PLEASANT HILL, Iowa — Construction in Pleasant Hill is causing detours for residents, and soon DART will be feeling the effects.

The closure on Parkridge Avenue focuses on storm sewer and water main construction and is expected to run until the end of September. That means the project will still be ongoing during the Iowa State Fair, causing some changes for DART’s Park & Ride service that picks up fair-goers at Southeast Polk High School.

In 2024, DART provided more than 270,000 trips to and from the Iowa State Fair, with their SEP location accounting for more than 92,000 of those rides and making it their second busiest location.

Leaders with DART say they’re prepared to avoid the area, but due to the construction, rides could take a bit longer to and from the fairgrounds.

“Due to the construction and having to take a little bit of a different route, we do expect that the buses will take a little bit longer this year, so there might be some slight delays for those who are riding with us, but overall I think it will be very manageable … We are already well underway with our preparations, planning with our teams, coordinating with the city of Pleasant Hill and others to make sure we can offer another great fair experience for folks,” said Luis Montoya, Chief Planning and Operating Officer for DART.

For the detour, DART will be utilizing University Avenue, going South on US 65, getting off at Vandalia to get downtown and drop fair-goers off at Gate 10 at East 30th Street.

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