[TonyC99]

I'm considering moving to Vegas from Atlanta in a year or two and am curious how bad the traffic is. Atlanta has notoriously bad traffic...not as bad as NY or Chicago, but maybe as bad as LA or Boston.

What are the areas of the Vegas Interstates that get clogged the most often and the worst? And how bad is the traffic in general? Thanks...

[jfkIII]

Traffic is one of the negatives to LV, if you're making a +/- list. If one reason you're planning to move from Atlanta is due to its traffic situation, LV will not provide much comfort to you in that area. The population there has increased tremendously over the last 10 years...and the highways have not been able to meet the demand. I-215 was built to circumvent the downtown traffic and is a basically a loop around the downtown area. However the surrounding areas have built up so quickly, that now I-215 also gets quite jammed during rush hours.

[yellowsnow]

Don't plan anything on 15 Friday nights. 1/2 of California is trying to drive in.

One thing that surprised me is rush hours are very long here. I've heard it's because we have so many shift workers. Don't know if it's really true.

If you tend toward road rage, Vegas isn't a good bet. 1/3 of the people on the road are lost tourists. 1/3(at least) are under the influence of some mid altering substance. The last 1/3 are the normal people just trying to get where they need to go.

Try to come out for a couple weeks and rent a car. Stay in a residential type area and just drive all over. You will probably learn a lot about your tolerances for traffic and the heat. You just haven't lived till you get into a car with the leather upholstery you paid extra for!

[olecapt]

In comparison to LA or Chicago or Atlanta Las Vegas traffic is wonderful.

In comparison to smaller cities it is tougher.

There are areas of known and repetitive problems generally surrounding I15 between 95 on the north and 215 on the south.

The rest of the town if pretty smooth. Even known bottle necks like the Rainbow curve on 95 cause delays of less than 10 minutes.

Note that the 95 westside congestion will be pretty well gone in the next year. It is finally getting done.

[TonyC99]

Originally Posted by olecapt

Note that the 95 westside congestion will be pretty well gone in the next year. It is finally getting done.

Why will it be gone? Are they almost done widening it or building a new road in that area?

[Chest Rockwell]

I don't think the widening will cure 95's westside traffic jams. There is too much growth out that way. It may ease up for a little while, but eventually the cars will fill all the new lanes as well. I am awed by how wide they are making this freeway though!

The freeway interchanges seem to cause the most problems. The "Spaghetti Bowl" connects the 95/515 to the 15 and is always a mess. There's also the 215/15 interchange near the airport that has constant problems. I feel especially bad for those getting on the 215 westbound during evening rush hour. It is a parking lot every single day.

When you're down here long enough, you'll learn about "secret" streets that provide detours around traffic jams such as Industrial Rd./Alta/Oakey. But even these streets tend to clog up during certain hours.

[olecapt]

Originally Posted by TonyC99

Why will it be gone? Are they almost done widening it or building a new road in that area?

US 95 from the I15 interchange to well into the western suburbs is being widened to 5 lanes each way to the Summerlin Phwy and then four lanes out to Ann or so. The tie up at the interchange to Summerlin Pkwy is being corrected in that task. There are only two short stretches left to be completed. Suppose to be done in November. I see too much for that but it won't be long.

US95 Home Page (broken link)

[jksouthbay88]

Well Southern Nevada traffic is bad,but it is not on the Atlanta,Miami,San Diego,Seattle,Los Angeles list.It might get like those cities in about 10 years if they don't come up with something quick.

[jim1967]

It depends what your comparing it to. I lived most of my life in Las Vegas, and saw the traffic get worse over the years as the city grew by leaps and bounds. I moved to Houston 3 years ago, which has a big time traffic problem! Las Vegas is a walk in the park compared to Houston, and a lot of other larger cities.

[jfkIII]

better than some...worse than others.