Farm-to-market Road - Identification

Identification

Signs designating a Farm to Market or Ranch to Market road are a black square background containing a white shape of the state of Texas, with the words "FARM ROAD" or "RANCH ROAD" appearing in white text on the background and the route number in black text within the shape of Texas. Guide signs (the large green signs usually found along highways) designating these roads use a simple white rectangle with the abbreviation "F.M." or "R.M." and the route number appearing below the abbreviation in black text.

As a result of population growth and the expansion of urban areas, many Farm to Market and Ranch to Market roads that originally served rural areas now serve urban areas, sometimes exclusively. An effort was made to rename such roads "Urban Roads" in 1995, but residents opposed the effort, arguing that removing the "Farm" and "Ranch" from the designations was "un-Texan," and that the cost of changing signage was not justified. Other than a few route markers, such as on FM 1315 near Victoria, most signs were not changed, and TxDOT abandoned the idea to do so. However, though the Farm to Market and Ranch to Market designations remain in place on route signage, the state does continue to track these urban roads separately in its highway designation files. For example, the mileage of FM 544 in the Plano area was transferred from FM 544 to UR 544 in 1995. As part of the state highway system, Urban Roads are eligible for state maintenance; however, unlike rural Farm to Market and Ranch to Market roads, they do not receive state funding for expansion.

Farm to Market and Ranch to Market roads are numbered as a single set of roads; that is, there should not be an FM and an RM with the same route number, unless it crosses US 281. Urban Roads are designated with the same route number as the FM or RM from which the mileage was transferred.

• Route marker: FM 544 (or more precisely, UR 544) route marker at the Denton–Collin county line. The white sign below the shield indicates State Maintenance Ends, as the segment of FM 544 within Collin County was removed from the state highway system in 2000. This sign has since been removed.

• Guide sign: destination sign along Interstate 35 showing typical signage for a Farm to Market Road (right), along with signage for a State Highway Loop (left) and a State Highway (center) for comparison.