KOB-TV in Albuquerque reports that a nasty winter storm has closed all or parts of Interstate 40 from the Duke City to the Texas line, but police are allowing some local traffic on Route 66.

Eastbound traffic is being stopped at Tramway Boulevard in Albuquerque, and unlike the last storm, Route 66 is only open to local traffic through the Tijeras Canyon, closing those drivers’ main alternate route.

Police are letting traffic onto Route 66 after checking IDs to make sure drivers actually live there.

Also, both directions of I-40 are closed between Tucumcari and the Texas state line.

Overnight, traffic on Interstate 25 was closed between Bernalillo and Las Vegas. It reopened early Friday morning, but officials say the road is still snowpacked and icy.

The Amarillo Globe-News (free registration required) also reports that the Texas Panhandle is bracing for three to six inches of snow after sunset today, with up to a foot in northern areas.

Like the last storm, the National Weather Service has issued winter storm warnings for much of New Mexico and the Texas Panhandle. At the Oklahoma state line, however, it’s all rain.

UPDATE: As usual, the Duke City Fix photo pool has plenty of wintry images from the storm.

Lynn Grisard Fullman, aka the Food Detective for the Birmingham (Ala.) News, put out a list of highlights in the past year, and the Midpoint Cafe in Adrian, Texas, made the cut:

Ugly?: Well, Joann Harwell at MidPoint Cafe along Historic Route 66 near Amarillo, Texas, actually bestowed the title herself to her chocolate-peanut butter pie which, she says, has “the ugliest crust” when compared with her grandmother’s pies. Dating to the late 1930s, MidPoint Cafe today is a favorite stopover for tourists cruising the nostalgic route.

I’ll second the recommendation — for the cafe and its pies.