Emily Bothell, Senior Associate Transportation Planner
Kent Ralston, Transportation Planner
Tracy Hightshoe, Neighborhood and Development Services Director
Jason Havel, City Engineer
Ron Knoche, Public Works Director
Eric Goers, City Attorney
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The Iowa Department of Transportation (Iowa DOT) recently released a notice of funding opportunity for the Statewide Transportation Alternatives Set-Aside (TA Set-Aside) Program. The program supports the construction and improvement of bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure. The program, which emphasizes the expansion of multi-modal trail networks through the completion of trail linkages as well as projects that improve access and safety for all transportation modes, provides funding to reimburse up to 80 percent of eligible costs or up to the approved grant maximum, whichever is less.
The Iowa DOT has programmed the reconstruction of the Highway 6 bridge over the Iowa River for 2029. The City also recently applied for and secured Transportation Alternatives Set-Aside funding to complete pedestrian and bicycle facilities to provide a continuous connection between South Gilbert Street and Orchard Street, to be constructed in coordination with the bridge project. In light of the new round of Transportation Alternatives Set-Aside funding, the City now proposes to extend a north-south trail segment of the Iowa River Corridor Trail along the west bank of the Iowa River, between Highway 6 and McCollister Boulevard.
The proposed project involves constructing approximately 1.2 miles of 10-foot-wide hard-surface trail and side path (wide sidewalk) along the west side of the Iowa River and along South Riverside Drive/Old Highway 218, from Highway 6 to McCollister Boulevard at an estimated cost of $2.8 million.
The proposed multi-use trail will provide a safe and efficient alternative for non-vehicular users to access the Downtown and University Campus through a busy commercial corridor where pedestrian and bicycle facilities are currently absent. The proposed segment will tie into a planned trail along the Highway 6 corridor - a project that recently secured funding through the Statewide Transportation Alternatives Set-Aside Program, which will be carried out separately. This project will also provide pedestrian and bicycle access to the Iowa City Airport, which has been a goal of the Airport Commission. Construction of the trail segment is expected to follow the Iowa Department of Transportation's reconstruction of the Highway 6 bridge over the Iowa River.
The proposed project to complete the Iowa River Corridor Trail along the west bank of the river is identified in the 2017 Iowa City Bicycle Master Plan and is listed as an unfunded project in the City's Capital Improvement Program (CIP). Approval of this resolution is required for the City of Iowa City to submit a qualifying application for Transportation Alternatives Set-Aside funding.