Interstate 35 (I-35) is a north–south
Interstate Highway
The Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways, commonly known as the Interstate Highway System, is a network of controlled-access highways that forms part of the National Highway System in the United States. T ...
in the United States that runs from
Laredo, Texas
Laredo ( ; ) is a city in and the county seat of Webb County, Texas, United States, on the north bank of the Rio Grande in South Texas, across from Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas, Mexico. Laredo has the distinction of flying seven flags (the Flag of th ...
, to
Duluth, Minnesota
, settlement_type = City
, nicknames = Twin Ports (with Superior, Wisconsin, Superior), Zenith City
, motto =
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top: Downtown Dul ...
. In
Iowa
Iowa () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wiscon ...
, the highway runs from south to north through the center of the state, roughly parallel to
U.S. Highway 69 (US 69) and
US 65. It enters the state near
Lamoni
In the Book of Mormon, Lamoni (; believed to mean "Lamanite" or "of Laman") is a Lamanite king. The missionary Ammon converts him back to the Law of Moses. After this, Lamoni becomes righteous again.
Lamoni was a lesser king of part of the gre ...
from
Missouri
Missouri is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee): Iowa to the north, Illinois, Kentucky and Tennessee to the east, Arkansas t ...
and continues north through the
southern Iowa drift plain
The geography of Iowa includes the study of bedrock, landforms, rivers, geology, paleontology and urbanisation of the U.S. state of Iowa. The state covers an area of 56,272.81 sq mi (145,746 km2).
Bedrock features
Iowa's bedrock geology ge ...
. In the
Des Moines area, I-35
runs concurrently with
I-80
Interstate 80 (I-80) is an east–west transcontinental freeway that crosses the United States from downtown San Francisco, California, to Teaneck, New Jersey, in the New York metropolitan area. The highway was designated in 1956 as one o ...
, and the two highways bypass
Des Moines to the west and north.
I-235, the only
auxiliary route
In road transportation in the United States, a special route is a road in a numbered highway system that diverts a specific segment of related traffic away from another road. They are featured in many highway systems; most are found in the In ...
of I-35, serves the suburbs and downtown Des Moines; it begins and ends at the two interchanges where I-35 and I-80 meet. Near
Mason City and
Clear Lake,
US 18 and
Iowa Highway 27
O scale (or O gauge) is a scale commonly used for toy trains and rail transport modelling. Introduced by German toy manufacturer Märklin around 1900, by the 1930s three-rail alternating current O gauge was the most common model railroad sc ...
(Iowa 27) overlap with I-35. Shortly after, US 18 splits off to the west in Clear Lake, while Iowa 27 runs with I-35 until they reach the
Minnesota
Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...
state line.
Construction of I-35 in Iowa took place over 17 years. The first section of the route that stretched from
Cumming to
Urbandale was opened on September 21, 1958. In the next 14 years, new sections of the route opened regularly, only leaving the section between
Mason City and
US 20 uncompleted. On November 14, 1975, the last section of the route was completed and connected the two noncontiguous sections of I-35.
Route description
Southern Iowa
I-35 enters Iowa at the
Missouri
Missouri is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee): Iowa to the north, Illinois, Kentucky and Tennessee to the east, Arkansas t ...
state line near the town of
Lamoni
In the Book of Mormon, Lamoni (; believed to mean "Lamanite" or "of Laman") is a Lamanite king. The missionary Ammon converts him back to the Law of Moses. After this, Lamoni becomes righteous again.
Lamoni was a lesser king of part of the gre ...
. An interchange that provides access to the adjacent
US 69 and East 100th Street is situated over the state border. The highway travels to the north-northeast for until it again meets US 69 on the eastern edge of Lamoni. North of Lamoni is a rest area which overlooks the
Grand River and provides pedestrian access to Decatur County's Slip Bluff County Park. North of the Grand River, the Interstate straightens to a north–south alignment. Near
Decatur City, it intersects
Iowa 2 at a diamond interchange. Continuing north, the Interstate slightly eases to the east. Two rural interchanges, for County Road J20 (CR J20) and CR H45/Elk Street, and another in
Van Wert for CR J14/East Line Street dot the separating Decatur City and
Osceola
Osceola (1804 – January 30, 1838, Asi-yahola in Muscogee language, Creek), named Billy Powell at birth in Alabama, became an influential leader of the Seminole people in Florida. His mother was Muscogee, and his great-grandfather was a S ...
