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Delaying The Delays: NDOT Postpones I-15 Shutdown

Author Shawn Tempesta
You won't have to exit Interstate 15 for a bit.

Infrastructure. It’s not sexy and frankly it is downright annoying. So when NDOT announced a closure on Interstate 15 that’d affect night drivers this week, people were prepared for orange signs, barrels and detours. But what’s this? A delay on the I-15 that you’ll actually look forward to?

I-15 Shutdown Has Stay Of Execution

Last month the Nevada Department Of Transportation announced upcoming road closures. Those closures would affect drivers going northbound on Interstate 15 with the highway being shut down from Blue Diamond Road to Flamingo Road. Those nearly four miles of closure were set between Wednesday, August 2nd at 9pm to Thursday, August 3rd at 5am.

The full closure would make way for moving metal for the new Tropicana bridge. But apparently that isn’t ready to go quite yet. That means if you had any alternate plans, you can drop them for now.

I-15 Still Has Plenty Of Annoyances Up Its Sleeve

Don’t go partying quite yet. There are still plenty of slowdowns coming up the bend. Traffic on Interstate 15 are set to contract a bit from Wednesday, August 2nd at 9pm to Thursday, August 3rd at 5am. The highway will see lanes drop down to two between Harmon and Flamingo heading northbound, and down to three lanes between Flamingo and Russell headed southbound.

Then on Thursday, August 3rd at 9pm to Friday, August 4th at 5am, Interstate 15 northbound gets another shave. Lanes will drop to two between I-215 and Harmon.

If you’re getting a headache with all of these closures, lane closures and detours happening virtually weekly, you aren’t alone. Unfortunately it seems like we’re stuck with the project for a while. The Tropicana/I-15 project is set to be completed in early 2025.

By the time this is all done, Elon Musk’s Tesla tunnels will be complete and our roads will be empty… depending on who you believe.

Shawn Tempesta is the co-host of Aimee+Shawn on 102.7 VGS in Las Vegas, Nevada. He is also an Emmy award nominated television host. As a content creator for 102.7 VGS, Shawn writes about current events, education, funny and trending stories.

Nevada Ranks In Bottom 10 For Worst States To Drive In

We don’t want Nevada to become one of the worst states to drive in but unfortunately it’s out of our control. Most people don’t like driving in traffic and if you’re someone who says you do we would think you’re crazy.

Las Vegas has roughly two million people in it and the routes to get anywhere are averaging 20 to 30 minutes which isn’t horrible, for now. We don’t want the California transplants to clog up our roads causing drive times to increase. Plus, traffic causes other problems including car wrecks, lateness, mechanical issues and a slue of other things.

A new study has just been released by our friends at Wallethub on “2023 Best & Worst States To Drive In.” The data showcases positive driving experiences in congruent with 31 key metrics.

Four of their main categories are: Cost of ownership and maintenance, traffic and infrastructure, safety and access to vehicles and maintenance. Total scores were taken from the weighted average of each metric which is how the order of the states were placed. All categories except the “Total score” were ranked with a 1 meaning the best and 100 meaning the worst.

The top 5 states for the “best” driving experience rank as:

5. North Carolina 60.65

4. Oklahoma 60.81

3. Ohio 61.38

2. Georgia 61.41

1. Iowa 62.61

Iowa, had the highest overall score from all 50 states. Just a reminder, the total score is not calculated in the 1 to 100 ranking system. The state ranked a 7 in cost of ownership, 9 in traffic and infrastructure, 35 in safety and a 19 in access to vehicles and maintenance, making it the top destination to drive in. Other states may need to take a note from Iowa’s road regulations and policies.

The state with the most rush hour traffic is California and the state with the least amount is West Virginia.

So what are the worst states to drive in and where does Nevada rank? We are glad you asked!

  • 7) Nevada

    Total Score: 49.91

    Cost of ownership and maintenance: 48

    Traffic and infrastructure: 15

    Safety: 9

    Access to vehicles and maintenance: 37

    Driving Las Vegas

  • 6) Missouri

    Total Score: 48.72

    Cost of ownership and maintenance: 28

    Traffic and infrastructure: 29

    Safety: 50

    Access to vehicles and maintenance: 15

    Missouri Driving

  • 5) Maryland

    Total Score: 48.09

    Cost of ownership and maintenance: 37

    Traffic and infrastructure: 50

    Safety: 19

    Access to vehicles and maintenance: 22

    Maryland Driving

  • 4) Rhode Island

    Total Score: 47.84

    Cost of ownership and maintenance: 45

    Traffic and infrastructure: 46

    Safety: 5

    Access to vehicles and maintenance: 45

    Rhode Island Driving

  • 3) Delaware

    Total Score: 47.50

    Cost of ownership and maintenance: 44

    Traffic and infrastructure: 36

    Safety: 11

    Access to vehicles and maintenance: 49

  • 2) Washington

    Total Score: 47.48

    Cost of ownership and maintenance: 47

    Traffic and infrastructure: 39

    Safety: 20

    Access to vehicles and maintenance: 16

  • 1) Hawaii

    Total Score: 40.28

    Cost of ownership and maintenance: 50

    Traffic and infrastructure: 43

    Safety: 6

    Access to vehicles and maintenance: 38

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