^Looking east from the eastern exit to US Route 151 near Mount Vernon, May 2022.
US Route 30 runs east-west all the way across the middle of Iowa, with a southwesterly dive toward Nebraska at the western end of the state. It's a more central route than even Interstate 80, which lies to the south; with the exception of the southwesterly dive at the western end of Iowa, US Route 30 spans the central row of Iowa's nine rows of counties. US Route 30 is instrumental in the transportation to, from, and around Cedar Rapids, Marshalltown, Clinton, Carroll, and Ames. US Route 30 first enters Iowa's western extent by crossing the Missouri River out of Blair, Nebraska. From there, US Route 30 continues east to an interchange with Interstate 29, where it bends northeast through Logan to Denison, in the Loess Hills region. At Denison, US Route 30 stops bending, and holds a steady, mostly straight eastward course like a good little even-numbered route. At Ogden, west of Ames, US Route 30 widens to a four-lane expressway. The expressway continues along the south sides of Ames, Marshalltown, Cedar Rapids, and the twin cities of Mount Vernon and Lisbon. After Mount Vernon and Lisbon, though, US Route 30 reverts to a two-lane highway until Iowa's eastern lobe carved by the Mississippi River. In that lobe is DeWitt, where US Route 30 joins the US Route 61 freeway south for a mile. US Route 30 emerges from the concurrency as another expressway, until just outside of Clinton. US Route 67 joins US Route 30 east into Clinton, but departs so that US Route 30 can cross the Mississippi River into Illinois.
My photo for US Route 30 in Iowa shows the westbound trailblazer for travelers leaving the intersection with Iowa Route 144. This is just west of Ogden, the town marking the western end of US Route 30's expressway portion. This photo was taken in September 2019 on the way home from northwest Iowa.
Here is a slew of additional photos taken along US Route 30 in Iowa:
Here is a slew of additional photos taken along US Route 30 in Iowa:
A westbound junction marker for Iowa 127 along US Route 30 in Logan.
Looking west on the north side of a concurrency with Iowa 37 in Dunlap.
Farther south, US Route 30 splits from Iowa 37. This photo looks south at the split in Dunlap.
Near Scranton, Iowa, US Route 30 meets the northern end of Iowa 25. This signage appears to those heading eastward.
In Jefferson, US Route 30 has an intersection at Iowa 4.
Near Grand Junction, Iowa, US Route 30 meets Iowa 144.
The northern end of Iowa 146 occurs at this interchange with US Route 30 in Le Grand.
The twin cities of Tama and Toledo are where you'll find that the two major highways are US Route 30 and US Route 63. US Route 30 exits to US Route 63 in Toledo.
The exit to US Route 218's northern continuation. At this location west of Cedar Rapids, US Route 218 joins US Route 30 eastward.
Looking east at Exit 246A to Iowa 100.
This photo looks eastward beyond the interchane with Iowa 100, showcasing the triplicate concurrency of US Routes 30, 151, and 218.
US Route 30 meets the fork with US Route 151's southern continuation. US Route 151 joins US Route 30 east here.
Looking east at Exit 252B to Interstate 380 southbound, which leads toward Iowa City.
Continuing a bit eastward, US Route 30 gets a chance to access Interstate 380 north toward downtown Cedar Rapids.
US Route 30 sends US Route 151 to continue northward on a separate roadway, which incidentally is also the southernmost extent of Iowa 13.
US Route 30 has left the Cedar Rapids area, and is now interacting with Iowa Route 1 at Mount Vernon.
US Route 30 at the western extent of its concurrency with Iowa 38. This is in Stanwood, Iowa, looking east.
Just east of Stanwood, Iowa 38 breaks off to continue southward away from US Route 30.
In Clinton, US Route 30 enters Iowa going westward, crossing the Mississippi River to get out of Illinois. Westward travelers immediately encounter this sign assembly, indicating that US Route 67 is joining in from the north.