Project Neon paving forces string of Las Vegas road closures
Although Project Neon is nearing its final completion date, traffic impacts related to the largest road project in state history are slated to continue through June.
The final paving and striping work will begin Friday night, with portions lasting until Monday morning, the Nevada Department of Transportation announced this week.
Crews will be applying a special crumb rubber asphalt mix, incorporating shredded tires for a smoother, quieter ride.
“Crumb rubber lasts twice as long as traditional asphalt pavement while also creating a better friction surface with less wet weather splashing,” said Tony Illia, NDOT spokesman. “And it also recycles used tires that otherwise would end up in a landfill.”
The closures are scheduled to continue the following weekend, weather permitting.
NDOT decided to go with full weekend closures because past paving jobs with restricted lane operations on the freeway yielded dangerous results.
In 2011, NDOT resurfaced I-15 between Tropicana and the Spaghetti Bowl with NDOT closing three lanes and leaving two lanes open.
Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada freeway cameras captured vehicles traveling through the work zone at 70 mph and Nevada Highway Patrol troopers wrote about 200 citations for work zone violations in four hours, Illia said.
Also, work production is much higher during a full closure, with the scheduled work taking over a month if carried out with lane restrictions alone, Illia added.
The multiple days of closures, which NDOT dubbed Pave-A-Palooza, includes the following varied weekend closures:
Friday night-Monday morning
(All between 10 p.m. Friday and 5 a.m. Monday)
■ U.S. Highway 95 will be reduced to one lane in each direction between Decatur and Casino Center boulevards.
■ The Interstate 15 southbound to U.S. 95 northbound will be closed.
■ The Rancho Drive on-ramp to U.S. 95 southbound will be closed.
Friday night-Saturday night
(Between 10 p.m. Friday and 8 p.m. Saturday)
■ The I-15 to U.S. 95 high occupancy vehicle flyover will be closed.
Saturday night to Monday morning closures
(All between 8 p.m. Saturday and 5 a.m. Monday)
■ The U.S. 95 southbound to I-15 northbound.
■ The U.S. 95 northbound off-ramp to Rancho.
■ The Valley View Boulevard on-ramp to U.S. 95 northbound.
■ The U.S. 95 southbound off-ramp to Rancho.
June 7 at 10 p.m.-June 10 at 5 a.m.
I-15 southbound weekend closure, U.S. 95 to Sahara.
Ramp closures:
■ U.S. 95 southbound to I-15 southbound.
■ U.S. 95 northbound to I-15 southbound.
■ Pinto Lane on-ramp to I-15 southbound.
■ Charleston on-ramp to I-15 southbound.
■ D Street on-ramp to I-15 southbound.
■ Detour: I-15 southbound to U.S. 95 northbound to Rancho, south to Sahara to re-enter I-15 southbound.
June 10-14
■ I-15 northbound and southbound between Silverado Ranch Boulevard and Sahara, two inside lanes closed 24/7.
■ Three inside lanes closed at night.
June 14 at 10 p.m.-June 17 at 5 a.m.
■ I-15 northbound weekend closure, Sahara to D Street.
■ Ramp closures:
■ I-15 northbound to U.S. 95 northbound.
■ U.S. 95 southbound to I-15 northbound.
■ Sahara on-ramp to I-15 northbound.
■ Charleston on-ramp to I-15 northbound.
■ Detour: I-15 northbound to Sahara, to D Street. The exact route is still being planned out.
The time frame for the roadwork was specifically chosen by NDOT due to minimal special event impacts. Aside from First Friday on June 7 in downtown, there are no major impact events in the city or Clark County, Illia said.
Project Neon, the nearly $1 billion 4-mile-widening of I-15 from Sahara to the Spaghetti Bowl, is 96 percent finished and scheduled for completion by mid-July.
Contact Mick Akers at makers@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2920. Follow @mickakers on Twitter.