Iowa Highway 3

Iowa Highway 3 marker

Iowa Highway 3
American Veterans Memorial Highway

Iowa 3 highlighted in red
Route information
Maintained by Iowa DOT
Length: 326.163 mi[1] (524.908 km)
Major junctions
West end: SD 50 west of Westfield
 
East end: US 52 / US 61 / US 151 at Dubuque
Location
Counties:
Highway system
← Iowa 2Iowa 4 →

Iowa Highway 3 is a state highway that runs from east to west across the state of Iowa. Highway 3 is the longest state highway in Iowa, at 327.81 miles (527.56 km) long. Iowa 3 begins at the South Dakota state line where it continues as South Dakota Highway 50 and ends at an interchange with U.S. Route 61 / U.S. Route 151. It is designated the American Veterans Memorial Highway for its entirety. It is located approximately halfway between Interstate 80 and Interstate 90.

Route description

Iowa Highway 3 begins at the Big Sioux River where it continues west into South Dakota as South Dakota Highway 50. 1.5 miles (2.4 km) into Iowa, Iowa 3 intersects and overlaps Iowa Highway 12 for 5 miles (8.0 km). At Akron, Iowa 3 turns east towards Le Mars. At Le Mars, Iowa 3 intersects U.S. Route 75 and, for 1 mile (1.6 km), is overlapped by U.S. Route 75 Business. Iowa 3 continues east towards Remsen and Marcus meeting Iowa Highway 140 and Iowa Highway 143 in each respective town. At Cherokee, Iowa 3 intersects U.S. Route 59 and skirts the northeastern edge of town. East of Cherokee, Iowa 3 formerly intersected the unsigned Iowa Highway 977, which served as a shortcut to southbound US 59 for westbound Iowa 3 traffic. North of Aurelia, Iowa 3 meets Iowa Highway 7. Northeast of Truesdale, Iowa 3 intersects U.S. Route 71. 25 miles (40 km) east of Truesdale, Iowa 3 intersects Iowa Highway 4 in Pocahontas. Between Pocahontas and Gilmore City, Iowa 3 meets Iowa Highway 15. Iowa 3 intersects U.S. Route 169 in Humboldt.[2]

Iowa Highway 3 runs east of Humboldt.

East of Humboldt, Iowa Highway 3 is overlapped for 3 miles (4.8 km) by Iowa Highway 17 near Goldfield. Iowa 3 overlaps U.S. Route 69 for 2 miles (3.2 km) east of Clarion. Near Latimer and Coulter, Iowa 3 meets Interstate 35 at a diamond interchange. 10 miles (16 km) east of the I-35 interchange, Iowa 3 intersects U.S. Route 65 in Hampton. At Allison, Iowa 3 is briefly overlapped by Iowa Highway 14. Iowa 3 meets Iowa Highway 188 south of Clarksville. West of Waverly, Iowa 3 intersects U.S. Route 218 / Iowa Highway 27, the Avenue of the Saints, at an interchange. For 1 mile (1.6 km), Iowa 3 is overlapped by U.S. Route 218 Business before US 218 Bus. turns south as the unsigned Iowa Highway 116. 7 miles (11 km) to the east, Iowa 3 intersects U.S. Route 63. At Oelwein, Iowa 3 overlaps Iowa Highway 150 for 3 miles (4.8 km) before continuing east towards Iowa Highway 187. From Strawberry Point to near Edgewood, Iowa 3 overlaps Iowa Highway 13.[2]

Iowa Highway 3 runs along Bremer Avenue in Waverly.

East of Edgewood, Iowa Higwhay 3 enters the Driftless Area, where the terrain changes markedly from gently rolling farmland to steep bluffs. Iowa 3 meets Iowa Highway 38 on the edge of the Driftless Area. At Luxemburg, Iowa 3 meets U.S. Route 52, with which Iowa 3 continues for the rest of its length, and Iowa Highway 136. The next 22 miles (35 km), from Luxemburg to Sageville, are particularly curvy because the routes enter completely into the Driftless Area. At Sageville, US 52 / Iowa 3 meet Iowa Highway 32, Dubuque's Northwest Arterial. US 52 / Iowa 3 enter Dubuque along Central Avenue, which becomes a one-way street paired with White Street near downtown. US 52 and Iowa 3 turn onto another pair of one-way streets, East 9th Street and East 11th Street for a few blocks before meeting U.S. Route 61 / U.S. Route 151. US 52 continues south with US 61 / US 151, while Iowa 3 ends at this interchange.[2]

History

This is the second state highway to be designated Iowa Highway 3. The first Iowa Highway 3 existed from 1920 to 1941, and was an east–west route across the southern part of Iowa, beginning at Fort Madison and ending at the western border of Iowa near Nebraska City, Nebraska. The current Iowa Highway 3 route was designated in 1945.

