Hunter
05/26/24
A project intended to make the trip between Iowa City and Cedar Rapids less congested is underway.
The Gazette reports construction has started to expand Interstate 380 to six lanes between Penn Street and Swan Lake Road in the North Liberty area.
The expansion is part of a plan to make the interstate between North Liberty and the Eastern Iowa Airport exit on Wright Brothers Boulevard three lanes in each direction.
The Penn Street to Swan Lake Road phase is expected to be completed either late this year or in early 2025.
Later this year, construction will begin on the I380/Wright Brothers Boulvard interchange. The current interchange will be replaced with a “diverging diamond” interchange, much like the one being constructed at the I80/1st Avenue interchange in Coralville.
Catherine Cutler, district planner for the Iowa Department of Transportation’s District 6, told the Gazette the estimated $102 million price tag to add the additional lanes and the new interchange is being funded by a combination of federal and state dollars.