Travel throughout Iowa by air, road, rail or trail

An Iowa City Transit Bus drives past a University of Iowa Cambus. Many communities in Iowa have access to public transportation./Gazette file photo

By Nancy Owen

If you need to travel more than a couple hours, you might consider one of Iowa’s eight commercial airports.   They’re located in Burlington, Cedar Rapids, Des Moines, Dubuque, Fort Dodge, Mason City, Sioux City, and Waterloo. You can also travel  by train; Amtrak has stations in Burlington, Creston, Davenport, Fort Madison, Mount Pleasant, Osceola, and Ottumwa. Or if bus travel is more to your liking, Greyhound offers stops in 30 Iowa cities.

Iowa is one of very few states that offer public transit services in each of its 99 counties. The Office of Public Transit offers ride share information, intercity carrier resources, and maps and routes to make traveling easier.

Driving is the most popular way to get around on Iowa’s 114,194 miles of public roads. For information on Iowa road conditions and construction, visit the Iowa 511 Travel information page. If you’re interested in carpooling, click here. If you want to know if an accident is snarling traffic on I-380, check out Corridor Commute.

If you prefer to use your own steam power by walking or cycling, you’ll enjoy the more than 1,400 miles of paths and off-road trails in the state. Or if you prefer moving around on water, you’ll appreciate that Iowa is the only state in the union that’s flanked by two navigable rivers, the Missouri and Mississippi, Together, these rivers offer more than 490 miles of usable waterways.

Learn more:

• Iowa Department of Transportation
• Iowa winter driving conditions
• Spaulding Center for Transportation / Iowa Transportation Museum
• American Public Transportation Association / Iowa Transit links
• Iowa Crash Data