.
[
The Osceola area is served by three interchanges for I-35. The first is a partial cloverleaf interchange with US 34. This junction is so configured because of US 34's proximity to the BNSF Railway line, which carries ]Amtrak
The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak () , is the national passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates inter-city rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous U.S. States and nine cities in Canada ...
's ''California Zephyr
The ''California Zephyr'' is a passenger train operated by Amtrak between Chicago and the San Francisco Bay Area (at Emeryville), via Omaha, Denver, Salt Lake City, and Reno. At , it is Amtrak's longest daily route, and second-longest overall ...
''. The next exit for CR H33/Kansas Street serves a casino and western Osceola. Northwest of Osceola is the western end of Iowa 152, which connects I-35 and US 69 at a narrow point between the two routes. Further north, the small towns of New Virginia, Truro
Truro (; kw, Truru) is a cathedral city and civil parish in Cornwall, England. It is Cornwall's county town, sole city and centre for administration, leisure and retail trading. Its population was 18,766 in the 2011 census. People of Truro ...
, and St. Charles are each served by an interchange. The Iowa 92 exit just east of Bevington connects I-35 to the larger communities of Winterset and Indianola, to the west and east, respectively. The interchange for Cumming is the last before the Interstate enters the Des Moines metropolitan area
The Des Moines metropolitan area, officially known as the Des Moines–West Des Moines, IA Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) is located at the confluence of the Des Moines River and the Raccoon River. Des Moines serves as the capital of the U.S ...
.[
]
Central Iowa
I-35 continues north, enters the Des Moines metropolitan area, and meets the Iowa 5 freeway in West Des Moines
West Des Moines is a city in Polk, Dallas, Warren, and Madison counties in the U.S. state of Iowa. A majority of the city is located in Polk County, a minority of the city is located in Dallas County, and small portions extend into Warren and Ma ...
at exit 68. Further on in West Des Moines, at the West Mixmaster Interchange, I-35 meets I-80
Interstate 80 (I-80) is an east–west transcontinental freeway that crosses the United States from downtown San Francisco, California, to Teaneck, New Jersey, in the New York metropolitan area. The highway was designated in 1956 as one o ...
and I-235. I-235 serves downtown Des Moines, while I-35 and I-80 overlap and serve the Des Moines's western and northern suburbs using I-80's exit numbering. On the Clive– Urbandale city border, I-35 and I-80 meet US 6/Hickman Road. Further north in Urbandale, they meet Iowa 141
Iowa Highway 141 (Iowa 141) is an east–west highway in the western and central portions of the state. It is the most direct link between Sioux City and Des Moines. It also serves as a freeway link between Des Moines and the outlying com ...
/Northwest Urbandale Drive/Southeast Grimes Boulevard and turn eastward. They also meet US 69/Northeast 14th Street north of Des Moines. Between Des Moines and Ankeny, at the East Mixmaster interchange, I-35 and I-80 separate at an interchange where they also meet I-235.
I-35 then turns north to go through Ankeny. It continues north and at Ames
Ames may refer to:
Places United States
* Ames, Arkansas, a place in Arkansas
* Ames, Colorado
* Ames, Illinois
* Ames, Indiana
* Ames, Iowa, the most populous city bearing this name
* Ames, Kansas
* Ames, Nebraska
* Ames, New York
* Ames, Ok ...
meets US 30. Ames is also served by the Interstate 35 Business Loop (I-35 BL). I-35 continues north and meets Iowa 175 near Ellsworth and meets the US 20 freeway near the community of Williams. It continues north until the Wright County line, where it turns northeast. On this northeasterly alignment, I-35 meets Iowa 3.
Northern Iowa
Shortly after meeting Iowa 3, I-35 turns north again and meets both US 18 and Iowa 27 near Clear Lake at exit 190. I-35 overlaps US 18 and Iowa 27 through the Clear Lake area, which is also served with I-35 BL. US 18 separates in Clear Lake at exit 194, and I-35 and Iowa 27, which serves as the designation in Iowa for the Avenue of the Saints
The Avenue of the Saints is a highway in the Midwestern United States that connects St. Louis, Missouri and St. Paul, Minnesota.
Route description
Missouri
The southern end of the Avenue of the Saints is at exit 28A of Interstate 64 (I‑64) ...
, overlap for the rest of the way to the Minnesota
Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...
border, meeting Iowa 9 near Hanlontown at exit 203.
