(Arnolds Park)– The Iowa Department of Transportation Tuesday hosted an online public informational meeting to further explain plans to resurface and make some changes to Highway 71 through the lakes corridor. The work will be taking place between East View Avenue in Okoboji and 202nd Street in Arnolds Park beginning in the fall of 2022. Dakin Schultz, a project designer, told those attending the online session the road will be completely resurfaced in that area…
“We’ve experienced rapid deterioration on U.S. 71 pavement and every year we’ve done patching work on that pavement and we felt this would be the best solution for that pavement. Recognizing time and the concerns, that, especially up in the lakes area being a Memorial Day to Labor Day focus, what we did is we divided this project out into what is proposed as three phases, a fourth if necessary, with our work occurring after Labor Day and before Memorial Day to avoid that peak summer time.”
Project designer Shane Tymkowicz explained further plans to relocate a transition from four lanes to three further south, to just north of the intersection with 202nd Street in Arnolds Park…
“Where we go to a three lane configuration, those outside lanes then can free flow. You are not getting where someone taking a left shuts down the traffic. During busier times those center two lanes essentially function as a single two way left turn lane as it is today. So the traffic flow will actually work better. We also considered a safety upgrade because people are stopping along the route to take a left turn lane. Either the left lane or the right lane really is a through traffic lane, so people often try to weave and we have a pretty significant accident history through there with turning movement. This seemed like an opportunity to clean that up and provide a safer route.”
Two additional stoplights will be installed as well at the intersections of Highway 71 and Lake Street and Highway 71 and Linden Drive in Arnolds Park. Schultz says they did consider some stoplights at some other intersections as well but decided against those…
“We looked at a signal at Dam Road, at the intersection of Dam Road. We actually had looked at two additional signals other than the two that we’re adding and those signals at Ackley and Dam did not meet warrants where Linden and Lake did meet warrants. With the signal location, the existing one at Broadway, and with the existing one at Lake Avenue we feel that will provide the needed gaps for traffic entering and exiting U.S. 71 at Dam Road.”
The project will also include replacement of walkways along the highway in the corridor. Schultz says they’ve invited Imagine Iowa Great Lakes in on those plans.
The D.O.T will continue to take public comment on the Highway 71 plans until April 12th, 2021.
