Grand Prix tear down crosses finish line ahead of New Year’s Eve on Strip
Crews wrapped up tearing down the Las Vegas Grand Prix circuit just in time for New Year’s Eve celebrations on the Strip.
Almost immediately after the inaugural Formula One race ended early on the morning of Nov. 19, work began on returning the Strip and surrounding areas of the 3.8-mile track, spanning portions of Las Vegas Boulevard, Koval Lane and Sands and Harmon avenues, back to normal.
That work wrapped up Friday, just before an estimated 400,000 people ring in New Year’s Eve in and around the Strip.
This marks the first time since early April that some form of infrastructure work tied to the race hasn’t been taking place in the resort corridor.
A temporary bridge built on Flamingo Road over Koval Lane for the race, will remain in place well into the new year, as the Clark County Public Works Department conducts a study on what, if any, benefit constructing a permanent version would present to traffic flow in the resort corridor, according to Joslyn Garcia, Las Vegas Grand Prix spokeswoman.
“They (Clark County) expect to have more information in about 90 days,” Garcia said.
Those ringing in the New Year near the Bellagio will notice that the greenery in front of the property’s popular fountains has returned.
The trees that were removed in front of the Fountains at Bellagio ahead of the Las Vegas Grand Prix to make way for a high-end spectator zone have been replanted. That process was completed on Dec. 22, according to Bellagio spokeswoman Krystal Webb.
Road closures
Ahead of the evening road closures Clark County work crews will ready the area to allow for the process to be as quick as possible.
“Our crews will move 3,000 crowd-control barricades early in the morning of New Year’s Eve to prepare for street closures,” Clark County Commission Chairman Jim Gibson said Thursday during an NYE new conference.
Here’s a list of road closures that will be in place on New Year’s Eve.
Resort Corridor
■ Beginning at 5:30 p.m. Sunday the Nevada Department of Transportation will begin to close I-15 northbound and southbound off-ramps to Flamingo Road.
■ Las Vegas Boulevard from Spring Mountain Road to Tropicana Avenue will begin to close at 6:30 p.m., with the Strip scheduled to be completely shut down to vehicle traffic by 8 p.m, according to the Metropolitan Police Department.
■ Turnpockets on both eastbound and westbound Tropicana will close at 4:30 p.m.
■ Flamingo eastbound at Valley View will be closed starting at 5:30 p.m.
Roads are scheduled to be fully reopened by 4 a.m. Monday, after crews clean up the roads after throngs of revelers disperse.
“After the party the convoy of 15 street sweepers will make its way down the Strip, picking up 10 to 12 tons of trash along the way before the intersections are reopened,” Gibson said. “All of that has to happen in a timely way to keep things moving.”
Downtown
A ticketed New Year’s Eve event featuring live music and fireworks at the Fremont Street Experience will lead to road closures downtown.
■ Casino Center Boulevard closed from Carson to Ogden avenues.
■ Fourth Street closed from Carson to Ogden.
The road closures will begin at 7 a.m. Sunday, with roads scheduled to reopen at 5 a.m. Monday, according to Las Vegas officials.
Contact Mick Akers at makers@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2920. Follow @mickakers on X.