One of Iowa’s oldest interchanges is on its way out.
IA 415 in Polk County between Des Moines and Ankeny was upgraded to four lanes, with a grassy median, in two stages: Broadway to Northeast 54th Avenue in 1959, and from there to the old Y-intersection with IA 160 in 1961. (A very short piece that goes under the railroad tracks and past the then-brand-new Firestone tire plant became four lanes as World War II was winding to a close.)
Included in that 1961 upgrade was a full diamond interchange with Northeast 66th Avenue. Half a century later, that interchange with its small underpass and short ramps is going to be removed. It will be replaced with a standard intersection with traffic signals. The DOT will hold a meeting about the project Feb. 5, but the plans are already online.
Ironically, although that part of IA 415 is one of the oldest rural non-interstate four-lanes in Iowa, US 69/Northeast 14th Street just to the east remains two lanes to this day. (Why did that not change at least 20 years ago? It’s baffling.)