Letter: Monorail can solve traffic woes

Friday, June 24, 2005 | 9:16 a.m.

I rode the monorail the other evening -- what a great experience. I've been here for more than 30 years, but the monorail showed me a Las Vegas I had never seen. As a longtime resident, I found myself facing one surprise after another. I was particularly taken by the curve where you get to see the back side of the new Wynn Las Vegas, and the gorgeous Mediterranean villas that you will never see from the front.

The other paper in town does nothing but talk about the problems with the monorail, but those problems are minor compared to the experience and the long-term value of the project. I know it was built for the tourists, but if you live here and haven't taken a ride, you've missed the best show in town.

The most surprising thing about the monorail is that we are not extending it throughout the valley. The system should at least include downtown Las Vegas, the west side of the Strip and the airport. And while we are at it, why isn't the monorail being extended to every high-rise building in the valley?

A friend of mine says that Las Vegas has vision. Unfortunately, it is this vision and that vision. The monorail is a way of putting it all together and making Las Vegas a true metropolitan capital of entertainment. It would also take millions of people off of our surface streets.

EVAN BLYTHIN