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Route 160 Speed Limit Lowered

Posted on: Wednesday, 8 March 2006, 06:00 CST

By Omar Sofradzija

By OMAR SOFRADZIJA

REVIEW-JOURNAL

An appalling number of deadly car wrecks on state Route 160 was just one of a number of reasons state engineers decided last week to drop the speed limit on a stretch of that highway, officials said this week.

Increasing use of Route 160, also known as Blue Diamond Road, and planned roadwork there also played into the decision to set Route 160's speed limit at 45 mph, down from 65 mph, between Interstate 15 and Durango Drive.

That lowered speed should be fully in effect by this morning.

"There are any number of variables that come into play," Bob McKenzie, a spokesman for the Nevada Department of Transportation, said Monday of the decision.

"The increased traffic caused by the growing population in Pahrump. You have increased development along the corridor, around Mountain's Edge (master planned community). You have the construction concerns between Rainbow (Boulevard) and I-15," McKenzie said.

"Hopefully, the motorists will have an impression that this is an area of concern," McKenzie said.

Since July 1, at least 18 people have died in traffic wrecks on a roughly 50-mile stretrch of Route 160 between I-15 and Pahrump. That stretch is a mostly two-lane 65 mph road that has few stoplights and has seen traffic volumes as much as triple in recent years, as bedroom communities have mushroomed through the southwestern valley.

Authorities believe an ongoing road widening project that will bring the road to eight lanes between I-15 and Rainbow would be the best long-term solution to what ails Route 160, but that work won't conclude before early 2008.

A lowered speed limit was one idea that came out of a recent road safety audit of Route 160, which identified problem areas and driving behaviors.

"It wasn't just speed limits. They saw a lot of driver behaviors that were extraordinary," said Fred Droes, the state's chief traffic safety engineer. "People making aggressive moves. People, because of the congestion and delays, taking some risks."

Other recommendations stemming from the audit are expected to be announced this week, McKenzie said.

McKenzie did not say what those changes would be, but among changes sought by some area residents are more stoplights, roadside lighting, and restrictions on driveways that directly enter the highway.

Droes said a lowered speed limit could reduce the severity of collisions, and allow drivers more reaction time to try to avoid wrecks.

"At 65 mph, that closing speed between vehicles is pretty significant," Droes said.

A speed study, gauging appropriate and actual speeds on the highway, is pending, Droes said.

Source: Las Vegas Review - Journal

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