Author Archives: Jeff

Jan 17

Contractors, wide shields, and the 2009 MUTCD

Posted on Friday, January 17, 2014, at 12:56 PM by Jeff

The presence of wide shields on the north extension of IA 196 to new US 20 has been documented here already. It’s not a good look. Notably, these shields were not put up by the state, but by a contractor. … Continue reading →

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Jan 16

At least the moon shot worked

Posted on Thursday, January 16, 2014, at 12:19 PM by Jeff

Since the day John F. Kennedy gave his historic moon speech at Rice University, Rice football is 2-42-1 against Texas…and Iowa State football is 1-42-1 against Oklahoma. (Link goes to my Oklahoma essay.) This convergence won’t last, though, because Rice-Texas only … Continue reading →

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Jan 15

Fort Dodge business route pages updated

Posted on Wednesday, January 15, 2014, at 10:59 AM by Jeff

I’ve cleared out the “proposed” section of the Fort Dodge Business 20 page, and replaced it with a lot of pictures of the new interchange at the west end. My previous rough sketch, based on the DOT’s 2005 proposal, ended … Continue reading →

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Jan 13

Three school story links

Posted on Monday, January 13, 2014, at 1:56 PM by Jeff

It’s the slow season for the blog; outside of whatever might pop up in the Legislature, road and school news is pretty quiet. Posts may be more sporadic. But here are some stories that caught my eye: Iowa City Press-Citizen: … Continue reading →

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Jan 10

Iowa precinct maps

Posted on Friday, January 10, 2014, at 10:37 AM by Jeff

As the Register reported Wednesday, the Iowa Secretary of State’s office has a page with links to all 99 county voting precinct maps. However, not all the maps are locally hosted. Some links go to maps hosted on the individual … Continue reading →

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Jan 09

Southwest Arterial update

Posted on Thursday, January 9, 2014, at 12:37 AM by Jeff

From KWWL. KWWL – Eastern Iowa Breaking News, Weather, Closings

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Jan 08

NIT final all over again

Posted on Wednesday, January 8, 2014, at 12:18 AM by Jeff

I guess Iowa State will need to win a few more games to avoid trip-ups like this on SI’s website. (It’s right in the header, wrong in the sidebar.) Meanwhile, there’s this nice AP article about ISU’s teams, mostly focusing … Continue reading →

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Jan 07

The weirdest interstate shields you’ll ever see

Posted on Tuesday, January 7, 2014, at 2:13 PM by Jeff

August 4, 2010: Where should I begin about these oddly shaped shields? This gantry in Tulsa at the east I-44/I-244 split has the state name on the markers, but that’s the only good thing about them. The font doesn’t look … Continue reading →

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Jan 06

Greetings from Hoth

Posted on Monday, January 6, 2014, at 12:33 AM by Jeff

When it gets below 250 Kelvin, you know you’re in trouble. Remember, being cold builds character. Des Moines’ three lowest highs for Jan. 6 are -10, -3, and a balmy 1 above; Waterloo’s are -15, -6, and -5. Monday’s temperature … Continue reading →

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Jan 04

On the DOT’s new logo

Posted on Saturday, January 4, 2014, at 2:46 PM by Jeff

When the Iowa Department of Transportation released its redesigned homepage in July, I was very disgruntled. I saw the triumph of style over substance, a three-button splash screen that obscured more than it helped. (In other words, I had the … Continue reading →

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