Editorial: Fans looking for speedy speedway entrance, exit

Friday, March 3, 2000 | 9:05 a.m.

Las Vegas Motor Speedway has received justifiable praise from professional race car drivers as a world-class facility. But those pros have not had to endure hours of traffic to and from the track, as have local race fans. In past years the traffic has had more snarls and snags than a head of wet, curly hair.

Those of us who plan to attend this weekend's events at the speedway, including the feature NASCAR race on Sunday, hope that they do not become hair-pulling experiences. Officials with the speedway and Nevada Department of Transportation assure us that traffic should be much better this time because Las Vegas Boulevard has been widened to five lanes from two previously between Craig Road and the track. Add two lanes on the shoulders and fans will have seven lanes of access.

There will also be added entrance and exit gates, a professional parking company and a reconstructed speedway off-ramp from Interstate 15. These amenities, should they succeed, will be greatly appreciated by fans who were stranded in the parking lot for at least four hours following the NASCAR race last year.

We urge transportation officials to monitor the traffic to determine what went wrong if the speedway alterations do not work. The last thing our NASCAR weekend needs is another snarl.