I-35 Ankeny->Ames to become six lanes?

[Incyte]

It looks like the Iowa DOT is considering widening I 35 to six lanes all the way North to Ames. It's probably already overdue to be honest.

http://www.desmoinesregister.com/st...interstate-35-dot-wants-your-input/100021540/

 

[ISUAgronomist]

It could take nearly 20 years to complete the entire 20-mile stretch, he said.

Good grief...nothing like dragging it out. Must be taking a page out of the Highway 20 contruction playbook.

 

[BillyClone]

It looks like the Iowa DOT is considering widening I 35 to six lanes all the way North to Ames. It's probably already overdue to be honest.

http://www.desmoinesregister.com/st...interstate-35-dot-wants-your-input/100021540/

I think it's time for 6 lanes.

We live in Ankeny and have children at Iowa State. I'm amazed at the amount of traffic between the two towns. Game days are ridiculous but even just normal rush hour is packed. Must be a lot of commuters to Des Moines.

 

[crawfy54]

I thought last time this was discussed on CF, we had some civil engineers explaining that moving from 4 to 6 lanes really doesnt do much to increase the flow of traffic... maybe I made that up in my head, though.

 

[Cyclonepride]

Electroshock therapy for left lane drivers would accomplish the same thing.

 

[Turn2]

Badly needed. I-35, US-69, R-38 and IA-17 all carry huge numbers at certain times of the day. It would be nice to have some big boy roads.

 

[CysRage]

I thought last time this was discussed on CF, we had some civil engineers explaining that moving from 4 to 6 lanes really doesnt do much to increase the flow of traffic... maybe I made that up in my head, though.

I remember that too. They said it isn't a quantity of lanes problem it's a planning problem of some sort. I'm sure one of them will see this thread again and comment on it.

 

[harimad]

I thought last time this was discussed on CF, we had some civil engineers explaining that moving from 4 to 6 lanes really doesnt do much to increase the flow of traffic... maybe I made that up in my head, though.

No, it happened.

 

[chuckd4735]

I thought last time this was discussed on CF, we had some civil engineers explaining that moving from 4 to 6 lanes really doesnt do much to increase the flow of traffic... maybe I made that up in my head, though.

There have been quite a few studies that have shown that the increase in new roads lead to the same percentage increase in traffic. So essentially, if traffic counts are 48,000 with 4 lanes, adding 2 more lanes would bump it up to 72,000. Its called induced traffic, and its pretty much the same concept of induced demand in economics.

 

[EnhancedFujita]

I thought last time this was discussed on CF, we had some civil engineers explaining that moving from 4 to 6 lanes really doesnt do much to increase the flow of traffic... maybe I made that up in my head, though.

I'm not a CE but I've worked in the transportation field in the past. Widening a road usually results in short term relief before congestion picks back up. There will be more volume moved across the road, but more people will use it, bringing the congestion levels back to where they were prior to the widening. Not saying that the widening isn't needed, just that people shouldn't expect it to solve the problem. I'd say improvements to other routes from the north metro to Ames would probably do just as much, if not more, to help with congestion than a project on I-35.

 

[Mr Janny]

I'm not a CE but I've worked in the transportation field in the past. Widening a road usually results in short term relief before congestion picks back up. There will be more volume moved across the road, but more people will use it, bringing the congestion levels back to where they were prior to the widening. Not saying that the widening isn't needed, just that people shouldn't expect it to solve the problem. I'd say improvements to other routes from the north metro to Ames would probably do just as much, if not more, to help with congestion than a project on I-35.

I can see that side of it, but I think this scenario might be a little different. We're talking about a primary route that doesn't have that many other options. What percentage of people who need to get between Ames and DSM don't use I-35, right now? Some certainly use 69, but is it approaching 30% of all traffic? I don't have the numbers, but I wouldn't think so. What I'm saying is that there's a finite amount of traffic that needs to go along that route, so yes, more people likely would use a widened I-35, but I suspect there's not enough volume out there that's not currently using it to bring congestion levels back to where they currently are.

