Iowa back roadsWhat Is a Level B Road?

What the law says

Iowa law lets each county’s board of supervisors, after talking with the county engineer, sort its local “area service” roads into three classes: A, B and C [1]. The law calls them area service “A”, “B” and “C”. Most people just say Level B. Counties have been able to do this since 1981 [1][2].

• A roads are kept up the way the state’s road laws require [1].
• B roads “may have a lesser level of maintenance,” set by the board of supervisors after talking with the county engineer [1].
• C roads get the least. Access is limited, and the road is closed off with a gate or other barrier [1].

The law doesn’t tie the class to how many cars use a road. That’s up to the county.

What the sign means

The county has to put up signs at every place a B or C road meets another public road, warning drivers that they’re entering a road with less upkeep than other public roads [1]. The signs have to follow the state’s traffic sign manual. Iowa DOT’s guide for counties shows the Level B signs as a yellow diamond that reads “Caution, Minimum Maintenance Road,” with a plaque under it that reads “Level B Service, Enter at your own risk” [2].

What less maintenance looks like

Each county decides what “less” means, usually in an ordinance. Two examples:

• Black Hawk County gives B roads “only the minimum effort, expense and attention” to keep them open. Snow and ice aren’t removed, and the road isn’t sanded or salted on a regular basis [3].
• Johnson County says the same about minimum effort, and spells out more: no regular blading, no snow or ice removal, sanding or salting, no mowing, spraying or brush cutting, and bridges and culverts that might not carry legal loads. It also notes that a Level B road typically has little traffic and often serves only as field access [4].

So on a Level B road, plan on no plowing in winter and no regular grading, and watch for load limits at bridges.

Who’s responsible if something happens?

The county, and its officers, agents and employees, aren’t liable for injuries or damage to a vehicle that happen because of how a B or C road is maintained, as long as the road has been kept up to the level its class requires [1]. “Enter at your own risk” means what it says.

Level B and Level C

A Level C road can only be set by an ordinance or resolution. The county has to limit access to the people who own, rent or lawfully hold the land along it and the people who work for them, plus peace officers, magistrates and public employees whose job is to oversee or maintain the road. Anyone else who goes on or stays on a C road after being told not to is trespassing [1].

A C road keeps its class until one or more of the landowners along it petitions the board of supervisors, and the board has 60 days to approve or deny it [1].

Can a Level B road go back to Level A?

The state law doesn’t set a petition process for B roads, so it depends on the county. In Johnson County, at least half of the landowners along a Level B road can petition the board to restore it to Level A. The board decides at its own discretion and can ask the landowners to give right of way and pay at least half of the cost of the upgrade [4]. Your county engineer’s office can tell you how it works where you live.

Why we’re named for it

Level B Supply Co. is named after these signs. If you grew up on Iowa’s gravel roads, you’ve driven past plenty of them, and our Gravel road patch carries the same line: Enter at your own risk. Read more about the shop, or see the patch hats.