Las Vegas motorists point out signs of confusion

When a writer makes a mistake, it's on public display for all to see.

Yes, I hate errors in print and my editors hate them even more.

Who else suffers the same public humiliation? The sign-maker.

Alert Warrior readers brought it to the attention of Warrior Central that there are some signs on the freeway that made them scratch their heads.

Some readers probably remember the exit sign on northbound U.S. Highway 95 that once showed the mileage to "Eastern Blvd." That got fixed pretty quickly last year.

What caught Warrior reader Eric's attention was new signage in the northwest:

"I'm curious about the new signs that recently went up on the bridges over U.S. 95 in the northwest. Each overpass now has a sign informing you which street you're passing under and the one for the southbound Rancho overpass calls the road 'Rancho Road' instead of 'Rancho Drive.' Is the overpass and ramp portion of Rancho called Rancho Road instead of Rancho Drive or did someone mess up?"

Another reader who called in was curious about some signs on U.S. 95 a little closer to downtown.

When approaching downtown from the north, there's a single exit serving Decatur and Valley View boulevards. The sign for the exit lists Valley View on top and Decatur underneath it, presumably indicating the first turnoff would be for Valley View and the second, Decatur. That, of course, is not the case.

Before you begin thinking these readers have too much time on their hands to worry about a few sign miscues, I'm happy to report that Nevada Department of Transportation spokesman Tony Illia not only didn't slam the phone down on the hook, but offered a thoughtful response:

"First, thank your reader for bringing those clerical errors to our attention," he said. "We will erect correctly worded replacement signs as time and funding permits allows.

"NDOT designs, manufactures and installs roughly 1,500 highway and bridge signs annually throughout Southern Nevada. The department oversees an existing inventory of tens of thousands of signs that require continual maintenance from graffiti, theft, vandalism and crashes, among other things."

FLASHING YELLOW ARROW

Wouldn't this be a great place for one of those flashing yellow arrows allowing a left turn across traffic? Warrior reader Ken thinks so:

"Driving west on the Blue Diamond-Interstate 15 overpass, the wait to turn south (left) onto I-15 is interminable. If ever there was a place for a flashing yellow arrow, this is it.

"A person can see for a quarter-mile down Blue Diamond Road for approaching traffic, but even when nothing is coming for a quarter-mile or more, the red arrow lasts and lasts and LASTS. Could you check to see if this could be changed?"

Clark County spokesman Dan Kulin said that particular turn — and many others like it — don't fit a key characteristic for a yellow-arrow turn.

"There is a dual left turn at this signal," Kulin said. "Flashing yellow signals are not used at dual lefts."

But Kulin added that he would check with the Freeway Arterial System of Transportation administered by the Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada to check the timing on the light.

WHY DID THEY STOP?

Sometimes it's a little aggravating to see the orange cones go up for a road project and work to begin only to see the workers disappear. Warrior reader Bill offers this experience:

"When is the section of South Rainbow Boulevard between West Cactus Avenue and West Mountain's Edge Parkway and the widening to Blue Diamond Road to be done? They started it early in the year, but stopped!"

The "they" to which Bill is referring is Clark County and Kulin has the answer:

"What your reader saw was a developer working on its required off-site improvements — in this case improving the road adjacent to its parcel.

"The county's project on Rainbow Boulevard is currently expected to begin construction early next year and will be done in phases. We expect the road between Mountain's Edge and Cactus will be done first."

LABOR DAY TRANSIT SCHEDULE

If you're planning to get around town on the bus system on Labor Day, remember that the Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada will operate that day on a Sunday schedule.

Ridership is usually down on holidays resulting in a reduced schedule.

If you're planning to get out of town by air for the three-day weekend and want to dodge the parking rates at McCarran International Airport, you may want to try parking for free at the Westcliff Transit Center, the Centennial Hills Transit Center or the South Strip Transfer Terminal. The ride to the airport is only $2 from those park-and-ride locations.

If you're planning to park for more than two weeks, be sure to check with the commission first.

Questions and comments should be sent to roadwarrior@reviewjournal.com. Please include your phone number. Follow the Road Warrior: @RJroadwarrior

ROAD WORK AHEAD

■ Lane restrictions will be in place on northbound and southbound Bermuda Road at Windmill Lane from 6:30 a.m. to 3 p.m., Monday throughFriday, through Sept. 30. One lane will be open in each direction and sewer line work will be along the center of the street.

■ Work is shifting on the Oak Meadows Storm Drain and Oakey Sewer Rehabilitation projects with restrictions to business traffic access to Doe Avenue from Decatur Boulevard ending Friday with full access available Saturday. Vehicle access to El Parque Avenue from Decatur will be closed Aug. 31 and continue through Sept. 21.

■ A paving upgrade to U.S. Highway 93, the Great Basin Highway, between the junctions of Rainbow Canyon and Cathedral Gorge State Park roads will continue from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday and Tuesday. A pilot-car operation will shuttle vehicles through the work zone

■ The left and center travel lanes of Nellis Boulevard between Boulder Highway and Plata del Sol Drive will be restricted through Sunday for a Clark County Water Reclamation District project. The right lane will remain open.

■ Road repairs are planned on state Route 158 (Deer Creek Road), the route connecting Kyle Canyon and Lee Canyon roads in the Spring Mountains. Portions of deteriorating road will be removed and the surface of the 9-mile road repaved in weekday work. All lanes will be open on weekends and non-work hours. Speed limits will be reduced and a pilot car will guide motorists around construction zones, resulting in delays of up to 30 minutes. The project continues through late August.

■ Craig Road will be restricted to two lanes in each direction at Simmons Street through August for a water drainage project. There’s no access to Simmons either north or south of Craig. Restrictions on Craig and north of Craig on Simmons will continue through September and the entire project will be completed in February.

■ Sewer line construction work at Patrick Lane and McLeod Drive will close three intersections and restrict lanes through Aug. 31. Patrick Lane and Harrison Drive west of McLeod, Patrick Lane and Stevenson Way, east of McLeod and McLeod and Post Road, south of Patrick will be closed. One southbound lane on McLeod, turning west onto Patrick and one eastbound lane on Patrick, turning north onto McLeod will be open.

■ Lane shifts have occurred along the northern 215 Beltway between North Fifth Street and Aliante Parkway for the construction of permanent roadway, a concrete barrier and street lights. Speed limits have been reduced to 45 mph and the shift will be in effect through fall.

■ Overnight lane restrictions are planned on Rampart Boulevard between Canyon Run and Alta drives through mid-September for a sewer line project, repaving and restriping. The project is an expansion of planned work between Lake Mead Boulevard and Canyon Run.

■ Tamarus Street will be restricted to one lane in both directions between Warm Springs Road and Eldorado Lane, Mondays through Fridays through Oct. 31 from 7 p.m. to 4 a.m. for a sewer line project.

GASOLINE PRICES

The average gasoline price Friday in the Las Vegas Valley was $3.24 per gallon. It was $3.19 in Nevada. The national average of $2.63 is down 4 cents from a week ago, down 13 cents from a month ago and down 81 cents from a year ago.