VIRTUAL PUBLIC MEETING
The Virtual Public Meeting is now closed. We appreciate your input. Your comments have been entered into the public record.
About the NEPA Study Project
Interstate 15 (I-15) is the primary transportation corridor in southern Nevada
connecting to California and Arizona.
Over the past three decades, the Nevada
Department of Transportation (NDOT), in partnership with FHWA, has been making investments in
improvements to I-15 to keep up with the growth in the Las Vegas area.
The
section of I-15 between Tropicana Ave and Sahara Ave is the last section
to be upgraded adjacent to the resort corridor (Las Vegas Strip).
Project History
The existing I-15 Central Corridor only accommodates five through lanes in each direction, while future traffic demands are expected to further impact I-15 traffic operations within this segment. A Feasibility Study was conducted in 2019 (Feasibility Study) by NDOT to identify alternatives primarily focused on improving the safety and traffic operations in addition to right-of-way needs necessary to accommodate future traffic demands. Currently, NDOT and FHWA are continuing to evaluate improvements through a National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) analysis within this corridor. NDOT has initiated this NEPA study project to evaluate options that will meet its goals for the I-15 corridor, enhancing the corridor for the future.
Study Goals
Increase Capacity
Enhance Safety
Improve Flow of Traffic
Compatibility with Adjacent Improvements
Previous Studies
NDOT has looked at possible options to improve I-15 Central Corridor.
Completed August of 2021, the Feasibility Study demonstrates the need for roadway improvements within the corridor and illustrates the identified design alternatives that NDOT plans to study during this NEPA phase.
The Feasibility Study compared the practicality of roadway improvements that are known to improve roadway operations (addition of lanes, reconfiguring interchanges, optimizing operations). The Feasibility Study objectively evaluated improvements to determine their effectiveness, the impacts of resources and costs, and identified alternatives to begin the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) process.
Four potential alternatives were evaluated in the feasibility study and were presented at a virtual public meeting in 2021. These options were for I-15 improvements alone. Since then, NDOT has coordinated with Clark County and the City of Las Vegas and determined that additional evaluation and study are needed in the corridor. Plans and options need to be further evaluated for extending Martin Luther King Jr. Drive to Dean Martin and for determining and mitigating impacts related to constructing a median interchange between Sahara and Spring Mountain.