 

[BillBrasky4Cy]

I'm not a CE but I've worked in the transportation field in the past. Widening a road usually results in short term relief before congestion picks back up. There will be more volume moved across the road, but more people will use it, bringing the congestion levels back to where they were prior to the widening. Not saying that the widening isn't needed, just that people shouldn't expect it to solve the problem. I'd say improvements to other routes from the north metro to Ames would probably do just as much, if not more, to help with congestion than a project on I-35.

Just my opinion but this would make sense if you were adding another lane to 35/80 or 235 in Des Moines. I really don't see I-35 traffic increasing significantly due to a short stretch of 6 lane interstate. Travelers and interstate trucks are already using that route. Keep in mind that the study also takes into account widening a 2 lane road to a 4 lane road like the highway 20 project. Of course those routes are going to see a huge increase in traffic.

 

[Buster28]

What makes no sense to me is when people say "the congestion will continue." So, we're supposed to do nothing and let the traffic get heavier and heavier on the same four lanes? How does that solve anything? If you're not keeping up, you're falling behind.

 

[cycloneG]

What makes no sense to me is when people say "the congestion will continue." So, we're supposed to do nothing and let the traffic get heavier and heavier on the same four lanes? How does that solve anything? If you're not keeping up, you're falling behind.

The widening of a secondary route north/south would cut down on congestion. Give traffic an alternate path.

 

[BillBrasky4Cy]

What makes no sense to me is when people say "the congestion will continue." So, we're supposed to do nothing and let the traffic get heavier and heavier on the same four lanes? How does that solve anything? If you're not keeping up, you're falling behind.

Look no further than the city of Ankeny. The city has been growing at a record pace for a really long time and they failed to be forwarding looking enough to build infrastructure to support the growth. This was the #1 reason why we moved away from there.

 

[harimad]

I think the conversion of the exit ramp to Hwy 30 into a flyover ramp will help a lot. Traffic slows down so much right now because people have to slow down to 35 mph to exit.

 

[khardbored]

Wasn't there serious talk 5-10 years ago about some kind of "northeast connector" that would start around Polk City, move eastward along the north edge of Ankeny, curve south and then hook up with I-80 somewhere around Altoona or Bondurant? Wonder whatever became of that proposition.

 

[chuckd4735]

Wasn't there serious talk 5-10 years ago about some kind of "northeast connector" that would start around Polk City, move eastward along the north edge of Ankeny, curve south and then hook up with I-80 somewhere around Altoona or Bondurant? Wonder whatever became of that proposition.

Yes...it was essentially an extension on the 65 bypass continuing north curving the the west just north of Ankeny. One of the proposed routes had it going north all the way to Cambridge and connecting with HWY 210. Last I had heard, there was some serious environmental issues that came up in studies, so it was shelved.

 

[BikeSkiClone]

Has there been any talk/is it possible to widen Hwy 69 to four lanes from Ames to Ankeny similar to how 65/69 is from Des Moines to Indianola? Just spitballin' here

 

[EnhancedFujita]

I can see that side of it, but I think this scenario might be a little different. We're talking about a primary route that doesn't have that many other options. What percentage of people who need to get between Ames and DSM don't use I-35, right now? Some certainly use 69, but is it approaching 30% of all traffic? I don't have the numbers, but I wouldn't think so. What I'm saying is that there's a finite amount of traffic that needs to go along that route, so yes, more people likely would use a widened I-35, but I suspect there's not enough volume out there that's not currently using it to bring congestion levels back to where they currently are.

If we lived in a bubble this might be true, but remember, if this takes place over 20 years, then Ankeny and Ames are both going to see significant additional growth during that time, so that when it is finally complete, you won't see much difference. Now if they could get the widening done in one construction season, that might be a little different, but it'd still eventually peak back to the same traffic level. So I guess the point I'm making is that the widening is probably needed. Just that it won't alleviate congestion, just keep it at a more stable level as growth increases.