The more than 460 miles of U.S. Highway 287 that meanders northwest through Wyoming from the Colorado border through Yellowstone National Park will be forever linked with President Donald Trump if federal legislation designates it Interstate 47, aka the “Trump Interstate.”
A bill introduced Monday by Texas Republican U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, and co-sponsored by Wyoming Sen. Cynthia Lummis, would rename the nearly 1,800 miles of U.S. 287 as I-47.
One of the longest three-digit highways in the nation, 287 starts in Port Arthur, Texas, and runs through Oklahoma, Colorado and Wyoming before ending in Choteau, Montana.
Along the way, it runs a winding 463-mile northwest route through the Cowboy State starting at the Colorado border near Tie Siding, running through multiple Wyoming cities and towns before hitting the South Entrance to Yellowstone.
From there, it picks up at West Yellowstone just inside the Montana border.
As the state that gave Trump the most support by percentage in all three of his presidential elections, including 71% in 2024, Wyoming may be a natural choice for a highway named for the 47th president.
State Rep. John Bear, R-Gillette, said he hadn’t heard about the bill (S. 4484) before Thursday morning, but that he would be behind the effort.
“I think honoring this president is a great idea,” he told Cowboy State Daily. “I think we had the highest percentage of support for him … so it should be right here.”
Not Everyone's A Fan
One person who wouldn’t welcome the Trump Interstate running through her community is Sharon Cumbie, mayor of Laramie, one of two politically blue enclaves in an otherwise red Wyoming map.
Cumbie was horrified to learn of the potential for Laramie to be the largest Wyoming city on I-47’s route through the state.
Saying she thinks the bill is “a political statement,” Cumbie also expressed concerns that another Interstate running into Laramie could be more than the city can handle.
“It would be devastating,” she said, adding that it would run against Laramie’s long-term vision of being a small, walkable city with easy connections to its downtown.
“It might work for the people in Fort Worth, Texas, but not for Wyoming,” she said.
As for Lummis being a co-sponsor of the bill, “It looks like a political stunt,” Cumbie said. “Maybe she’s been in Washington too long.”
Lummis said the bill could do a lot of good for Wyoming.
"I'm always looking for ways to upgrade Wyoming's roads, and U.S. 287 should be at the top of the list," Lummis said in a statement to Cowboy State Daily. "I believe it deserves interstate-level investment because it runs across our entire state and is traveled by so many."
There will be tangible benefits being an interstate over a federal highway, Lummis said.
"Upgrading U.S. 287 to an interstate designation means safer roads, faster freight movement, and more investment coming back to Wyoming," she said. "Naming it in honor of President Trump seemed only fitting, considering his love for rebuilding America's roads and infrastructure."
News To WYDOT
The text of the bill itself only calls for designating U.S. 287 as the future I-47, specifically addressing the highway’s naming and not outlining any upgrades or expansion to the road.
Whether that means any practical changes for people who drive it isn’t clear.
It’s also news to the Wyoming Highway Patrol and Wyoming Department of Transportation, with representatives of both agencies telling Cowboy State Daily on Thursday that they hadn’t heard of the bill.
The impact a fourth interstate on Wyoming could have on WYDOT depends on whether there are any potential plans to upgrade the current U.S. 287 through the state, said agency spokeswoman Jordan Young.
“Right now, 287 is a two-lane highway through pretty much the whole state,” she said, adding that making it an interstate “would be interesting.”
“Even the federal highways that exist now, we do all the maintenance, we do all the construction on it,” she said. “Construction dollars do come from the federal government, so I would be curious to see the language of the bill.”
That means if the change is a renaming, the impact for WYDOT will be minimal and mostly deal with signage, she said. If it evolves into widening lanes and beefing up 287, that could have a significant impact.
“WYDOT is ready for whatever legislation is passed and we’ll support whatever our delegation decides,” Young said, adding that the agency already deals with stretches of highway that have been named for people and things.
“We have some named highways around Wyoming and we make the appropriate signage for them,” Young said. “Making an interstate, I don’t know what that would entail if it would have to be a two-way divided interstate the whole way (through the state).”
As for that signage, she said it could be a problem if people chose to vandalize or steal any “Trump Interstate” signs, but that already happens to some extent now.
‘Trump Country’
Like Wyoming, “Texas is Trump Country,” Senator Cornyn says in a statement announcing his bill.
“This bill cements that legacy by designating nearly 1,800 miles of open road from Texas’ Gulf Coast to the edge of the U.S.-Canadian border as I-47 to forever be remembered as Trump Interstate.”
He also indicates if I-47 were to be expanded to carry more traffic, that could be sometime in the future and not now if the bill passes.
“By upgrading one of our nation’s longest highways to a future interstate, this legislation will increase economic growth and improve safety, all while honoring the most consequential president of our lifetime.”
‘Call It Your Uncle Bob, I Don’t Care’
At the local level across Wyoming, the idea of U.S. 287 becoming I-47 is drawing mixed reactions.
Fremont County Commissioner Michael Jones said that with or without Trump attached to it, he thinks upgrading 287 would be an economic driver for his county and Lander, which the highway runs through.
“Call it your Uncle Bob, I don’t care,” he told Cowboy State Daily. “If something like this happened, I think the benefit would be good.”
Jones said the real discussion should focus less on highway signs and more on infrastructure.
“I think it opens up a north-south thoroughfare through the middle of our state,” he said. “I think the potential for some growth is good.”
Not every local official sounded eager about the possibility of interstate-style traffic going through already busy tourist towns.
Dubois Mayor Patricia Neveaux said her town already feels like an interstate runs through it every summer as waves of tourists and truck traffic funnel toward Yellowstone.
“I don’t think I would be very happy, because I already know that we have a traffic issue in our community,” she said.
“We may not be an interstate, but we are a major thoroughfare through the state of Wyoming to get to Yellowstone,” Neveaux added.
Neveaux said speeding traffic is already one of Dubois’ biggest headaches.
“Our in-town limit is 30 mph,” she said. “Our officers are writing tickets for 60 (mph) in the 30.”
In Rawlins, where 287 branches off northwest from sharing Interstate 80 from Laramie, longtime restaurant owner and local emergency management volunteer Michael Lujan is among those who would welcome “Trump Interstate.”
“As a businessman who believes in this country, this is a cool thing,” he said. “Will it happen? Who knows, but I think it should really be considered.”
Greg Johnson can be reached at greg@cowboystatedaily.com and Kolby Fedore can be reached at kolby@cowboystatedaily.com.
