Interstate 15 - Nevada Guide
Interstate 15 runs from the community of Barrio Logan in San Diego, California, north to Sweetgrass, Montana, via Riverside, Barstow, Las Vegas, St. George, Cedar City, Provo, Salt Lake City, Ogden, Pocatello, Idaho Falls, Butte, and Helena. Beginning just a few miles north of the Mexican International Border, Interstate 15 angles northeastward on its journey to the Canadian International Border. Interstate 15 is mostly a four- to six-lane freeway through most of Las Vegas, and this section is part of the High Priority Corridor 16. Interstate 15 replaced U.S. 91 in Nevada.
The journey along Interstate 15 begins in Primm, a town famous for the Primadonna Resorts and for being the first gambling mecca. It is right on the California-Nevada State Line. Primm has also been in the news for a murder in 1998 at one of the casinos, and it has hosted the "Strongest Man in the World" truck-pulling contest. (It's on ESPN when there are no better sports programming to show besides bowling and pool.)
By the end of 2002 Interstate 15 will be six lanes all the way from LV
to Stateline, and Caltrans plans to widen Interstate 15 to six lanes from Victorville to Las Vegas by 2006, with the Baker to Primm section done soon.
It is a short jaunt from Primm to Jean, another gaming community. Jean marks the midway point between Primm and the southern outskirts of greater Las Vegas.
Las Vegas looms boldly in the horizon whether you are arriving by day or night. This city never sleeps - one can gamble 24 hours a day, seven days a week, if his/her wallet/pocketbook can afford it. Casinos are strewn throughout the city, but most are concentrated along the fabled "Strip" or in downtown Las Vegas. The Strip actually parallels Interstate 15 between the Interstate 215 interchange and just south of the downtown exits, while downtown is located closer to the Interstate 515 interchange.
Commonly referred to as "Sin City," it's hard to believe that this town lies along the same highway as Salt Lake City and Provo in Utah. Las Vegas is an amazing city of contrasts and extremes. The 100 degree days are tempered by the numerous waterfalls and manmade lakes. Single family homes abut against casinos and gaming halls. Extravagant casinos with motif facades (such as medieval castles, Egyptian pyramids, and major cities) compare with the Las Vegas slums.
Some have made their home in Las Vegas, but they never even go to the Strip, which is akin to a resident of Anaheim who's never been to Disneyland. Many Nevadans respect the fact that the casinos bring in big revenue and jobs, but they stay away from it, as they do not want it to be part of their daily lives. Of course, there are many others amateur actors, musicians, waitresses, entrepreneurs who see the Las Vegas Strip as an endless land of opportunity, a place to make a living.
Interstate 15 labors through the southern outskirts of Las Vegas all the way past the Strip and downtown to the north side. Las Vegas has seen incredible growth in the past 30 years. The freeway is way too narrow for its current traffic volume; even the new Interstate 515 and Interstate 215 freeways are starting to jam up with cross-town travelers. New casinos are being erected at a rapid pace, while old ones are being demolished with state-of-the-art implosion devices. People are moving into Las Vegas in record numbers.
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Significant sections of "Spaghetti Bowl," which connects Interstate 15, Interstate 515, U.S. 93, and U.S. 95 was reconstructed during the late 1990s and early 2000. Most construction was completed in March 2000, when Nevada Governor Kenny Guinn cut the ribbon on the last major ramp of the Interstate 15/U.S. 95 Spaghetti Bowl interchange, the 50 foot high ramp connecting Interstate 15 north with Martin Luther King Boulevard. Here are the new features from the first two phases of Spaghetti Bowl reconstruction since the first ramp opened in Winter 1999:
- Two-lane ramp from Interstate 15 north to U.S. 95 north
- Two-lane ramp from U.S. 95 south to Interstate 15 south
- Two-lane ramp from Interstate 15 north to Interstate 515/U.S. 93-95 south, including an exit only lane to Casino Center
- One-lane ramp from Interstate 15 south to U.S. 95 north, including a side ramp to Martin Luther King Boulevard
- One-lane ramp from Interstate 15 south to Interstate 515/U.S. 93-95 south
- Two-lane ramp from Interstate 515/U.S. 93-95 north to Interstate 15 south
- One-lane ramp from U.S. 95 north to Martin Luther King Boulevard
- One-lane ramp from Interstate 15 north to Martin Luther King Boulevard
- One-lane ramp from Martin Luther King Boulevard to both directions of Interstate 15
- U.S. 95 is now six lanes through the interchange
Facilities are in place, with minor concrete work to be done, for new ramps from Interstate 515/U.S. 93-95 north to Interstate 15 north and U.S. 95 south to Interstate 15/U.S. 93 north. The original interchange was built to handle 60,000 cars per day, while the new interchange, with an expected life span of 20 years, is built to handle 500,000 cars per day.
