Iowa 58 Viking Road Corridor from U.S. 20 to Greenhill Road in Cedar Falls, Iowa, NHSX-U-58-1(91)--8S-07, 2015

The Proposed Action consists of the improvement of Iowa Highway 58 (IA 58) from U.S. Highway 20 (U.S. 20) north to Greenhill Road in Cedar Falls (Black Hawk County, Iowa). The improvement would include limiting at-grade access to IA 58 by adding one or more interchanges to the corridor which would be located at Viking Road, Greenhill Road, and reconfiguring the U.S. 20 interchange (Figure 1). In order to construct these interchanges and associated ramps, the pavement of IA 58 would be reconstructed. In a couple of locations, the alignment of IA 58 would be shifted.

East 1 St Street Interchange and I-35 Widening, From MP 94.3 to Oralabor Road, Polk County, Iowa, Project # IM-035-4(140)92--13-77, Environmental Assessment and Section 4(f) De Minimis Impact Finding, 2015

From Proposed Action: "The proposed action consists of reconstructing the East 1st Street/I-35 interchange with a Diverging Diamond interchange, widening I-35 from four (4) lanes to six (6) lanes, and widening East 1st Street from four (4) lanes to five (5) lanes from Delaware Avenue to Frisk Drive. The project also proposes to reconstruct the intersections of East 1st Street/Creekview Drive and East 1st Street/Frisk Drive."

One-step nucleic acid amplification (OSNA): a new road to better staging in colon cancer patients?

Introduction: Approximately one fifth of stage I and II colon cancer patients will suffer from recurrent disease. This is partly due to the presence of small nodal tumour infiltrates, which are undetected by standard histopathology using Haematoxylin & Eosin (H&E) staining on one slice and thus may not receive beneficial adjuvant therapy. A new diagnostic, semi-automatic system, called one-step nucleic acid amplification (OSNA), was recently designed for the detection of cytokeratin 19 (CK19) mRNA as a surrogate for lymph node metastases. The objective of the present investigation was to compare the performance of OSNA with both standard H&E as well as intensive histopathologic analyses in the detection of colon cancer lymph node micro- and macro-metastases.Methods: In this prospective study 313 lymph nodes from 22 consecutive stage I - III colon cancer patients were assessed. Half of each lymph node was analysed initially based on one slice of H&E followed by an intensive histologic work-up (5 levels of H&E and immuno-histochemistry staining for each slice), the other half was analysed using OSNA.Results: All OSNA results were available after less than 40 minutes. Fifty-one lymph nodes were positive and 246 lymph nodes negative with both OSNA and standard H&E. OSNA was more sensitive to detect small nodal tumor infiltrates compared to H&E (11 OSNA pos. /H&E neg.). Compared to intensive histopathologic analyses, OSNA had a sensitivity of 94.5% and a specificity of 97.6% to detect lymph node micro- and macro-metastases with a concordance rate of 97.1%. An upstaging due to OSNA was found in 2/13 (15.3%) initially node negative colon cancer patients.Conclusion: OSNA appears to be a powerful and promising molecular tool for the detection of lymph node macro- and micro-metastases in colon cancer patients. OSNA has a similar performance in the detection of micro- and macro-metastases compared to intensive histopathologic investigations and appears to be superior to standard histology with H&E. Since the use of OSNA allows the analysis of the whole lymph node, the problem of sampling bias and undetected tumor deposits due to uninvestigated material will be overcome in the future and OSNA may thus improve staging in colon cancer patients. It is hoped that this improved staging will lead to better patient selection for adjuvant therapy and consecutively improved local and distant control as well as better overall survival.

SAP Control del balanç de materials

L'empresa fícticia EcsCables S.A., que està destinada a la fabricació de cables d'energia de mitja i alta tensió, té uns desviaments en el balanç de materials. L'objectiu d'aquest projecte és la de resoldre les anomalies derivades per mitjà del programari SAP, que serà l'eina imprescindible per poder saber amb certesa que està passant. Amb les dades extretes i amb l'ajuda d'un segon ERP intern anomenat Planifer s'intentarà esbrinar les causes del desviament.

Effectiveness of Dynamic Messaging on Driver Behavior for Late Merge Lane Road Closures, 2009

Efforts to improve safety and traffic flow through merge areas on high volume/high speed roadways have included early merge and late merge concepts and several studies of the effectiveness of these concepts, many using Intelligent Transportation Systems for implementation. The Iowa Department of Transportation (Iowa DOT) planned to employ a system of dynamic message signs (DMS) to enhance standard temporary traffic control for lane closures and traffic merges at two bridge construction projects in western Iowa (Adair County and Cass County counties) on I-80 during the 2008 construction season. To evaluate the DMS system’s effectiveness for impacting driver merging actions, the Iowa DOT contracted with Iowa State University’s Center for Transportation Research and Education to perform the evaluation and make recommendations for future use of this system based on the results. Data were collected over four weekends, beginning August 1–4 and ending October 16–20, 2008. Two weekends yielded sufficient data for evaluation, one of transition traffic flow and the other with a period of congestion. For both of these periods, a statistical review of collected data did not indicate a significant impact on driver merging actions when the DMS messaging was activated as compared to free flow conditions with no messaging. Collection of relevant project data proved to be problematic for several reasons. In addition to personnel safety issues associated with the placement and retrieval of counting devices on a high speed roadway, unsatisfactory equipment performance and insufficient congestion to activate the DMS messaging hampered efforts. A review of the data that was collected revealed different results taken by the tube counters compared to the older model plate counters. Although variations were not significant from a practical standpoint, a statistical evaluation showed that the data, including volumes, speeds, and classifications from the two sources were not comparable at a 95% level of confidence. Comparison of data from the Iowa DOT’s automated traffic recorders (ATRs) in the area also suggested variations in results from these data collection systems. Additional comparison studies were recommended.

