LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — After two straight weekends full of I-15 construction and closures, more construction is starting this week.
One local tells me he's had to adjust his entire schedule around these closures.
I asked Las Vegas resident Vinnie Mannino how early he has to leave and how much time the construction is adding to his drive.
"Yeah, I would leave on average, if I have a couple of appointments, at least 15-20 minutes, sometimes 30 minutes, especially if I have to get across town," Mannino said.
Mannino lives in the south valley, and he says going to the Strip recently has been a nightmare.
“It seems like it pops up out of nowhere and it’s quite frustrating. Like you said, you have to pick another route and that could delay you to getting somewhere important or whatever have you," Mannino said.
Right now, the Starr Avenue I-15 southbound off-ramp is closed daily Monday through Friday, from 6 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Only two southbound I-15 lanes are open from St. Rose Parkway to Sloan Road on Monday through Wednesday, from 8 p.m. - 5 a.m.
These aren't the only closures impacting drivers in our valley.
The past two weekends, the NDOT Pave-A-Thon was happening. This closed all northbound lanes between Flamingo Road to Warm Springs Road July 26 - July 29.
Then Aug. 2 through Aug. 5, the southbound lanes on that portion of the I-15 were closed. Those closures lasted over 48 hours from Friday at 9 p.m. - Monday at 5 a.m.
Mannino got stuck in that closure.
“Just, you know, attending a movie at the Palms hotel, I was going to take I-15 South to head back to Southern Highlands not really knowing, actually did know previously but had forgotten, and couldn’t get on I-15 South," Mannino said. "This was last Friday, so I had to go north on I-15, go to Sahara, loop around and we took Decatur all the way down to Southern Highlands. It took about 40 minutes.”
More construction will continue next week.
Southbound I-15 will only have one lane open between St. Rose Parkway and Sloan Road. Plus, the St. Rose Parkway on-ramp to southbound I-15 will be closed Sunday, Aug. 11 through Friday, Aug. 16, from 8 p.m. - 5 a.m.
It's all part of a $86 Million NDOT I-15 project. Crews are repaving, improving and widening the freeway between Sloan Road and Flamingo Road. That's around nine miles of the freeway.
Impacts of that project are expected to be felt through December 2025.
I asked Mannino if he thinks the current construction projects are worth the better roads in the future.
"You know, I hope so. I just think we’re going to quickly outgrow it," Mannino said.
