The Nevada Department of Transportation (NDOT) says the footprint of Interstate 11, the country’s newest interstate, will stretch from the U.S.-Mexico border all the way to Canada.
NDOT says it will be similar to I-5 that runs from southern California to Oregon and Washington state. NDOT is now putting up I-11 signs in the Las Vegas Valley to get people acclimated to where the interstate will run.
“I-515 goes away. U.S. 95 goes away. It all becomes I-11,” said NDOT spokesperson Justin Hopkins.
In Nevada, I-11 starts at Mike O'Callaghan–Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge. From Boulder City it then stops at I-215 in Henderson where it meets U.S. 95. The new interstate will pass the Spaghetti Bowl and run to the Kyle Canyon Road area.
The stretch has many designations including U.S. Highway 95, U.S. Highway 93 and I-515. The I-515 designation will be no more once the I-11 signage is installed, but the U.S. 95 and 93 ones will remain, according to Justin Hopkins, NDOT spokesman.
“This is where we look at potential alternatives on how we actually bring it up to standards there,” said Thomason in a statement. “Also, we have to get control of access along the property boundaries.”
The Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT) is working on its own section of I-11, which NDOT says involves many different studies to bring existing roads up to freeway conditions. ADOT has also seen delays in construction due to funding up to this point.
“That section that we just redesignated at I-11 wasn’t that difficult. It’s already mostly up to standard with the interstate system,” said Hopkins.
Officials have said the new I-11 initiative will support economic growth and increase state tourism. New I-11 signs will also be going up on side streets in the coming months, with a public information campaign in the fall.
The next phase of the I-11 project is expected from the Kyle Canyon area to Mercury. NDOT will hold a public meeting to discuss the project’s progress.
Source: Fox 5 Vegas, Reviewjournal.com
