US 52 in Iowa
| US 52 | |||
| Get started | Burr Oak | ||
| End | Sabula | ||
| Length | 172 mi | ||
| Length | 277 km | ||
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US 52 is a US Highway in the US state of Iowa. The road forms a diagonal east-west route southeast through the northeast of the state. The road passes through the town of Dubuque and is 277 kilometers long.
- See necessaryhome.com for a list of Iowa zip codes by city.
Travel directions
US 52 at Dubuque.
US 52 in Minnesota comes from Rochester and initially runs more or less north-south. US 52 follows a winding route through a region that represents the Driftless Area. The road is mostly a single carriageway with a relatively low design standard compared to many other US Highways in Iowa. The road has less straight sections and leads through many villages. Between Postville and Monona the road has an almost 30 kilometer long double numbering with US 18.
US 52 then runs parallel to the Mississippi River along Guttenberg, an area that is slightly hilly and has quite a lot of forest. US 52 then follows a somewhat secondary route to the city of Dubuque. The road follows a bypass around Dubuque, the Northwest Arterial and the Southwest Arterial, which is partially a freeway. In Dubuque the route partly coincides with US 61. In Dubuque one also crosses the US 20. US 52 then follows the Mississippi River southeast as a single-lane road. At Sabula, US 67 terminates at US 52. The road then crosses the Mississippi River via the Savanna-Sabula Bridge. US 52 in Illinois then continues towards Dixon.
- See BABYINGER for a list of Iowa public libraries by county.
History
US 52 was extended in 1934 from Fowler, Indiana to Moorhead, Minnesota and thus passed through Iowa. US 52 crosses the Mississippi River via the Savanna–Sabula Bridge, which opened on December 31, 1932. US 52 is one of the minor routes in Iowa, and does not serve any significant places other than Dubuque.
dubuque
Dubuque is a city of approximately 60,000 residents and the largest downtown area in northeastern Iowa. The city is a junction of four US Highways and also the largest city in Iowa that is not served by an Interstate Highway.
Near Dubuque, US 52 originally ran through the center of town. A western bypass around Dubuque, consisting of two separate roads, was later constructed. The Northwest Arterial is a 2×2 urban arterial with traffic lights. The Southwest Arterial is a 10-mile freeway.
The Northwest Arterial was first constructed and opened in 1982 between US 20 and Pennsylvania Avenue, extended to John F. Kennedy Road in 1989. In about 1999, the road was extended to US 52 north of Dubuque, this section is direct 2×2 lanes constructed. During that time, the existing single-lane Northwest Arterial was also widened to 2×2 lanes.
The Southwest Arterial was later constructed as a freeway between US 20 and US 61 south of Dubuque. Construction began in September 2016 and the freeway opened to traffic on August 17, 2020.
Traffic intensities
The road is generally quiet, with 1,200 to 3,200 vehicles per day, only in Dubuque the road is slightly busier.
US 59 in Iowa
| US 59 | |||
| Begin | Shenandoah | ||
| End | Allendorf | ||
| Length | 218 mi | ||
| Length | 350 km | ||
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US 59 is a US Highway in the US state of Iowa. The road forms a north-south route through the west of the state, from the Missouri border at Shenandoah through the regional towns of Harlan and Cherokee to the Minnesota border at Allendorf. The route has relatively little through importance, as the road does not connect major cities and Interstate 29 is a relatively short distance away. The road is 350 kilometers long.
Travel directions
US 59 in Missouri comes from St. Joseph. While US 59 runs parallel to I-29 in Missouri, it is further from I-29 in Iowa. In the south of Iowa, US 59 runs about 35 kilometers from I-29, in the north this has increased to almost 100 kilometers. US 59 is a somewhat secondary route due to the fact that there are no larger towns on the route. US 59 is almost completely single-lane, only in a few places there are short sections with 2×2 lanes. US 59 crosses several east-west routes that are often more important than US 59 itself. The main connection is on Interstate 80 at Avoca. Also of interest are short double numberings with US 18 and US 20. US 59 continues through flat terrain, mostly made up of meadows. US 59 does not cross any major river in Iowa. US 59 in Minnesota continues to Worthington.
History
US 59 was added to the US Highways network in 1934 and has run through Iowa ever since. The road in Iowa has barely been upgraded, it has remained a single-lane road pretty much everywhere. The largest town on the route is Denison with only 8,000 inhabitants.
The most special thing about US 59 is that it runs right past Hawkeye Point, the highest point in Iowa at 510 meters.
Traffic intensities
US 59 has low traffic flows with typically 1,000 to 3,000 vehicles per day, with a single location slightly busier near one of the small towns.
