Ever since the mid-1960s, US 30 has been viewed as an eventual four-lane corridor across the state of Iowa. Over the years, it’s been improved in fits and phases across eastern and central Iowa, while the western part has fallen by the wayside.
In the next five years, there will be a complete four-lane US 30 from Ogden to Lisbon. That leaves a 44-mile (or so) two-lane portion between the end of the future Mount Vernon-Lisbon bypass and US 61. The Iowa Transportation Commission has “U.S. 30 corridor prioritization” on its meeting agenda for this month, which I think relates to this.
But — and I fully understand I may be about to commit heresy here — is four-laning 30 between Lisbon and US 61 the thing to do? Here’s my thinking behind this.
- Traffic count drops substantially in this corridor compared with what’s west and east. See the 2014 AADT map. Between Stanwood and Grand Mound it’s comparable to US 63 in Tama County, although truck traffic is higher.
- The four-lane will have to be built from scratch. Current 30 goes through seven towns on this stretch. The railroad parallels the highway throughout. To avoid the towns (and to avoid Yankee Run, a stream that parallels 30 on the south between Clarence and the Wapsipinicon River), a new roadbed would have to extended due west from a totally rebuilt south 30/61 interchange, not angle north until Wheatland, and then stay at least a mile away from the current road. Unlike new US 20 in western Iowa, the new alignment will not be a straight line and there will be many more houses and natural features to deal with. And the EISs. OMG, the EISs.
- This part of the corridor may not serve as a popular alternative to I-80. IMO, it’s highly unlikely this would be built as a controlled-access freeway. Going through Clinton, a two-lane in Illinois, and a toll I-88 all work against US 30 being a long-distance alternative to the east. While US 30/61 could serve as a relief route for I-380/80 between Cedar Rapids and Davenport, how much would cross traffic and a 65-mph speed limit cut that attractiveness?
- The bright(ish) side for historic preservationists would be that the necessity of a new four-lane corridor could leave the Lincoln Highway and the new “old 30” intact — except maybe between Lisbon and Stanwood. That’s also the segment I could see being four-laned apart from the rest with the most need (traffic-wise) and least difficulty.
Instead of plowing ahead (if decades-in-the-making can be called such) with finishing the US 30 corridor here, I think serious consideration should be given to speeding up a timetable for six-laning I-80 between Davenport and Iowa City, and I-380 south of Cedar Rapids. That needs to be done anyway. Increasing capacity in those corridors could alleviate some of the traffic on 30 today.