A Sign With Double Vision
This week readers want to know why the Silverado Ranch Boulevard sign on southbound Interstate 15 says the exit is a mile away when it is only a half-mile away and why all of a sudden there is all this traffic on the offramp. Also, is there a regulation for how far a bumper of a vehicle has to be from the ground? And the Road Warrior basks in the glow of a New York Giants Super Bowl victory.
Lorraine Arnold writes: The new (Silverado Ranch) exit is really great for homeowners in the southwest. But the exit sign on southbound I-15 states the exit is one mile, and the exit is actually one-half mile from the sign. That’s causing a lot of cars to zip over to the right at the last minute and cut off other cars, not that this is really anything different from the way they normally drive. Can the Nevada Department of Transportation put the sign where it should be?
Not that I didn’t believe you Lorraine, but I drove down to check it out myself. And low and behold, the actual turnoff for the exit was exactly a half mile from the sign, by my odometer, not a mile like the sign says.
I continued further and noted that the Silverado Ranch overpass is actually a mile from the sign.
I’m not sure whether there was some confusion about whether the sign meant the distance to the overpass or the offramp, but the Transportation Department needs to get out there and fix the problem tout de suite.
John also is upset about the Silverado Ranch exit, but for different reasons. He writes: The new Silverado Ranch exit on southbound I-15 is a total mess. If you drive south on I-15 around 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m., the far right lane of I-15 backs up and comes to a complete stop for more or less two to three miles before you even reach the exit. The southbound cars on I-15 exit so slowly on the long off ramp for Silverado ranch that it backs up traffic. What is interesting is that the traffic on the offramp is moving and not backed up.
The problem appears to stem from the recent closure of the I-15 offramp to St. Rose Parkway, which left motorists with two other options, either the Sloan exit or the Silverado Ranch exit, to get them down to St. Rose Parkway.
When I’ve driven down there, more folks are using the Silverado Ranch exit than the Sloan exit, probably because it’s closer.
Unfortunately, the interstate offramp to St. Rose will remain closed until spring. The $61 million interchange project isn’t expected to be completed until June, according to the Transportation Department.
Don Norris asks: Is there a law on the books regarding the height a bumper on a passenger vehicle should be off the road? What good is a bumper if it is so high that you, in a regular vehicle, would drive right under it?
Tom Jacobs, spokesman for the Nevada Department of Motor Vehicles, found the ruling state statute and sent it my way.
Nevada Revised Statute 484.7385 states the lowest part of a motor vehicle must not exceed 24 inches for passenger cars, or 28 inches for vehicles weighing 4,500 pounds or less, 30 inches for vehicles weighing more than 4,500 pounds but less than 7,501 pounds, 32 inches for vehicles weighing more than 7,501 but less than 10,001 pounds.
The statute does not apply to vehicles that weigh more than 10,001 pounds or vehicles manufactured before 1935.
Hit ‘n’ Run: After my bold prediction that the Giants would win the Super Bowl, I received several e-mails and voicemails from New England Patriot fans. Instead of focusing on why the Patriots would win, the fans instead found pleasure in making fun of my weight problem.
To the victors go the spoils: I might be fat, but the Patriots just lost the most important game of their lives and can never get it back, and I can lose weight.
Contact reporter Francis McCabe at fmccabe@reviewjournal.com or (702) 387-2904.