King Secures Additional Funding for Highway 20 Expansion
U.S.Congressman Steve King announced $500,000 in federal funds secured for the four-lane U.S.Highway 20 expansion as part of H.R. 2764, Con-solidated Appropriations Act of Fiscal Year 2008. “Turning Highway 20 into a continuous four-lane road is my top transportation priority in Congress. I am thankful that $500,000 will be added to the millions already invested in Highway 20 by the federal government,” King said.Seventy-four percent of the traffic in Iowa runs east and west with no four-lane highway transvers-ing Northwest Iowa. In order to attract residents and businesses, improving access to the national transportation system in rural areas is essential. The current void means Northwestern Iowa espe-cially lacks critical access to major markets and is unable to meet a growing demand to implement just-in-time systems for inventory management, making our highways more efficient enables busi-nesses to compete. Since his swearing-in as a Member of the United States Congress in 2003, King has worked to se-cure a total of $47 million in federal funding au-thorizations to complete Highway 20. “This 'Midwest Connector' is vital to the economic development of the entire region. I am fully com-mitted to finishing the four-laning of Highway 20until the last ribbon is cut,” King added.After House passage, the bill must be signed into law by the President.

King Secures Additional Funding for Highway 20 Expansion
U.S.Congressman Steve King announced $500,000 in federal funds secured for the four-lane U.S.Highway 20 expansion as part of H.R. 2764, Con-solidated Appropriations Act of Fiscal Year 2008. “Turning Highway 20 into a continuous four-lane road is my top transportation priority in Congress. I am thankful that $500,000 will be added to the millions already invested in Highway 20 by the federal government,” King said.Seventy-four percent of the traffic in Iowa runs east and west with no four-lane highway transvers-ing Northwest Iowa. In order to attract residents and businesses, improving access to the national transportation system in rural areas is essential. The current void means Northwestern Iowa espe-cially lacks critical access to major markets and is unable to meet a growing demand to implement just-in-time systems for inventory management, making our highways more efficient enables busi-nesses to compete. Since his swearing-in as a Member of the United States Congress in 2003, King has worked to se-cure a total of $47 million in federal funding au-thorizations to complete Highway 20. “This 'Midwest Connector' is vital to the economic development of the entire region. I am fully com-mitted to finishing the four-laning of Highway 20until the last ribbon is cut,” King added.After House passage, the bill must be signed into law by the President.

The 4-lane portion of 20 west of the Waterloo area to I-35 seems deserted whenever I drive it. Of course, this is not the part of 20 that is set for expansion, and maybe there will be a traffic increase in that area once the road goes all the way through.

My argument is that Hwy 30, where it reduces to 2-lanes, is already a traffic nightmare. There have been so many accidents along that route due to the hilly landscape, semi-truck traffic, farm equipment and general traffic increases. I'd like the Transportation Commission to explain their decision with supporting data. While I appreciate the good Iowans who have lobbied for the expansion of 20, I think taxpayers deserve to know the decision was based on traffic and other hard data and not based solely on oiling the squeaking wheel.