LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — If you live in the west valley, you know how important the 215/Summerlin Parkway Interchange is when it comes to connecting our city — and it's about to get a massive overhaul starting Monday.
▶ Related Check out the first roadway restrictions here.
The $130 million construction project by Clark County Public Works is scheduled to last three years, and will likely have some major impacts to commuters who live out west.
Why is it supposed to take so long?
Clark County project managers say they've basically giving the 215/Summerlin Parkway interchange a complete makeover: the on and off ramps will be totally redesigned to make things flow smoother without some of the clunky stop signs and signal lights that are there now, with the goal to improve traffic flow, reduce congestion and improve safety for drivers.
Additional work will be done to improve signage and lighting, drainage systems and existing bridges in the corridor.
Plus, three new pedestrian bridges will be built over the 215 that will connect with Las Vegas city trails in the area, so you won't have to maneuver up and around the beltway to stay on paths like you do now.
It might be hard to see the forest through the trees — or, in this case, the final product through all the traffic cones — but project managers say another key aspect of this project, in addition to addressing current and future traffic congestion, is to prepare for future growth west of the beltway.
"This area of the valley is quickly growing," Clark County Construction Management Manager Jimmy Floyd in an interview Saturday. "This [project] provides that capacity to allow that growth, to make sure that once the project is done and these communities grow, there won't be the impact. We won't have lots of traffic, we'll have a freeway system that operates efficiently and smoothly. This is a vital project for the area."
When work kicks off Monday, Feb. 10, three major freeway construction projects will be going on at the same time around Las Vegas valley, of course, the other two being the I-15/Tropicana project and the 215 Widening project on the south beltway between Decatur and I-15.
Those two projects have caused some serious headaches for drivers over the last several years, and we don't expect the 215/Summerlin Parkway Interchange project to be any different.
▶ Watch Traffic troubles give drivers headaches as 215 widening project continues in south valley
Starting Monday, there will be overnight lane reductions in both directions of the 215 between Far Hills Avenue and Lake Mead Boulevard, and the county will be lowering the speed limit in that section of the beltway from 65 mph to 55 mph.
That's it for the next week or so, but you'll start to see lane reductions during the day and other impacts as work on the project picks up over the next few months. The county's committing to weekly project updates, though, so we'll know when those are coming well in advance.
You can get those updates, read up on project details and check out renderings of what the interchange will look like when it's finished on a handy website the county put together: CC215SummerlinParkwayInterchange.com.
Plus, we'll always keep you posted on what you need to know on-air and right here on our website with your Problem Solver Traffic.
