I35 U.S. 30 ramp work

[ajspatio19]

People have no idea what goes into construction projects until they live it.

4 years of a civil engineering program really didn't even teach me what goes in to it. I found out once I actually entered the work force.

 

[Cycsk]

That's true, I'd imagine a majority of traffic comes from the Des Moines area which seems to be untouched in this plan.

Should be a real pain for UNI fans!

 

[moforisu]

Should be a real pain for UNI fans!

Looks like 30 is fully open so they can venture to it east of 35, probably hwy 65.

 

[Aclone]

Should be a real pain for UNI fans!

That would be the actual game.

 

[Sousaclone]

My experience in Civil engineering says that's probably a solid thought, but I felt like making a bad joke instead

Ahh, I didn't detect the sarcasm correctly. My civil engineering experience would agree with your civil engineering experience and the heavy civil contractor in me agrees with both of us..

 

[aauummm]

But more importantly, these projects are programmed 3-5 years in advance. The bridges are inspected every couple of years and determinations for repairs are made based on that. People think the IDOT gets handed $100 million on January 1st and they just go through the list and pick the things they want to get done that year. People could learn a lot if they would google: Project Development.

Agree with the project development comment. Here's the IDOT Bridges and Structures Bureau website. For those interested in Bridge Project Development just scroll down the page and click on "Project Development Process Manual".

Iowa DOT Bridges and Structures Bureau

The first big hurtle for any project is to make it into the DOT's five-year plan. Here's the link to the Program Management Bureau and an interactive map of all of the DOT projects in the five-year plan.

IDOT Five-Year Plan for projects

 

[aauummm]

4 year of a civil engineering program really didn't even teach me what goes in to it. I found out once I actually entered the work force.

You made it through in 4 years? Impressive!

 

[ajspatio19]

You made it through in 4 years? Impressive!

A little more, but I prefer to round down!

 

[chuckd4735]

Most state and local governments were in financial crisis during the pandemic. Also you don't just start one of these projects at the drop of a hat. You have to get it on a budget, create a design and construction documents, go out to bid, award the bid, get submittals from the winning bidder, procure materials, and mobilize before you can even start construction. Even if they had the money in 2020 by the time they knew the pandemic was going to close everything down there wouldn't have been time to go through all of that process and have construction completed before winter of 2020/21.

So much this. We somewhat "fast-tracked" the upgrading of a 1/4 mile of a gravel road to paved. We started planning this 2 years ago, and just started construction a week ago. I think most people would be shocked at how much work goes on before a shovel even touches the ground.

 

[dafarmer]

IDOT plans are in the works for years before they are the bids are let, so why wasn't this done at the time of the flyover?

 

[ajspatio19]

Ahh, I didn't detect the sarcasm correctly. My civil engineering experience would agree with your civil engineering experience and the heavy civil contractor in me agrees with both of us..

I'm glad our civil engineering experiences can agree! This makes me wonder though, does construction take so long because all of the engineers are on CF during the day?

 

[VeloClone]

IDOT plans are in the works for years before they are the bids are let, so why wasn't this done at the time of the flyover?

Perhaps they waited for the flyover to be completed so that the lane and ramp closures would have a bit less impact to traffic through that interchange. Besides, they have a limited amount of resources. They also have to play the game of making sure each area of the state is seeing some progress and it doesn't appear that all of the upgrades are happening in a favored area (like where the DOT headquarters are located).

 

[chuckd4735]

IDOT plans are in the works for years before they are the bids are let, so why wasn't this done at the time of the flyover?

Probably because it would of shut down NB 35 traffic from getting to WB 30. That would be a nightmare of a detour with the amount of traffic that takes that route each day.

 

[IcSyU]

IDOT plans are in the works for years before they are the bids are let, so why wasn't this done at the time of the flyover?

#1 The budget isn't unlimited.
#2 There's a point at which too much work is going to require complete shutdown...which that stretch of road is not well suited for.

 

[dafarmer]

I know that they must be magicians, because they tried to make water run uphill on my farm,

 

[Ms3r4ISU]

Perhaps they waited for the flyover to be completed so that the lane and ramp closures would have a bit less impact to traffic through that interchange. Besides, they have a limited amount of resources. They also have to play the game of making sure each area of the state is seeing some progress and it doesn't appear that all of the upgrades are happening in a favored area (like where the DOT headquarters are located).

Also, remember that the flyover project took longer than expected.

 

[Cdiedrick]

Looks like gameday travel could be a nightmare this fall.

Iowa Department of Transportation: Ramp closures on north- and southbound I-35 at the U.S. 30 interchange in Ames begin Tuesday, April 6

JEFFERSON, Iowa – April 5, 2021 – A bridge repair project on the north- and southbound Interstate 35 bridges over U.S. 30 (see map) will require ramp closures beginning 7 p.m. Tuesday, April 6, until Wednesday, Nov. 24, weather permitting, according to the Iowa Department of Transportation’s...

www.news.iowadot.gov

Meh, I come in on 17 from the north‍

 

[Aclone]

You would think that a recent project on highway 35 and 30 would have fixed everything at the same time....

Look up a few posts.