Originally extending from Iowa Highway 12 in Akron to Dubuque, Iowa 3 was co-signed with Iowa Highway 5 from Akron to near Aurelia.[3] In 1949, Iowa 3 was extended along Iowa 12 from Akron to its current western end at the Big Sioux River.[4]

Prior to the building of a four lane U.S. Route 61 / U.S. Route 151, the eastern terminus of Iowa Highway 3 was at the intersection of Bluff Street and U.S. Route 20, Dodge Street.

Major intersections

CountyLocationmi[1]kmDestinationsNotes
Union  SD 50 westContinuation into South Dakota
Big Sioux River0.0000.000Iowa–South Dakota state line
PlymouthWestfield Township1.4762.375 Iowa 12 south (Portland Street)West end of Iowa 12 overlap
Akron6.2119.996 Iowa 12 north (Loess Hills Scenic Byway)East end of Iowa 12 overlap
America Township26.16442.107
US 75 / US 75 Business		West end of US 75 Bus. overlap.
Le Mars27.61744.445
US 75 Business (5th Avenue West)		East end of US 75 Bus. overlap.
Remsen38.98562.740 Iowa 140 south / CR L14 north
CherokeeMarcus47.00975.654 Iowa 143 north (Ames Avenue) / CR L36 south (D Avenue)
Cherokee Township60.43297.256 US 59 (2nd Street)
Afton Township66.477106.984 Iowa 7 east
Buena VistaScott–Lincoln
township line		81.506131.171 US 71
PocahontasPocahontas106.203170.917 Iowa 4 (West 7th Street)
Garfield–Lake
township line		113.202182.181 Iowa 15 north / CR N65 south
HumboldtHumboldt129.201207.929 US 169 (13th Street)
Humboldt–Wright
county line		Lake–Liberty
township line		142.211228.866 Iowa 17 northWest end of Iowa 17 overlap
WrightGoldfield145.068233.464 Iowa 17 south (Locust Street)East end of Iowa 17 overlap
Grant–Lincoln
township line		159.222256.243 US 69 southWest end of US 69 overlap
Grant–Iowa
township line		161.112259.285 US 69 northEast end of US 69 overlap
FranklinScott Township172.297277.285 I-35
Hampton182.290293.367 US 65 (4th Street East)
ButlerAllison202.526325.934 Iowa 14 northWest end of Iowa 14 overlap
203.531327.551 Iowa 14 southEast end of Iowa 14 overlap
Butler Township210.021337.996 Iowa 188 north
BremerWashington Township217.393349.860 US 218 / Iowa 27
Waverly219.887353.874
US 218 Business north (20th Street West)		West end of US 218 Bus. overlap
220.878355.469
US 218 Business south (Easton Avenue)		East end of US 218 Bus. overlap
Jefferson Township228.174367.210 US 63
FayetteJefferson Township249.741401.919 Iowa 150 northWest end of Iowa 150 overlap
Oelwein252.270405.989 Iowa 150 south (1st Avenue East)East end of Iowa 150 overlap
Putnam Township266.114428.269 Iowa 187Roundabout, installed in 2009[5]
ClaytonStrawberry Point272.846439.103 Iowa 13 north (Elkader Street)West end of Iowa 13 overlap
Clayton–Dubuque
county line		Lodomillo–Honey Creek
township line		277.588446.735 Iowa 13 southEast end of Iowa 13 overlap
DelawareElk Township284.178457.340 Iowa 38 south
DubuqueLuxemburg300.420483.479 US 52 north / Iowa 136 south (Andre Street)West end of US 52 overlap
Dubuque323.102519.982 Iowa 32 south (Northwest Arterial)
326.163524.908 US 52 south / US 61 / US 151Eastern terminus; east end of US 52 overlap
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "2009 Volume of Traffic on the Primary Road System of Iowa" (PDF). Iowa Department of Transportation. January 1, 2009. Retrieved January 10, 2011.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Iowa Department of Transportation (2009). Iowa State Highway Map (PDF) (Map). Ames: Iowa Department of Transportation. Retrieved December 6, 2009.
  3. ↑ Road and Reference Atlas (Map) (1947 ed.). 1:1,077,120. Rand McNally & Company. 1947. pp. 42–43.
  4. ↑ Hancock, Jason (August 30, 2009). "Iowa Highways: 1 to 9". The Iowa Highways Page. Retrieved December 6, 2009.
  5. ↑ "Roundabouts". Iowa Department of Transportation. Retrieved February 17, 2012.

External links

Route map: Bing