Yakima on Primary State Highway No. 3; the director of highways of the State of Washington shall provide suitable facilities for vehicle and pedestrian crossing of the Columbia river at the point where Secondary State Highway No. 11A, as herein described, crosses the river, and shall maintain said means of crossing at the expense of the State of Washington and without charge to the traveling public; (b) Secondary State Highway No. 11B; beginning at Dusty on Primary State Highway No. 3, thence in a westerly direction by the most feasible route by way of Washtucna to a junction with Primary State Highway No. 11, in the vicinity south of Connell.
11. Washington State Legislature (1957). Session Laws of the State of Washington (1957 ed.). Olympia, Washington: Washington State Legislature. Retrieved January 13, 2013.
12. Prahl, C. G. (December 1, 1965). "Identification of State Highways" (PDF). Washington State Highway Commission, Department of Highways. Retrieved January 13, 2013.
13. Walla Walla, 1963 (Map). 1:250,000. United States Geological Survey. 1963. Retrieved January 13, 2013.
14. "Lind By-Pass Will Straighten Kinks". Tri-City Herald. August 21, 1956.
15. Walla Walla, 1981 (Map). 1:250,000. United States Geological Survey. 1981. Retrieved January 13, 2013.
16. Washington State Highways, 2011–2012 (PDF) (Map). 1:842,000. Washington State Department of Transportation. 2011. Retrieved January 13, 2013.
17. Woehler, Bob (September 19, 1986). "Add roads to highway system, legislators told". Tri-City Herald. pp. A1–A2. Retrieved December 20, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.

External links

Template:Attached KML/Washington State Route 260

KML is from Wikidata

• Highways of Washington State