Rain delays completion of last bridge on Spaghetti Bowl project

Friday, Feb. 18, 2000 | 11:25 a.m.

People will have to wait a bit longer to see the final segment of the Spaghetti Bowl's 70 million pounds of concrete and steel slipped into place.

The last of 62 segmented bridges was originally scheduled to go into place Friday. But Wednesday night's rains delayed the construction phase through the weekend.

The new time and date is 5 a.m. Tuesday, following the Presidents Day observance Monday. A 445-foot-long gantry crane should lift the segment into place connecting southbound Interstate 15 to southbound U.S. 95.

"This is pretty significant," said Bob McKenzie, spokesman for the Nevada Department of Transportation. "This is the last segment."

Work crews should complete road marking and other final steps to open the segment in March.

The $92 million project is more than six months ahead of schedule. McKenzie said the job, designed to improve traffic flow at the interchange near downtown Las Vegas, was originally scheduled to open in November but now looks to open in April.

"The job's going really, really well," said Tom Patton, engineer with principal contractor Meadow Valley Contractors. "We're really pleased."

Patton said that this time of year often brings windy, wet weather, but he said the weather has generally cooperated over the three-year span of construction.

His company stands to earn an $850,000 bonus if the interchange is opened six months or more ahead of schedule.

Launce Rake covers growth issues for the Sun. He can be reached at (702) 259-4127 or by e-mail at lrake@lasvegassun.com