# Colorado State Highway 96

State Highway 96 (SH 96) is a state highway in eastern Colorado. Its western terminus is an intersection with SH 69 in Westcliffe. Its eastern terminus is at the Kansas state line, east of Towner, where it continues as K-96.

## Frontier Pathways Scenic and Historic Byway

The section of the highway between Pueblo and Silver Cliff is designated as part of the Frontier Pathways National Scenic Byway.
The highway passes and intersects many major highways and several state highways along its 207-mile route. In Custer County, Highway 96 crosses the Wet Mountains and passes through the San Isabel National Forest. Its highest point is Hardscrabble Pass at 9,085 feet.

## History

The route was established in the 1920s, when the routing was exactly as it is today. Several portions were paved by 1946 including the segment from Pueblo to Boone, Olney Springs to Sugar City, and from Haswell to the Kansas state line. The segment of SH 96 concurrent with US 50 was constructed as an expressway by 1957. The entire route was paved by 1964.

## Major intersections

| County | Location | mi | km | Destinations | Notes |
| Custer | Westcliffe | 0 | 0.0 | SH 69 – Walsenburg, Salida | Western terminus |
| Custer | ​ | 16.5 | 26.6 | SH 165 south – Rye, Colorado City | Northern terminus of SH 165 |
| Custer | Wetmore | 26 | 42 | SH 67 north – Florence | Southern terminus of SH 67 |
| Pueblo | Pueblo | 52 | 84 | SH 45 (Pueblo Boulevard) | |
| Pueblo | Pueblo | | | US 50 Bus. | |
| Pueblo | Pueblo | | | N. Bradford Street To I-25 / US 85 / US 87 north | |
| Pueblo | Pueblo | 56 | 90 | SH 227 south – Salt Creek | Northern terminus of SH 227 |
| Pueblo | Pueblo | 58 | 93 | SH 47 west | Eastern terminus of SH 47 |
| Pueblo | Pueblo | 58 | 93 | US 50 west – Cañon City | Western terminus of US 50 concurrency |
| Pueblo | Pueblo | 61 | 98 | – Pueblo Memorial Airport | |
| Pueblo | Pueblo | 61.5 | 99.0 | SH 233 south (Baxter Road) | Northern terminus of SH 233 |
| Pueblo | ​ | 64 | 103 | SH 231 south | Northern terminus of SH 231 |
| Pueblo | ​ | 70 | 110 | US 50 east – La Junta | Eastern end of US 50 concurrency |
| Pueblo | Boone | 75 | 121 | SH 209 south | Northern terminus of SH 209 |
| Crowley | ​ | | | SH 167 south – Fowler | Northern terminus of SH 167 |
| Crowley | Crowley | 99 | 159 | SH 207 south – Manzanola | Northern terminus of SH 207 |
| Crowley | Ordway | 105 | 169 | SH 71 south – Rocky Ford | Western end of SH 71 concurrency |
| Crowley | Ordway | | | SH 71 north – Punkin Center | Eastern end of SH 71 concurrency |
| Kiowa | Eads | 165 | 266 | US 287 north – Kit Carson | Western end of US 287 concurrency |
| Kiowa | ​ | 168 | 270 | US 287 south – Lamar | Eastern end of US 287 concurrency |
| Kiowa | ​ | | | US 385 south – Lamar | Western end of US 385 concurrency |
| Kiowa | Sheridan Lake | 193 | 311 | US 385 north – Cheyenne Wells | Eastern end of US 385 concurrency |
| Kansas state line ||||||
| Greeley | ​ | 207.5 | 333.9 | K-96 east – Tribune | Eastern terminus; continuation into Kansas as K-96 |
| 1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi Concurrency terminus ||||||
* The highway just west of Wetmore.
* Hardscrabble Pass, the highest point on the highway.
* The highway passes over Rush Creek in Kiowa County.