Road Safety Audit for US 52 in Dubuque County from IA 136 to the NCL of Dubuque, 2008

A section of US 52 between Dubuque and Luxemburg, Iowa, was listed in the top 5% of Iowa highways for severe crashes involving impaired drivers and single vehicle run-off-road crashes during 2001–2005, and several crashes have occurred on this roadway near the towns of Luxemburg, Holy Cross, and Rickardsville, Iowa, many on curves. Staff and officials from the Iowa Department of Transportation (Iowa DOT), Iowa State Patrol, Governor’s Traffic Safety Bureau, Federal Highway Administration, Center for Transportation Research and Education Dubuque County, and a retired fire chief met to review crash data and discuss potential safety improvements to U.S. Highway 52. This report outlines the findings and recommendations of the road safety audit team to address the safety concerns on this US 52 corridor and explains several mitigation strategies that the Iowa DOT District 6 Office has selected.

Road Safety Audit for Union County IA 25 from the WCL of Creston to North H-24 Intersection, 2008

In April 2008 a preliminary investigation of fatal and major injury crashes on Iowa’s primary road system from 2001 through 2007 was conducted by the Iowa Department of Transportation, Office of Traffic and Safety. A mapping of these data revealed an apparent concentration of these serious crashes on a section of Iowa 25 north of Creston. Based on this information, a road safety audit of this roadway section was requested by the Office of Traffic and Safety. Iowa 25 is a two-lane asphaltic concrete pavement roadway, 22 ft in width with approximately 6 ft wide granular shoulders. Originally constructed in 1939, the roadway was last rehabilitated in 1996 with a 4-in. asphalt overlay. Except for shoulder paving through a curve area, no additional work beyond routine maintenance has been accomplished in the section. The 2004 traffic map indicates that IA 25 has a traffic volume of approximately 2070 vehicles per day with 160 commercial vehicles. The posted speed is 55 mph. This report contains a discussion of audit team findings, crash and roadway data, and recommendations for possible mitigation of safety concerns for this roadway section.

Road Safety Audit for US 6 from the ECL of Iowa City to the WCL of West Liberty in Johnson and Muscatine Counties, Iowa, 2008

Approximately 13.2 miles of US 6 in eastern Iowa extends from the east corporate limits of Iowa City, Iowa, to the west corporate limits of West Liberty, Iowa. This segment of US 6 is a service level B primary highway, with an annual daily traffic volume varying from 3,480 vehicles per day (vpd) to 5,700 vpd. According to 2001–2007 crash density data from the Iowa Department of Transportation (Iowa DOT), the corridor is currently listed among the top 5% of non-freeway Iowa DOT roads in several crash categories, including crashes involving excessive speed, impaired drivers, single-vehicle run-off-road, and multiple-vehicle crossed centerline. A road safety audit of this corridor was deemed appropriate by the Iowa Department of Transportation’s Office of Traffic and Safety. Staff and officials from the Iowa DOT, Iowa State Patrol, Governor’s Traffic Safety Bureau, Federal Highway Administration, Center for Transportation Research and Education, and several local law enforcement and transportation agencies met to review crash data and discuss potential safety improvements to this segment of US 6. This report outlines the findings and recommendations of the road safety audit team to address the safety concerns on this US 6 corridor and explains several selected mitigation strategies.

Road Safety Audit Report for US 61 from the ECL of Muscatine to the WCL of, 2008

U.S. Highway 61 between Muscatine and Davenport, Iowa, is a four-lane divided section of road approximately 21 miles in length. This section was found to be among the top 5% of Iowa roadways for single-vehicle run-off-road, impaired driver, unbelted driver, and speed-related crashes for the period of 2001 through 2005. A road safety audit of this corridor was deemed appropriate by the Iowa Department of Transportation’s Office of Traffic and Safety. Staff and officials from the Iowa Department of Transportation (Iowa DOT), Iowa State Patrol, Governor’s Traffic Safety Bureau, Federal Highway Administration, Center for Transportation Research and Education, and several local law enforcement and transportation agencies met to review crash data and discuss potential safety improvements to US 61. This report outlines the findings and recommendations of the road safety audit team to address the safety concerns on this US 61 corridor and explains several selected mitigation strategies.

