^Looking north on Iowa 81 from the Missouri state line, June 2017.
Iowa Route 81 is a very short north-south highway in southeastern Iowa, stemming south from Iowa Route 2 to the Missouri border. Iowa Route 81's purpose is to connect to Missouri Route 81, a north-south route in the northeast corner of Missouri. The northern end, at Iowa Route 2, is at Farmington. The southern end, at the Missouri border, is only about 3 miles away. Iowa Route 1's southern end is a short distance to the west along Iowa Route 2, so IowaDOT easily could have continued Iowa Route 1 down the route currently occupied by Iowa Route 81. Instead, IowaDOT established a designation of Iowa Route 81 to help people find the Missouri Highway with the same number.
My photo of Iowa Route 81 is the northern end marker, found at the junction of Iowa Route 81 and Iowa Route 2. Farmington is just ahead into the photo, immediately after a right turn onto Iowa Route 2 eastbound. This photo was taken on June 30, 2017, as part of the eastern Iowa trip. Back to the Iowa main page. Back to the home page.