Plans for improving Highway 30 to four-lanes in Eastern Iowa in the Clinton area have been put on the shelf.
Transportation Planner with the Department Of Transportation Kathy Cutler says the D-O-T continues to work on Highway 30 and is working on a bypass of Mt. Vernon and Lisbon-but she tells KROS the agency has decided to discontinue plans for now on continuing work to east.
Cutler said “we had initiated the study looking for the next piece from Lisbon to DeWitt. We decided we were a little to early to be going to the public so we sent letters around to let people know that at this time we are going to cease work on that study. But again the intent is to bring back at some time in the future, we’re just not certain what that schedule will be at this time.”
Cutler said funding was part of the reason for delaying work on Highway 30 from Lisbon to DeWitt. She said instead of looking at big corridors like this maybe looking at more manageable smaller projects we ‘can bite and chew.”
Cutler said the DOT is still committed to improving Highway 30 to four lanes across Iowa some day.
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On another area transportation issue-D-O-T Eastern Iowa Transportation Planner Sam Shea says there have been conversations between the commission and city staff and some council members about extending the expressway to the north to Highway 67 and the state designating the expressway as Highway 67. Shea said the extension is in the original plans. He said under the current designations the city would have to pay for the extension and it would not be a DOT project. The Transportation Planner said the talks have also including shifting the designation of Highway 67 to the expressway and the state would then designate the current Highway 67 on city streets back to the city.
Shea says if the change is made-then the state would be responsible for the extension and the city would be responsible for upgrades to the expressway to meet highway standards. He said they have conducted a long term financial analysis so both parties could compare the costs.
Shea said any changes would have to be a mutual agreement between the Commission and the City Council. Either side could propose the change, but he said typically the proposal comes from the city.
Shea compared the change to a recent change in Dubuque for Highway 52 and the city will take over the street in town and the state will build an extension around town. He said one benefit of those types of arrangements is allowing the state to use their larger snowplows in the winter on more rural roads and not on city streets.
Shea said he hasn’t heard anything about the Clinton Highway 67 and expressway for some time.