Road Safety Audit for the US 61/Harrison Street and West Locust Street Intersection in Davenport-Scott County, Iowa, 2008

On the October 7 and 8, 2008, a road safety audit was conducted for the intersection of US 61/Harrison Street and West Locust Street in Davenport, Iowa. US 61/Harrison Street is a one-way street and a principal arterial route through Davenport, with three southbound lanes. Locust Street is a four-lane, two-way minor arterial running across the city from west to east. The last major improvement at this intersection was implemented approximately 20 years ago. The Iowa Department of Transportation requested a safety audit of this intersection in response to a high incidence of crashes at the location over the past several years, in view of the fact that no major improvements are anticipated for this intersection in the immediate future. The road safety audit team discussed current conditions at the intersection and reviewed the last seven years of crash data. The team also made daytime and nighttime field visits to the intersection to examine field conditions and observe traffic flow and crossing guard operations with younger pedestrians. After discussing key issues, the road safety audit team drew conclusions and suggested possible enforcement, engineering, public information, and educational strategies for mitigation.

Road Safety Audit for County Road X-37, from the Intersection of G-62 to the East Corporate Limits of Columbus City in Louisa County, Iowa, 2009

A road safety audit was conducted for a 7.75 mile section of County Road X-37 in Louisa County, Iowa. In 2006, the average annual daily traffic on this roadway was found to be 680 vehicles per day. Using crash data from 2001 to 2007, the Iowa Department of Transportation (Iowa DOT) has identified this roadway as being in the highest 5% of local rural roads in Iowa for single-vehicle runoff- road crashes. Considering these safety data, the Louisa County Engineer requested that a road safety audit be conducted to identify areas of safety concerns and recommend low-cost mitigation to address those concerns. Staff and officials from the Iowa DOT, Governor’s Traffic Safety Bureau, Federal Highway Administration, Institute for Transportation, and local law enforcement and transportation agencies met to review crash data and discuss potential safety improvements to this segment of X-37. This report outlines the findings and recommendations of the road safety audit team to address the safety concerns on this X-37 corridor and explain several selected mitigation strategies.

Road Safety Audit for County Road W-55 in Washington County, Iowa, 2009

A road safety audit was conducted for a seven-mile section of County Road W-55 in Washington County, Iowa. In 2006, the average annual daily traffic on this roadway was found to be 1,290 vehicles per day. Using crash data from 2001 to 2007, the Iowa Department of Transportation (Iowa DOT) has identified this roadway as being in the top 5% of Iowa secondary rural roads with the highest density of serious (fatal and major injury) crashes for single-vehicle run-off-road incidents. Considering these safety data, the Washington County Engineer requested that a road safety audit be conducted to identify areas with safety concerns and to recommend low-cost mitigation to address those concerns. Staff and officials from the Iowa DOT, Iowa State Patrol, Governor’s Traffic Safety Bureau, Federal Highway Administration, Institute for Transportation, and local law enforcement and transportation agencies met to review crash data and discuss potential safety improvements to this segment of W-55. This report outlines the findings and recommendations of the road safety audit team to address the safety concerns on this W-55 corridor and explain several selected mitigation strategies.

Road Safety Audit for Intersection of US 218 and County Road C-57 (West Cedar Wapsi Road) in Black Hawk County, Iowa, 2009

Beginning on June 22, 2009, a road safety audit was initiated for the intersection of US 218 and County Road C-57 in Black Hawk County, Iowa. Due to the traffic volumes and the number of conflicting traffic movements on these two roadways, this intersection has developed a crash history that concerns the Iowa Department of Transportation (Iowa DOT), Iowa State Patrol, and local agencies. This intersection is ranked seventh in Iowa for the highest number of at-grade expressway intersection crashes. Considering this, Black Hawk County and the Iowa DOT requested that a road safety audit be conducted to address the safety concerns and recommend possible mitigation strategies.

Road Safety Audit for Intersection of IA 1 and County Road R-67 in Johnson County, Iowa, 2009

On August 3, 2009, a road safety audit was initiated for the intersection of IA 1 and County Road F-67 in Johnson County, Iowa. Due to the high volume of traffic accessing the cheese producing plant (Twin County Dairy, Inc.), a grocery store east of the intersection, and a large Amish community with horse-drawn wagons and carriages frequently sharing the roads with motorized vehicles, this intersection has developed a crash history that concerns the Iowa Department of Transportation (Iowa DOT), Iowa State Patrol, and local agencies. Considering this, Johnson County and the Iowa DOT requested that a road safety audit be conducted to address the safety concerns and recommend possible mitigation strategies.

Road Safety Audit for IA 150/US 52 from I-380 to the Minnesota Border, 2009

On June 9, 2009, the Northeast Iowa Highway 150/52 Coalition met with the Iowa Department of Transportation (Iowa DOT) in Cedar Falls, Iowa to discuss concerns regarding roadway conditions and safety which has become a concern because of the potential economic development in the area. In response to the issues raised by the coalition, the Iowa DOT requested that a road safety audit be conducted on the corridor to identify where low-cost improvements could be beneficially applied to address safety concerns.