SH 302 was originally designated in 1938 as a route between Kermit and Odessa, but has since incorporated the former SH 276 and a defunct Farm to Market Road to achieve its present length. Loving County, where the route passes through Mentone, is the nation's least populous county in stark contrast to the urbanized eastern end of the route in the Odessa area.
History
SH 302 was originally created on January 26, 1939, from Odessa northwest 12.7 miles in the direction of Kermit.[2] On February 20, 1939, SH 302 was extended to Kermit, but with the route's designation being contingent upon completion of work then being done in Winkler County.[3] Soon after, the state assumed maintenance of the Ector County portion, and the following year in 1940 the state assumed maintenance of the Winkler County part of the route.[1] On September 7, 1938, SH 276 was designated over the current western terminus at US 285 to Mentone,[4][5] although a portion of that route existed as early as 1936 as an earth road from US 285 to the former town of Arno.[6]
On April 16, 1946, SH 276 was designated over a second, discontinuous portion of the present route between SH 115 west of Kermit to SH 82 in Kermit.[4] On August 12, 1946, that designation was dropped and that segment was added as an extension of SH 302 westward to SH 115.[1][4] On July 14, 1949, Farm to Market Road 1211 (FM 1211) was designated over a 2.0-mile (3.2 km) section of the present route from Mentone to the northeast. On December 17, 1952, FM 1211 was extended incrementally to the Winkler County line and then to SH 115.[7] On December 1, 1953, the designation of SH 276 was dropped and that road between US 285 and Mentone became part of SH 302, and SH 302 was signed, but not designated, along FM 1211 from Mentone to SH 115 near Kermit.[1][4] On February 27, 1958, SH 82, the intersecting route in Kermit, was renamed SH 18.[8][9]
On September 26, 1967, SH 302 was rerouted over Loop 338 in Ector County to I-20.[1] Its former route between Loop 338 and US 385 in Odessa was then designated as Spur 450.[1][10] On August 29, 1990, the section of SH 302 from Mentone to SH 115 near Kermit was officially designated, cancelling FM 1211.[1][7]
SH 302 begins at US 285 between Pecos and Orla in Reeves County as a two-lane road. The route proceeds to the northeast crossing the Pecos River before passing through Mentone in Loving County. The route continues eastward crossing into Winkler County and intersecting SH 115 just outside Kermit. In Kermit, the route is known as Jim Sharp Blvd. and widens to four lanes with a left turn lane in the middle. After crossing SH 18, the route continues eastward losing the left turn lane as it leaves town. The route continues as a four-lane, undivided highway into Ector County where the route is known as Kermit Hwy. Just east of Notrees, the route becomes a divided highway and passes along the northern edge of West Odessa before joining along Loop 338, Odessa's beltway. The passage of SH 302 along Loop 338 begins as a freeway, but later has limited crossings at grade. SH 302 terminates at the intersection of Loop 338 and I-20.[11]
The route passes through largely level terrain requiring only gentle grades. The route traverses many oil fields along its length, and encounters fields of sand dunes east of Kermit.[12][13] The western portion of the highway west of Kermit is especially isolated as the route passes through Loving County, the only county in the nation with fewer than 100 residents.[14]
US 285 southwest of Mentone
I-20 at Odessa
