A trio of major road projects set to halt traffic in 2023
The unofficial state flower, the orange traffic cone, will be plentiful in Southern Nevada in 2023 as there will be no shortage of road projects in the Las Vegas Valley.
Despite the mass of road work planned in Clark County there are some projects that stand out from others. Here are some of the most impactful road projects set to disrupt traffic in the new year.
Interstate 15/Tropicana interchange
In terms of potential traffic shakeups tied to a project, this one should take the cake.
The $305 million renovation of the Interstate 15/Tropicana interchange has been mildly disrupting traffic since it began in May.
But as 2023 rings in, the project will begin to majorly disrupt traffic as work on the Tropicana overpass begins in a phase the Nevada Department of Transportation has dubbed “Dropicana.”
Plans call for the demolition and reconstruction of the north portion of Tropicana over I-15 and Frank Sinatra Drive. Much of the flyover ramp from I-15 southbound to Tropicana eastbound will be also be brought down and rebuilt.
Beginning Jan. 17, the I-15 southbound offramps to Tropicana east- and westbound will close to traffic for several months each.
The ramp to Tropicana westbound is to be closed for nine months, while the flyover ramp to Tropicana eastbound will close for a year-and-a-half.
Tropicana will be fully closed between Dean Martin Drive and the New York-New York from Jan. 22- Jan. 30.
And a full closure of I-15 in both directions at Tropicana begins at 10 p.m. Jan. 27 and goes through 5 a.m. Jan. 30. That closure is needed o tear down the north portion of the Tropicana bridge over the freeway.
Work will continue on the rebuild of both the overpass and flyover ramp throughout the year.
At full buildout, the project will see Tropicana widened from three lanes to four in each direction and left turn lanes from Tropicana to I-15 will be expanded from two to three lanes.
In addition, Dean Martin Drive will be reconfigured under Tropicana, eliminating the traffic signal at Tropicana. This is aimed at improving traffic flow in an area that is heavily traveled on event days at Allegiant Stadium.
The I-15 exit to Frank Sinatra Drive will be increased to two lanes and five new dynamic messaging boards will be added on I-15 between Warm Springs Road and Tropicana.
A new pedestrian walkway also will be built between Tropicana and Arena Drive, opening an access point for pedestrians heading to and from T-Mobile Arena.
This will remain atop the major roadwork list for the foreseeable future with work on the project slated to wrap up in early 2025.
I-15 south widening
The I-15 will be a construction-riddled area in 2023 with another $74 million widening project on a southern portion from Sloan Road to Warm Springs Road.
The 9-mile upgrade is planned to begin in the summer and will lead right to the I-15/Tropicana Interchange project that will be heading down its home stretch.
Project plans call for the widening I-15 from six to eight general-purpose lanes between Sloan and St. Rose Parkway, widening and restriping I-15 from six to 10 general-purpose lanes between St. Rose Parkway and Blue Diamond Road. A high occupancy vehicle lane will also be added in each direction between St. Rose Parkway and Blue Diamond Road.
Once online, the new HOV lanes would bring the Las Vegas Valley’s total to 28 continuous miles of carpool lanes between I-15 and U.S. Highway 95.
The project will address traffic in the quickly growing area near the South Point and the M Resort. The Raiders headquarters, new housing and commercial developments and two Amazon facilities are located nearby, with other major projects in the works.
The project also includes adding sound walls near residential areas throughout the corridor and resurfacing bridges and pavement at the Blue Diamond interchange.
Contact Mick Akers at makers@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2920. Follow @mickakers on Twitter. Send questions and comments to roadwarrior@reviewjournal.com.
