State mulls financing offer for I-15 improvements

By Cy Ryan

Friday, May 25, 2012 | 8:11 p.m.

Interstate 15 from the Spaghetti Bowl to Sahara Avenue was designed to handle 150,000 vehicles a day.

Now 270,000 cars and trucks are using it and that is expected to grow to 470,000 in 20 years.

Making the needed improvements will cost $1.2 billion to $1.8 billion and it will become the most costly project undertaken by the state Transportation Department. And it will be built in stages over 20 years.

"It's a big project right in the heart of Las Vegas," said one member of the state Transportation Board, which reviewed the proposed plans Thursday.

It calls for redesign of I-15 and the improvements will encompass businesses and communities in the middle of Las Vegas.

It will cover more than 13 lane miles of new bridges, a new high occupancy vehicle connector between U.S. 95 and I-15 and direct access ramps at Wall Street as well as local traffic improvements on Charleston Boulevard, Martin Luther King Boulevard and Grand Central Parkway.

But the state doesn't have the money now.

Department Director Susan Martinovich told the board that ACS Infrastructural Developers has offered to finance and build phases one and three. "It's a good opportunity to finance the project," she said.

Cole Mortensen, senior project manager for the proposed job, said there is an average of three accidents a day on this stretch. "It's safety and capacity," he says in naming the reasons for the job.

The phases one and three offer from ACS Infrastructural hasn't been accepted. Mortensen said the state would pay back ACS Infrastructural for its part if it goes forward. And the department staff will present its recommendation to the transportation board, headed by Gov. Brian Sandoval, in June.

Mortensen said phase one calls for "cleaning up the Charleston interchange." The design is expected to be completed in 2013 and funding available in 2014. Cost would range from $419 million to $504 million on phase one.

It calls for a high occupancy vehicle connector between U. S. 95 and I-15. There will be direct high occupancy vehicle access ramps at Wall Street. The project calls for reconstruction of the Charleston Boulevard interchange.

Phase One also envisions a Grand Central Parkway/Western Avenue connector over Charleston Boulevard and slip ramp from the Charleston Boulevard interchange to Alta Drive/Bonneville Avenue.

Completion date would be 2016-17.

This phase of the so-called Project Neon is under way. Right-of-way activities are estimated to be completed this year and final design is scheduled to conclude in 2013.