Southwest Region
Arizona, New Mexico, Nevada, southern Utah, and southern Colorado, along with western Texas, typically make up the southwest region of the United States. I-15, I-25, I-40, and I-10 are the most used interstates in the region.
Major Southwest Highways
I-15 - goes through many population centers in the southwest United States, including Salt Lake City, Utah and Las Vegas, Nevada.
I-25 - The major southwest cities along I-25 include Albuquerque and Santa Fe, New Mexico and Las Vegas, Nevada. This highway heads north from Albuquerque to Denver, Colorado.
I-40 - This highway begins near the Atlantic Ocean in the eastern United States, but journeys through the heart of the southwest United States, including Albuquerque, New Mexico, Flagstaff, Arizona, and western Texas. For tourists, this interstate leads to the southern end of the Grand Canyon.
I-10 - This interstate travels along the southern areas of the southwest United States. It travels near Phoenix, Arizona; Las Cruces, New Mexico; and Tucson, Arizona.
Major Southwest Cities
The southwest is not as densely populated as other areas of the country. Major cities in the southwest United States include Las Vegas, Albuquerque, and Phoenix.
Las Vegas - Las Vegas is well known for its glitz, and tourism and gaming are the top two industries in the area. The construction industry is also important, as it tries to keep pace with the rapid growth in Las Vegas and its surrounding suburbs.
Albuquerque - The city is located near the center of New Mexico, and is the largest city in the state. Two important interstates, I-25 (headed north and south) and I-40(headed east and west), intersect in Albuquerque.
Phoenix - The largest city in the southwest United States, Phoenix is home to many multi-million dollar corporations in the high-tech, Internet, mining, and financial industries. I-10 runs west from Phoenix to California. Other large cities in Arizona, including Tucson, Tempe, Glendale, and Flagstaff are all relatively close to Phoenix in terms of population.
Other major cities in the southwest United States include Salt Lake City, Utah, El Paso, Texas, and Pueblo, Colorado.