Las Vegas traffic hub helps secure safe path for Clinton and Trump motorcades
The eyes of more than 71 million people were focused on the third and final presidential debate at UNLV.
But I was staring at traffic jams in Las Vegas. Thankfully, I wasn’t alone.
Huddled within the region’s traffic nerve center, a team of 10 people monitored cars lined up along sections of Interstate 15, the 215 Beltway and surrounding streets that were closed Wednesday night to clear a secure path for Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump.
And, in case anyone was wondering, Clinton’s motorcade was bigger than Trump’s.
“It takes a village to move a candidate,” quipped one of the workers watching Clinton’s entourage.
More than 600 cameras are mounted on freeways and streets across Clark County, with live footage beamed to large television screens inside the Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada’s traffic management center.
Housed inside the Nevada Highway Patrol’s office just off Sunset Road, the secured hub was established in 2005 as a strategic tool aimed at unclogging gridlocked streets. It also comes in handy during popular events that draw streams of tourists to Las Vegas.
The office is staffed by 40 workers coming from the RTC, the Nevada Department of Transportation and the state Department of Public Safety, all charged with examining the effects of snarled streets, car crashes and the occasional burned-out signal. The team is able to field calls from stranded drivers or unclog streets by pushing a button that allows for extra-long green lights that allow traffic to flow freely.
“I love the staff we have because they’re passionate about the job,” said Brian Hoeft, the RTC’s director of Freeway and Arterial System of Transportation, known as FAST.
“I also love the whole visual aspect of the job because it’s not about tables, charts or graphs,” Hoeft said. “It’s the real world happening right in front of us.”
Traffic can become particularly hectic during big-ticket events, including the Electric Daisy Carnival and NASCAR races held at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway, the Rock-and-Roll Marathon along the Strip and the Life is Beautiful music festival in downtown.
And then there’s New Year’s Eve, when vehicles are blocked from the Strip to make way for throngs of revelers.
“Every event has its own special little flavor,” Hoeft said. “We’re fairly seasoned now. It’s what we’re used to, and it’s what we’ve done for over 10 years.”
Just before the debate, evening commuters endured a 40-minute wait when Interstate 15 and the 215 Beltway closed to make way for Trump’s motorcade, followed shortly afterward by Clinton’s entourage.
Despite the pain for locals, the trip went off without a hitch for the candidates, who went on to verbally spar for 90 minutes at UNLV’s Thomas & Mack Center.
About five minutes before the debate ended, crews started shutting down the freeways and roads, creating a second round of headaches for Las Vegas drivers. Trump headed to McCarran International Airport and left Las Vegas by 8:30 p.m. Clinton was expected to follow the same route.
Instead, RTC workers were caught off guard when Clinton’s motorcade traveled north on I-15 into North Las Vegas, where she made a surprise visit at a debate watch party held at Craig Ranch Regional Park.
The event, sponsored by the Clinton campaign as a way to drum up support from Latino voters, also was attended by Mexican singing superstars Vicente Fernandez, Los Tigres del Norte and Angelica Maria.
After a brief speech, Clinton headed back south on I-15 to the airport with no problems.
“It was nice and quiet,” Hoeft said. “Just the way we like it.”
FLAMINGO FLAP
Sharon from Las Vegas wants to know why a blinking yellow left-turn arrow isn’t operating anymore at Flamingo and Sandhill roads.
“This light was working before the recent road work on Flamingo,” Sharon wrote in an email to the Road Warrior. “The traffic snarl at this intersection is horrible. Maybe someone just needs to flip a switch?”
That switch will be flipped “soon” on that flashing yellow arrow, Clark County spokesman Dan Kulin said. The signal is new and was added as part of a larger road improvement project along Flamingo.
ROUNDABOUT ANSWER
Virginia from Henderson said she’s concerned about a pair of roundabouts on Kelso Dunes Avenue, at Marks and Julia streets. Apparently, several vehicles are speeding through the neighborhood, failing to yield for oncoming traffic.
“I think stoplights would be better here,” Virginia wrote in an email. “Does the city plan to change anything here?”
No, Virginia, there aren’t any plans to replace the roundabouts with traffic signals on Kelso Dunes. Only a few crashes and no fatalities have been reported here, Henderson city spokeswoman Kim Becker said.
“Roundabouts are very effective traffic control devices,” Becker said. “Due to their low speeds and reduced number of conflict points, roundabouts have been identified as a proven safety countermeasure by the Federal Highway Administration.”
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