Summer is here and adventure is calling! As Iowans and out-of-state travelers hit the open road in search of fun and different destinations, the Iowa DOT rest area system plays a key role in keeping every journey safe and enjoyable. And when your wheels are rolling, there will inevitably be a time when you want to take a break in a clean and accommodating rest area.
Iowa’s rest areas offer motorists and truck drivers the perfect places to park, rest, and recharge – whether it means stretching your legs, taking a nap, walking your pet, charging your phone, visiting the restroom, or grabbing a snack.
This season, we’re excited to celebrate the comfort, convenience, and care that these stops provide by bringing you a deeper look into our current service system and future plans to continue its modernization and increase capacity.
Modern rest area features to meet traveler needs
The Iowa DOT is proud to offer a network of 38 full-service rest areas and 12 parking‑only sites that are primarily located along interstate corridors. These facilities give travelers and professional drivers alike plenty of inviting spaces to pause and recharge.
With nearly 830 truck parking stalls and a variety of modern amenities, these areas are designed to help everyone feel welcome along the way.
The DOT has also committed resources to update Iowa’s rest area system with modern features and amenities including:
- Men’s & Women’s Restrooms
- Family Restrooms
- Handicap Accessibility
- Pet Recreation Areas
- Picnic Areas & Tables
- Vending
- Indoor WIFI
For travelers who have older children or young adult passengers with disabilities, travel can be challenging when it comes to something as frequent as overnight sleeps or periodic restroom stops. There has been a gap in accessibility that has long gone unaddressed in public transportation infrastructure, leaving families with few, if any, dignified options for their changing needs while traveling.
To close that gap, Iowa DOT began installing height-adjustable, adult-size changing tables in 2021 in all new rest areas currently under construction – and several more that are undergoing renovations. These upgraded restrooms are providing private and sanitary spaces for individuals who need assistance.
Today, there are 23 rest areas with adult changing stations that give families and caregivers technologically-equipped options to meet their essential necessities.
Honoring Iowa’s story and assets in rest area themes
Despite a growing number of facilities with standardized equipment and services, travelers are also enjoying the many different facility themes that celebrate what is unique to Iowa in the newer buildings. Those themes may reflect and honor scenery, geography, history, or a local focus.
“We have new themes in every building that we construct, so if you walk in, you can learn something about Iowa because there’s educational value,” said Iowa DOT Public Service Supervisor David Bollenbaugh. Themes reflected in Iowa’s rest areas include:
I-80
Adair EB – Pioneers
Adair WB – Wind farming
Davenport EB – Mississippi River
Grinnell EB – Pioneers
Grinnell WB – Century and Heritage Farms
Mitchellville WB – Town and Country
Northwood ISB– Top of Iowa
Tiffin WB – Education
Tiffin EB – Iowa Writers
Wilton WB – Harvest
Wilton EB – Underground Railroad
Underwood EB – Loess Hills
Victor EB – Land Between Two Rivers
Victor WB – American Modernization
I-380
Cedar Rapids NB – Grant Wood
I-35
Dows NB & SB – Civil War
Elkhart NB – Technology That Changed the World
Elkhart SB – Technology That Feeds the World
Lamoni NB & SB – Natural Environment
Northwood NB & SB – Top of Iowa
Story City SB – Transportation
I-29
Pacific Junction NB – Native Americans
Sergeant Bluff SB – Corps of Discovery
Planning for Iowa’s rest area future with increased truck parking
Iowa’s rest area system took shape in the 1960s, and those early facilities served Iowa very well, but times and travel needs have changed significantly. As the DOT looks to the future, our expectations around safety, accessibility, and freight travel have changed significantly.
“That’s why over the last few years, we’ve been updating our rest area improvement plan. I think of it as our roadmap for how the future of Iowa’s rest area system will look,” said DOT Location and Environment Planner Adrianne Knight. The plan helps planners like Knight identify which rest areas need to be replaced or recommended to close, and where additional truck parking can be added to the system. Planners take all of that planning information plus available funding into consideration to lay out the timing of those improvements with current needs.
“At the end of the day, we want to be good stewards of our resources and invest wisely to keep our rest areas supporting safe, comfortable travel across the state,” Knight added, pointing out that Iowa is experiencing a truck parking shortage similar to much of the country.
Nationwide, Knight says the industry estimates there’s only one parking spot for every 11 trucks on the road. “Our greatest needs are along the I-80 and I-380 corridors. When we include available parking at rest areas, truck-parking-only areas, and weigh stations, Iowa’s parking increases to nearly 900 stalls, but demand continues to grow. We hope to add 247 more spaces over the next 20 years in those areas.”
Truck traffic continues to grow across our state, and we’re excited to be expanding our facilities to support the nation’s supply chain with the efficient flow of freight traffic and ensure Iowa’s roads remain a place where drivers can find the rest, support, and peace of mind they need. Looking ahead, there are three parking expansion projects in the five-year plan and those projects are all located along I-80 where the highest demand exists.
To keep drivers rested and productivity high along our vital truck routes, we’re working on opportunities to expand Iowa’s parking capacity and continue reimagining the state’s rest area system.
A remodel of the aging Onawa rest area at Mile Marker 110 along I-29 in western Iowa, built in 1971 is underway. The location will have approximately 35 truck parking stalls when completed. The reconstructed southbound I-380 rest stop at Mile Marker 13 near Cedar Rapids will receive a new parking lot with the goal to increase its truck parking capacity to 27 following the reconstruction project that is scheduled for completion in November.
Engineers and planners are also looking at unique and feasible ways to answer the need for more parking and restrooms with “vault toilets.” Vault toilets are non-flush restroom structures built on the base of a concrete vault. The system collects waste in a sealed underground tank which requires periodic pump-offs. These waterless restrooms are commonly used in national parks, golf courses, remote campsites, trailhead areas, etc.
A pilot vault toilet will be added later this year to the former eastbound Wilton parking only at Mile Marker 268 – about halfway between Iowa City and Davenport. In 2030, the construction of 30 new truck-only parking stalls and a second vault toilet are programmed for the prior westbound Wilton rest area around the same location
DOT District 6 Transportation Planner Sam Shea points out that the vault toilet projects will be placed at the former rest areas which recently reopened as “no-services” rest areas. “We know how important it is that long-haul drivers have more safe and available opportunities to pull off the interstate and rest, and we’re excited to add a different option that meets basic needs and expands our truck-only parking capacity,” Shea says.
These improvements and other updates are sure to help deliver a consistently good rest area experience for travelers in Iowa.