Phase Three of the Spaghetti Bowl involves half exits to F Street from U.S. 95 and to Bonneville Avenue off Interstate 15 are planned. In addition, high occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes and ramps are planned on both Interstate 15 and U.S. 95, with direct ramp connectors to connect HOV lanes on both freeways. Finally, plans call for further widening of both U.S. 95 and Interstate 15, including a possible 12-lane U.S. 95, complete with southbound express lanes through downtown Las Vegas.
Many Southern Californians are turning to places like Las Vegas, Phoenix, and Tucson for new lives away from the sprawl. Ironically, it is that escape that is causing the new urban sprawl to occur in these cities. All three have grown at an incredible rate, and all three have failed to keep up with the resulting infrastructure requirements. New Interstate highways in Las Vegas, along with the Arizona Loop Highways in Phoenix and surface boulevards in Tucson, are arriving on the scene later than they were needed, but at least the infrastructure is finally built implemented. Even mass transit is being expanded in these cities, each of which is very spread-out in a typical Southwestern style.
After Interstate 15 blows through the Spaghetti Bowl (Interstate 515), traffic begins to calm down for the first time in its northward journey. By the time Interstate 15 reaches the northern boundaries of the Las Vegas urban area, the road is once again two lanes, with a much smaller amount of traffic than before. The Los Angeles-to-Las Vegas traffic is now gone.
The highway itself is in fine shape - like many southwestern Interstates, Interstate 15 is mostly concrete, with "Botts Dots" used for lane markers all the way to Mesquite, although much of the highway was repaved in asphalt in 2004. Much of the land is low-altitude desert, with some Joshua Trees and plenty of sagebrush all around. Interstate 15 enters the Moapa Indian Reservation and quickly exits as it heads northeast toward Mesquite, the Virgin River Gorge, and St. George, Utah.
And then we reach Mesquite, another border gambling town like Primm. Since there is far less traffic heading south into Nevada, Mesquite is not as overt as Primm is, but there are still plenty of casinos and gaming halls to go around. I used to enjoy Player's Island, but that casino has since changed owners and names.
Interstate 15 immediately crosses the Arizona State Line right after Mesquite. Interstate 15 was bored through the Virgin River Gorge, which was the most expensive stretch of road ever built when it was completed (I believe the current title-holder for this is Interstate 93 in Boston, the "Big Dig.")
There are no additional facilities on Interstate 15 until St. George, which is another study in contrasts. Southern Utah is notorious for its strong, conservative Mormon population; however, retirees from other parts of the country have retired there for its warmth and beauty year-round. Zion and Bryce Canyon National Parks, plus the beauty of the Great Basin lie ahead.
Interstate 15 Highway Guides
| Scenes Pertaining to Interstate 15
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Spring Mountain Road eastbound at the directional-cloverleaf interchange with Interstate 15 (Exit 39). A high-speed flyover carries southbound motorists onto Spring Mountain Road eastbound ahead of the Las Vegas Strip (Nevada 604 / Las Vegas Boulevard) in the distance. Photos taken 11/01 |
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Washington Avenue westbound at the split-diamond interchange with Interstate 15 (Exit 44) northwest of downtown Las Vegas. An older non-reflective guide sign remains in use for the southbound on-ramp ahead. Photos taken 10/19/04. |
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The southbound on-ramp and associated freeway entrance shield assembly at the Carp Elgin Road diamond interchange (Exit 100). Exit 100 lies in the preverbal middle of nowhere between Glendale and Mesquite. Photos taken 10/19/04. |
Page Updated October 15, 2005.
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