State Highway 71 is the subject of a truck freight diversion feasibility study being conducted by the Colorado Department of Transportation to explore diverting truck traffic from Interstate 25.

[2] SH 71 begins at its southern terminus with U.S. Route 350 in La Junta, Colorado.

It proceeds north into Crowley County and the city of Ordway, where it is signed as Phantom Avenue.

The highway continues northward to a junction with Interstate 70 (I-70) adjacent to US 24.

In La Junta, the highway continues north for several miles to Ordway, then it takes a northeast turn to Limon.