Restoring Highway 100 nixed access ramps to be studied

CEDAR RAPIDS - The Iowa Department of Transportation will ask a consultant to study a design change to accommodate additional access ramps on the under-construction Highway 100 extension but defer construction.

This is a step forward after officials from Cedar Rapids, Fairfax and the Corridor Metropolitan Planning Organization raised concerns upon realizing access ramps from 80th Street to Highway 100 had been eliminated from plans.

'We can build the highway and have a real-life analysis to see if the need (for additional access ramps) is there or not,” said Jim Schnoebelen, an Iowa DOT district 6 engineer. 'It may turnout that when it's built, we realize it is not necessary.”

Schnoebelen said this approach would reduce additional costs and scheduling delays. He said the review to determine if the redesign option is feasible should be complete in a few weeks.

Local officials said removing those 80th Street access points would undermine some of the key goals of the $200 million Highway 100 extension project and complicate travel for motorists from the south side of Cedar Rapids and communities to the south, such as Fairfax.

The DOT said the ramps were removed due to safety and operational concerns, there is an access ramp about a mile away at E Avenue, and to save money.

A local delegation met with DOT leaders in Ames on Oct. 29 to discuss the matter.

Cedar Rapids officials detailed its top three priorities as it relates to design changes in a letter to the DOT on Oct. 31.

First, Cedar Rapids wanted to avoid changes that cause revisions or modifications to environmental approvals, which could delay construction. The second priority is access to Highway 100 at or near the Highway 30 system interchange from 80th Street, and the third priority is direct access between Highway 30 and 16th Avenue, which is similar to what exists today.

'We are hopeful reasonable design options can be included to provide more efficient, safer, and convenient connections to the new Highway 100 for traffic using Highway 151, 80th St., and 16th Ave.,” Cedar Rapids City Manager Jeff Pomeranz wrote in his letter to DOT Director Paul Trombino.

Dave Elgin, Cedar Rapids public works director, said city leaders are appreciative of the DOT's willingness to review the matter, but building the additional access points at the start may wind up making more sense if the area develops quickly. The hope is to avoid sending pass-through traffic on local roads, he said.

'We'd prefer to build it now, rather than wait,” Elgin said. 'But, being respectful of the constraints the DOT has to work with, if that is the only option that is better than not having the accommodations at all and having to deal with it reactively in the future.”

The Highway 100 extension began earlier this year after decades in the works. Local officials hope the road is a game changer for economic development throughout the region.

The extension will connect Highway 100 from Edgewood Road south and west to Highway 30 near where 16th Avenue SW and 80th Street converge. Completion is expected in 2020.