Interstate 74 in Iowa

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Interstate 74 (I-74) is the central freeway through the Iowa Quad Cities. It roughly divides Davenport to the west and Bettendorf to the east. The Interstate Highway begins at an interchange with Interstate 80 (I-80) at the northeastern edge of Davenport and continues into Illinois at the Mississippi River by crossing the I-74 Bridge. The freeway was built in stages during the late 1960s and early 1970s.

The northern half of the interstate was built atop farmland in northeastern Davenport, while the southern half was built near the existing U.S. Route 6 (US 6) corridor through Bettendorf. After the approaches to the Iowa-Illinois Memorial Bridge were rebuilt for interstate traffic, it was completed and opened to traffic on November 26, 1974.

The Iowa and Illinois departments of transportation are planning a major reconstruction project along I-74. The 7-mile-long (11 km) corridor will be widened from four lanes to six. A new river crossing will be built to replace the aging bridges. Eastbound motorists on I-80 wishing to use I-74 east of the Quad Cities are suggested to use I-80 east around town for this reason....