One of Iowa’s oldest interchanges is on its way out.<\/p>\n
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<\/a> became four lanes as World War II was winding to a close.)<\/p>\n 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.<\/a>\u00a0The DOT will hold a meeting about the project Feb. 5, but the plans are already online.<\/p>\n 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<\/em>. (Why did that not change at least 20 years ago? It’s baffling.)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" 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 … Continue reading