Highway 100 nearing completion in Cedar Rapids

CEDAR RAPIDS - The long-awaited extension of Highway 100 is nearly complete, with state and city officials planning to host a celebration for the highway's final 4-mile stretch.

The ribbon-cutting and community bike-ride event will be held sometime this fall, once work on the 4 miles of Highway 100 - which spans from Covington Road to Highway 30 - is complete. The highway will open to vehicle traffic soon after the event.

'It will be ready to open by November sometime,” said Cathy Cutler, transportation planner with the Iowa Department of Transportation's District 6 office in Cedar Rapids. 'Then it will be open, and we will have the beltway around Cedar Rapids completely done.”

The first half of Highway 100 - between Edgewood Road and Covington Road - opened to the public nearly two years ago. All told, the 8-mile project is expected to cost about $200 million.

City and DOT officials said the date for the ribbon-cutting and bike ride has yet to be set because it is dependent on the final stages of work. The event will be preceded by comments from city and state officials.

Matt Myers, Cedar Rapids city traffic engineer, said the extension provides a huge boon to the community, not just for commuters looking to get from one side of town to the other at 65 miles per hour with minimal interruptions, but also for the area's trucking industry.

Myers said while the average drive along much of Edgewood Road might take 20 to 25 minutes, Highway 100 should split the commute time in half.

'It's just a great addition to our regional network,” Myers said.

Paired with Collins Road, the Marion bypass, Iowa 13, Highway 151 and Highway 30, Highway 100 completes a beltway for the metro area.

Nate Kampman, Cedar Rapids city engineer, noted the project has spurred the need for a few additional upgrades on city streets, including work that will continue into next year reconstructing E Avenue up to Stoney Point Road. That project will prepare the avenue for added traffic from Highway 100.

l Comments: (319) 398-8309; mitchell.schmidt@thegazette.com