Highway 30 Article from the Gazette on Construction Progress
- Thread starter cigaretteman
- Start date
They have had signs up that this section will be done this spring. They also had an article in the Tribune a couple of days ago. The prep work they did was to reduce to two lanes while still allowing for exiting.
Yeah, they basically added U-turn lanes in the median in a bunch of places, but they'll be used to divert traffic one way or the other as they work on the other lane.
I'd like to know how much of Hwy 30 is 2 lane from Ames to CR. And how much will be 2 lane after this summer.
I'd say it's up to about 60% four lane. Which is well up from when I was a freshman in 2002 and not only was it almost all 2 lane, but you also had to drive through several towns that are now bypassed. Hopefully they have the whole thing four lanes in a few years.
Now
Ames========State Center---Hwy 330===============Tama------Hwy 218=====Cedar Rapids.
Summer 2011
Ames=======================================Tama------Hwy 218=====Cedar Rapids
And if they wouldn't have taken their concrete equipment down during the summer and would have worked on days it was nice and not raining, they could have had Ames to Tama done this fall. I know when they were working, I drive that route everyday. Some weeks the sun would be shinning and no progress made, then it would rain, and then they might work for a day, then quite working while the sun was out. It made no sense at all.
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Summer 2024
Ogden ================================================ Lisbon
Getting to Cedar Rapids is soooo easy now from Ames. I may never take I-80 between DSM and IC again!
They only had about 10 miles left in the fall North of Belle Plaine, to pave. Not sure when that stretch is going to be completed, but they had the ground work almost finished then.
When my folks took me to ISU in 1990, Hwy 30 from CR to Ames was 50 miles each of 2 lane and 4 lane. They were working on part of it iirc as well.
Dad commented "they'll probably have it all 4 lane by the time you graduate" as kind of a Murphy's law joke.
When I took my son in 2010, it was about 75/25 four-lane.
And they were still working on it. I shared with him my dad's comment.
When I took my daughter in 2014, it was maybe 85/15 four-lane.
And they were still working on it. I shared with her my dad's comment.
I think a couple years ago it was finally done. It took 30 years.
But agree, it's fantastic. No more 80 west for this guy, 30 to 65 to DSM. You cut the corner and avoid 80% of the traffic.
Dad commented "they'll probably have it all 4 lane by the time you graduate" as kind of a Murphy's law joke.
When I took my son in 2010, it was about 75/25 four-lane.
And they were still working on it. I shared with him my dad's comment.
When I took my daughter in 2014, it was maybe 85/15 four-lane.
And they were still working on it. I shared with her my dad's comment.
I think a couple years ago it was finally done. It took 30 years.
But agree, it's fantastic. No more 80 west for this guy, 30 to 65 to DSM. You cut the corner and avoid 80% of the traffic.
Its not finished yet unless they finished it up this winter, we took that route quite a few times taking our daughter to the hospital in IC for her cancer visits and they still had about 8 miles to pave.
