JULY 7 UPDATE: Miles of Boulder Highway in Henderson, often called one of the most dangerous roadways in Nevada, will get $39.8 million towards upgrades designed to better protect pedestrians, bikers, and drivers who use the critical artery into Southern Nevada.
Henderson Public Works Director Ed McGuire said 10% of all or Nevada's traffic fatalities occur on Boulder Highway.
He said The Reimagine Boulder Highway Project will make the road two lanes in both directions while adding a bus lane, bike lane, and wide sidewalks to both sides.
The project would reduce the distance pedestrians have to walk to cross a crosswalk, and add street lights to the entire stretch.
Sen. Cortez Masto, (D) Nevada, said the nearly $40 million federal grant wouldn't have been possible without a close connection between local and federal officials.
"I become aware of it and it gives me the opportunity to reach out, in this case, to the Secretary of Transportation," Masto said, "so I was able to literally last summer reach out to him and highlight this project and the need for federal dollars for it, and then I was able to follow up with a conversation with Secretary Buttigieg about the need for funding like this project and so many others."
McGuire acknowledged the grant wouldn't completely fund the ambitious revitalization project slated to cost roughly $130 million.
He said between this grant and commitments from the state the city had raised nearly $80 million and would be petitioning the Regional Transportation Commission for the remaining funds.
The project is slated to break ground in 2023.
ORIGINAL STORY: U.S. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) will join City of Henderson officials at 11:30 a.m. July 6 to highlight the $39.8 million in federal funding she helped secure for vital updates to Boulder Highway, which is currently the most dangerous stretch of roadway in Nevada.
Cortez Masto advocated for this funding directly with Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, detailing the importance of improving pedestrian safety and its potential to improve the daily lives of many underserved Nevadans in the area."
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