Services
The Iowa Department of Transportation
The Iowa Department of Transportation (Iowa DOT) is the government organization in the U.S. state of Iowa responsible for the organization, construction, and maintenance of the primary highway system. Located in Ames, Iowa, DOT is also respons ...
(Iowa DOT) operates 37 rest areas and one scenic overlook in 20 locations along its of Interstate Highway. Along I-35, there are five locations that have facilities accessible to each direction of traffic. A sixth is under construction in northern Polk County. Parking areas are divided so passenger automobiles are separated from large trucks
A truck or lorry is a motor vehicle designed to transport cargo, carry specialized payloads, or perform other utilitarian work. Trucks vary greatly in size, power, and configuration, but the vast majority feature body-on-frame construction ...
. Common among all of the rest stops are separate men's and women's restrooms, payphones with TDD capabilities, weather reporting kiosks, vending machine
A vending machine is an automated machine that provides items such as snacks, beverages, cigarettes, and lottery tickets to consumers after cash, a credit card, or other forms of payment are inserted into the machine or otherwise made. The ...
s, and free wireless Internet
Wireless communication (or just wireless, when the context allows) is the transfer of information between two or more points without the use of an electrical conductor, optical fiber or other continuous guided medium for the transfer. The most ...
. Many stations have family restrooms and dump stations for recreational vehicles.
The first rest areas along Iowa's Interstates were built in the 1960s. They were modest facilities; separate buildings housed the restrooms and vending machines. A few rest stops had another building with local tourist information. The newer facilities feature one large building housing as many as 28 more toilets than the older buildings, in addition to all the other common rest area amenities. They also feature artwork by local Iowa artists. Each new rest area is designed around a theme. For instance, the facility near Story City celebrates the history of transportation in the state. Story County is the home of Iowa DOT and the location where the historic Lincoln Highway
The Lincoln Highway is the first transcontinental highway in the United States and one of the first highways designed expressly for automobiles. Conceived in 1912 by Indiana entrepreneur Carl G. Fisher, and formally dedicated October 31, 1913 ...
and I-35 intersect.
History
The first section of I-35, a stretch from Cumming to Urbandale, opened around September 21, 1958. Within five years, the Interstate had grown to , extending from US 34 in Osceola
Osceola (1804 – January 30, 1838, Asi-yahola in Muscogee language, Creek), named Billy Powell at birth in Alabama, became an influential leader of the Seminole people in Florida. His mother was Muscogee, and his great-grandfather was a S ...
to the eastern interchange with I-80
Interstate 80 (I-80) is an east–west transcontinental freeway that crosses the United States from downtown San Francisco, California, to Teaneck, New Jersey, in the New York metropolitan area. The highway was designated in 1956 as one o ...
and I-235. The next two sections of I-35 were the from Ankeny to US 30 near Ames
Ames may refer to:
Places United States
* Ames, Arkansas, a place in Arkansas
* Ames, Colorado
* Ames, Illinois
* Ames, Indiana
* Ames, Iowa, the most populous city bearing this name
* Ames, Kansas
* Ames, Nebraska
* Ames, New York
* Ames, Ok ...
and the from Ames to US 20 near Williams.
By 1972, I-35 was completed at the Missouri
Missouri is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee): Iowa to the north, Illinois, Kentucky and Tennessee to the east, Arkansas t ...
and Minnesota
Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...
state lines. In southern Iowa, the last section, from Iowa 2 near Decatur City to the state line, was completed on December 2, 1970. In northern Iowa, the section from Iowa 9 near Hanlontown to the state line opened on December 12, 1972. The last section of I-35 to open, from US 20 to Mason City, opened on November 14, 1975.
Exit list
See also
*80/35 Music Festival
80/35 Music Festival is a multi-day music festival in Des Moines, Iowa. The name comes from two prominent interstates, I-80 and I-35, which intersect in Des Moines. The festival includes a stage for national touring bands and several smaller st ...
References
External links
*
{{3di, 35
Iowa
35
Transportation in Decatur County, Iowa
Transportation in Clarke County, Iowa
Transportation in Warren County, Iowa
Transportation in Polk County, Iowa
Transportation in Story County, Iowa
Transportation in Hamilton County, Iowa
Transportation in Wright County, Iowa
Transportation in Franklin County, Iowa
Transportation in Cerro Gordo County, Iowa
Transportation in Worth County, Iowa