K-27 is an approximately 226-mile-long (364 km) north–south state highway that parallels Kansas' western border with Colorado. It is the westernmost north–south state highway in the state. It begins at U.S. Route 56 (US-56) in Elkhart near the Oklahoma state line and travels through the seven counties that border Colorado until reaching its northern terminus north of St. Francis, where it ends at the Nebraska state line (effectively becoming like-numbered Nebraska Highway 27). Along the way, it intersects several major highways, including US-160 in Johnson City, US-50 and US-400 in Syracuse, US-40 in Sharon Springs, Interstate 70 (I-70) and US-24 in Goodland, and US-36 in Wheeler. The section from US-40 north to Nebraska, is designated as the Land and Sky Scenic Byway. K-27 changes time zones twice, during its trek through Kansas, the only highway in the state to do so.
Before state highways were numbered in Kansas there were auto trails. The section of K-27 from Elkhart to the beginning of the overlap with K-51 was a part of the former Dallas–Canadian–Denver Highway. In Syracuse, the highway crosses the former National Old Trails Road, Old Santa Fe Trail and New Santa Fe Trail and Albert Pike Highway. In Tribune, K-27 crosses the former Kansas–Colorado Boulevard. In Sharon Springs the highway crosses the former Union Pacific Highway. Then further north in Goodland K-27 crosses the former Golden Belt, former Kansas White Way, former Blue Line, and former Pikes Peak Ocean to Ocean Highway. The route that K-27 follows was first designated as a state highway in 1926, as K-25. At that time it ran from the Elkhart, north to the Nebraska border. By 1927, it was renumbered to K-27. In 1955, K-27 was extended from Elkhart, south to the Oklahoma border. Then in 2004, it was realigned to intersect US-56 northeast of Elkhart.
K-27 changes time zones twice, during its trek through Kansas, the only highway in the state to do so. From the southern terminus, Central Standard Time is observed in Morton and Stanton counties, but the time zone changes to Mountain Standard Time when the highway crosses from Stanton into Hamilton County. Hamilton and the next three counties to the north (Greeley, Wallace, and Sherman) observe Mountain time, but clocks revert to Central Time at the Sherman County-Cheyenne County line.[4]
The Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT) tracks the traffic levels on its highways, and in 2018, they determined that on average the traffic varied from 410 vehicles per day just north of the southern overlap with K-51 to 4,410 vehicles per day in the city of Goodland.[5][6] The only section of K-27 included in the National Highway System is its overlap with US-50 and US-400.[7] The National Highway System is a system of highways important to the nation's defense, economy, and mobility.[8] K-27 also connects to the National Highway System at its junction with I-70 and US-24.[7]
K-27 begins at US-56 northeast of Elkhart, crosses the Cimarron Valley Railroad, and then curves to the west. After about .5 miles (0.80 km) the road curves to the north then crosses Happy Ditch about 1.2 miles (1.9 km) later. The highway continues north through flat rural farmlands for roughly 4.9 miles (7.9 km) then crosses the Cimarron River. From here the roadway continues another 1.4 miles (2.3 km), where it begins an overlap with K-51, the only overlap with another state highway. The two routes continue north through flat farmlands for approximately 3.45 miles (5.55 km) then cross an unnamed creek. K-27 and K-51 advance north for about two miles (3.2 km) then crosses North Fork Cimarron River. About 2.4 miles (3.9 km) past the river the highway curves east at Road 9. The roadway continues through farmlands for roughly 5.7 miles (9.2 km) then begins to border the city of Richfield as South Boulevard.[9]