New online chat gives customers another way for contact-free services

June 9, 2020

With the current pandemic, many of us are doing more of our business online. To make it easier for us to engage with you in a better and more efficient way, the Iowa Department of Transportation has implemented a robust chat feature on our website. While we were starting to implement the live chat portion prior to the pandemic, the health crisis caused us to speed up the implementation.

The state’s Office of the Chief Information Officer brought in the live chat product, Bold360, and made it available to all state agencies. The Iowa DOT launched the first phase of the chat feature on Oct. 23, 2019. with the most basic questions being answered using a database of pre-programed answers. Zhaia Wineinger from our Strategic Communications & Policy Bureau built the database of content that provides the automated answers from the chatbot.

Iowa DOT crew helps save lives in I-80 crash

May 22, 2020

Our field forces hear and see a lot of things out on the road, but what Alex Bireline and Brett Gettler, highway technician associates in our Adair shop, heard and saw on April 24 was a first for them.

The two were repairing a sign along Interstate 80 when they heard what sounded like a crash down the road. “We didn’t actually see the crash,” said Bireline, “but we definitely heard it. I told Brett that we needed to get to the crash. He was already on the phone calling 911.”

First work zone awards honor traffic control partners

May 7, 2020

Maintaining a reliable, predictable transportation system that you can count on every day is what we strive to achieve. When the roads on that system are in need of repair, that reliability and predictability can change.

Work zones are popping up all over Iowa. These areas can change traffic patterns and slow down your commute. There is a definite science and a bit of an art to designing a safe and effective work zone. This year, for the first time, Iowa’s industry partners included a work zone award in their annual awards ceremonies.

Public involvement for Iowa’s transportation future

April 29, 2020

A major component of any successful highway project is collecting, analyzing, and incorporating input from the people who live and work in the area and use the transportation system every day. For decades, the Iowa Department of Transportation sought this public involvement at in-person meetings.

While we recognize that these meetings are very useful, we also recognize people’s behaviors change over time, and there is always room for improvement at gaining even more public input. Valerie Brewer, one of the Iowa DOT’s two public involvement managers, said, “For in-person meetings, we used several outreach efforts to get information about the meeting to those who might be interested. Then those people needed to attend that meeting at an appointed time. Oftentimes, attendance was very low. Those who did attend were able to view paper documents related to the project and presentations by DOT staff. Comments were collected in writing. This process did collect valuable input, but we knew we could do more to involve those people who rely on the transportation system in their area.”

Iowa DOT - Open For Business

April 10, 2020

Keeping the transportation system operating safely and efficiently is at the heart of the Iowa DOT’s mission. As we navigate our way through this unprecedented time, our workforce remains committed to supporting the movement of people and goods throughout Iowa, so that everyone can play their role to respond to the COVID-19 crisis.

MVE officers play vital role in apprehending murderer

April 2, 2020

It’s something that isn’t supposed to happen in small-town Iowa. On Wednesday, Dec. 3, 2019, a gunman shot and killed a bank employee, 43-year old Jessica Weishaar of Algona, in the rural northern Iowa community of Lu Verne.

The small town of 260 people has no police force of its own, so agencies from around the area were called to action, including two Iowa Department of Transportation Motor Vehicle Enforcement Officers who played a key role in quickly apprehending the suspect.