US Highway 285 is a major north-south route within the Permian Basin of West Texas and southeastern New Mexico, and it’s seen better days. U.S. Highway 285 is a major north-south route within the Permian Basin of West Texas and southeastern New Mexico, and it’s seen better days. Thanks to the oil boom in the region, the vital highway – particularly between Carlsbad, N.M., and Pecos, Texas – is much busier than it was a decade ago. More flatbed trucks rely on the road to haul equipment and supplies. In addition, the region’s constrained pipeline capacity translates into an abundance of tanker trucks hauling crude oil on 285 and other highways in the region. All of the extra traffic, a sign of the Permian’s enviable economic prosperity, has accelerated wear and tear on the roadway. “This surge has boosted the need for more trucks on the road,” Ronnie Witherspoon, […]