Highway widening project nearly complete in Pahrump area

There’s good news for motorists who regularly drive Highway 160 during their daily commute.

The highway widening project is expected to wrap up sometime next week.

The Nevada Department of Transportation’s Tony Illia said the $3.49 million project, which began last year, will expand the heavily-traveled 1.75-mile stretch of highway from two to four travel lanes.

“It will also add a center turn lane and flatten side slope shoulders for safer vehicle turnouts in some areas,” Illia said. “That stretch of roadway sees 21,000 vehicles daily and will widen the highway between Rainbow Avenue and Calvada Boulevard.”

Illia also said the project also calls for the installation of new drainage pipes and hydro-seeding surrounding desert landscape.

Scale of project

Additionally, the project will lay 23,000 tons of asphalt, or enough to pave 3,600 driveways and move enough dirt to fill 46,000 pickup trucks.

The project, which essentially finished last year ran into problems related to the weather.

“When the temperature dropped too cool, we don’t like to pave because you can’t get proper compaction with the asphalt,” he said. “As a result, we had to come back now that the weather has warmed up a bit to finish doing that open grade and the final striping. That should be completed sometime this week, if not next week.”

Illia also reminded motorists the benefits they will enjoy, once the project is completed.

“You should consider added capacity that they will have,” he said. “That added capacity not only enables people to reach their destination a little easier with less traffic, but it also allows them to arrive there safer. I know in the past a lot of the crashes we’ve seen are due to when people are on a two-lane road and get impatient and drive into oncoming traffic to try to pass the car in front of them. That doesn’t always work out well.”

Clark County project

Illia spoke about two additional projects along Highway 160.

One of which is in Clark County at the Red Rock Drive turnoff.

“That is a widening project from two to four lanes over a five-mile stretch of roadway,” he said. “It expands the highway from two to four travel lanes while flattening the side slopes for a partially divided asphalt highway that will be significantly smoother, allowing motorists to safely pass slower vehicles.

“The project construction will be designed to safely accommodate road users with minimal delays,” Illia said. “Final surfacing, signs, and striping will be complete by mid-June. A traffic signal will also be installed at the intersection of SR 160 and SR 159 during the summer, and the completion is estimated by the end of July.”

Smooth sailing

NDOT is also undertaking an $8.7 million highway improvement project which calls for 14 miles of mill-and-overlay along Highway 160 from East Basin Avenue to just north of Bell Vista Avenue in town.

“Mill-and-overlay is a street maintenance technique where a large machine grinds away deteriorated layers of pavement and then replaces it with a new asphalt for a rejuvenated driving surface,” he said. “This cost-efficient project will extend the highway’s life cycle while also creating a smoother and safer traveling experience.”

According to the plans, construction requires 45,785 tons of asphalt or enough blacktop to pave 6,541 average-sized driveways.

Other improvements include storm pipe drainage, hydro-seeding and flattened roadside shoulders in some areas for safer turnouts.

Meanwhile, two flashing arrow signs, powered by solar panels, are being added to “Johnnie Curve” as well as a high-friction surface in order to prevent skidding through improved traction.

Construction is anticipated to finish later this fall.

Contact reporter Selwyn Harris at sharris@pvtimes.com, on Twitter: @pvtimes