U.S. Highway 218

U.S. 218 highlighted in red

Route information

Length:

321.734 mi (517.781 km)
Iowa:274.995 mi (442.562 km)
Minnesota:46.739 mi (75.219 km)

Existed:

1926 – present

Major junctions

South end:

US 136 at Keokuk, IA

US 34 at Mount Pleasant, IA
I-80 / I-380 at Coralville, IA
I-380 / US 30 / US 151 in Cedar Rapids, IA
I-380 / US 20 at Waterloo, IA
US 18 at Floyd, IA
I-90 at Austin, MN

North end:

I-35 / US 14 at Owatonna, MN

Location

States:

Highway system

United States Numbered Highway System

← Iowa 212	IA	Iowa 220 →
← MN 217	MN	MN 219 →

U.S. Highway 218 Business
Location:	Mount Pleasant
Existed:	2003–present

U.S. Highway 218 Business
Location:	Waverly
Length:	6.6 mi (10.6 km)
Existed:	December 1998–present

U.S. Highway 218 Business
Location:	Charles City
Existed:	2000–present

U.S. Highway 218 is an original United States Highway, created in 1926. Although technically a spur of U.S. Route 18, US 218 neither begins nor ends at US 18, but overlaps US 18 for 8 miles (13 km) near Charles City, Iowa. US 218 begins at U.S. Route 136 in downtown Keokuk and ends 319 miles (513 km) away at Interstate 35 and U.S. Route 14 at Owatonna, Minnesota. A large portion of US 218 in Iowa is part of the Avenue of the Saints, which connects St. Louis, Missouri, and Saint Paul, Minnesota.

U.S. 218 is part of the Avenue of the Saints between Floyd and Cedar Falls, and again between Cedar Rapids and a point south of Donnellson. North of Mount Pleasant, the parts of US 218 that follow the Avenue have been completely upgraded to four lanes, with either at-grade intersections or controlled access. When 218 is part of the Avenue of the Saints, it is co-signed with Iowa Highway 27.

U.S. 218 enters the state at Lyle, in Mower County. It follows along the east side of the Iowa, Chicago, and Eastern Railroad line as it continues northward through farm fields. Southeast of Austin, U.S. 218 angles northeastward to bypass the city, its former route following County Road 45 into town.

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Wikipedia