Grand Prix weekend to see temporary I-15, Tropicana road improvements

As the inaugural Formula One Las Vegas Grand Prix weekend approaches, state officials are looking to ease traffic congestion around a major resort corridor road project.

The Nevada Department of Transportation announced last week that temporary traffic flow changes are coming to a portion of the $305 million Interstate 15/Tropicana Avenue project.

Some 105,000 fans are expected to attend the race each night from Nov. 16 to Nov. 18 along a 3.8-mile track that will see hourslong closures and restrictions of public and private roads. That area includes portions of Las Vegas Boulevard, Koval Lane, Sands and Harmon avenues, with Flamingo Road also located within the affected area.

To increase mobility near the Strip during F1 weekend, crews will increase lanes on Tropicana and I-15 leading to and from the Strip.

Before those changes can take place, crews will have to prep the Tropicana bridge to enable the temporary improvements. Once race weekend concludes, the Tropicana bridge will again close to traffic, so crews can put the pre-race lane configurations back in place.

Tropicana closures

First closure:

Crews closed Tropicana at 9 p.m. Sunday and it will remain closed until 5 a.m. on Wednesday. During the multiday closure, adjustments will be made to traffic control in preparation for the grand prix.

Second closure:

Tropicana will again see a multiday closure starting at 11 p.m. Nov. 19 to 5 a.m. Nov. 22 to remove the temporary race traffic control set up.

During the pair of Tropicana closures on-and-off-ramps will not be available to motorists.

Temporary traffic adjustments during race week

The I-15/Tropicana project is planned for traffic control adjustments to increase vehicle flow. Those will be in place between Wednesday and Nov. 19.

The changes include:

■ I-15 northbound returning to five lanes between Tropicana and Flamingo.

■ Travel from I-15 northbound to Tropicana westbound will be closed. Left turns will not be allowed at I-15 and Tropicana.

■ An additional lane of Tropicana westbound will be added for a total of three lanes open from I-15 to Polaris Avenue.

■ An additional lane of Tropicana eastbound will be added for a total of three lanes open from I-15 to New York New York.

The temporary enhancements to Tropicana and I-15 will surely increase traffic flow during race weekend. That said, if you aren’t attending the race or have any vital business on the Strip for the better part of next week, it would be best to avoid the area altogether to ensure the updates work as envisioned.

The I-15/Tropicana project kicked off in mid-2022 and is expected to be substantially completed in mid-2025.

Contact Mick Akers at makers@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2920. Follow @mickakers on X. Send questions and comments to roadwarrior@reviewjournal.com.