Nearly $100M contract awarded for I-15/215 Beltway interchange
The Interstate 15-215 Beltway interchange project in North Las Vegas is set to go after the state awarded a nearly $100 million contract for the work.
Contractor Fisher Sand and Gravel was awarded a $99 million contract to construct the interchange project that includes two massive concrete dual-lane flyovers, the Nevada Department of Transportation announced Tuesday.
The most notable feature of the project is a 51-foot-tall, 1,800-foot-long east-to-north connection ramp. The flyover from I-15 northbound to 215 westbound will be longer than the Eiffel Tower on its side.
“The new direct system-to-system interchange will greatly improve traffic, enhance safety and increase mobility,” said Tony Illia, Transportation Department spokesman. “The interchange currently averages about 34,000 vehicles daily, although future traffic counts are expected to grow by 72 percent over the next two decades.”
The structures sit atop a network of drilled pilings that reinforce the subsurface, with the largest measuring 10 feet in diameter and 104 feet in depth.
The improvements also include new I-15 southbound on-ramp and offramp at Tropical Parkway, and widening over a half-mile of the 215 Beltway from four to six travel lanes.
Other upgrades call for extending Tropical Parkway to Centennial Parkway, replacing Range Road as an east-west surface connection, with a new eastbound 215 Beltway offramp to the new Centennial and Range Road intersection.
New lighting, signage and landscaping, plus 7,815 feet of drainage pipe also are included in the project. The landscaping aesthetics, designed by Lage Design, will feature boulders and decorative rock, accented by colorful polygonal roadside sculptures that convey the characteristics of water and its impact upon shaping both the natural and man-made environments.
Fisher Sand and Gravel was the contractor on the first 2½-mile section of Interstate 11, which was completed in 2018.
The interchange project, which covers nearly 2 miles, will break ground later this year, with a projected completion in late 2022. The project is 95 percent funded by the federal government with the state providing the remaining money.
Contact Mick Akers at makers@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2920. Follow @mickakers on Twitter.
