Iowa Department of Transportation
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Waterways

  • Iowa has 491 miles of navigable river bordering its state, and it is the only state in the nation bordered by two navigable rivers.
  • The state of Iowa borders 312 miles of the upper Mississippi River. This area is a vital segment of the Inland Waterway System, providing an economic transportation link from the upper Midwest to the lower Mississippi Valley and the Gulf of Mexico.
  • In 2007, more than 15.1 million tons of commodities (mostly grain, coal and fertilizer) moved to, from and within Iowa. Grain comprised the largest quantity of this tonnage, totaling nearly 50 percent overall. Coal followed as the second largest commodity, totaling 13 percent of the tonnage.
  • There were 65 barge terminals in Iowa that shipped and received tonnage in 2005 (57 on the Mississippi River and eight on the Missouri River).
  • Iowa docks shipped commodities by barge to 11 states and received commodities from 12 other states. Of those states, Louisiana received the most cargo, nearly 7.3 million tons. Most of this was grain (corn, soybeans, cereal grains, and oilseeds) that was then loaded onto ships for shipment to the world market. (2006)
  • The leading state shipping by barge to Iowa was Illinois, which transported 1.8 million tons of goods, most of which was coal. Louisiana shipments to Iowa were a close second at 1.4 million tons shipping commodities such as fertilizers, sand, gravel, salt, and chemicals.(2007)
  • There are 11 navigation locks and dams on the Mississippi River bordering Iowa. Eight of the projects have a single chamber measuring 110 feet by 600 feet. Locks and Dams 14 and 15 have main chambers of that size, with auxiliaries measuring 80 feet by 320 feet and 110 feet by 360 feet, respectively.
  • Lock and Dam 19 is the largest and newest project in Iowa's waters, with a 110 feet by 1200 feet chamber built in 1957. The other structures were built in the 1930s.
  • An analysis of the waterborne commerce data for Iowa shows that 9.7 million tons of commodities were shipped from Iowa terminals on the river system. Almost 77 percent of this tonnage (7.5 million tons) consisted of grain, mostly corn and soybeans. (2007)
  • Terminals in the state received over 4.2 million tons, with coal being the primary commodity. More than 1.2 million tons moved within the state. (2007)
  • Click here to view the cargo capacity chart depicting a comparison among modes of transportation.