ROAD WARRIOR Q&A: Day In-Day Out On Sinatra - News

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Feb. 27, 2008
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

ROAD WARRIOR Q&A: Day In-Day Out On Sinatra

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Motorists should watch for lane restrictions in both directions on U.S. Highway 95 between Craig Road and Centennial Parkway from 8 p.m. Sunday through 5 a.m. Friday weekly, the Nevada Department of Transportation announced. The right lane and shoulder may be closed as workers restripe the freeway to add another lane between Craig and Centennial. The $2.4 million project is expected to be finished by June.

Blue Diamond Road will be detoured on a new two-lane road between Torrey Pines Drive and Decatur Boulevard to allow work on the Blue Diamond Road widening project, according to the Department of Transportation. Motorists should watch for traffic controls. The detour is expected to last through the summer.

The Las Vegas public works department announced that gas line work being done on Durango Drive between Tropical Parkway and Centennial Parkway should wrap up by March 25. Road work being done at the intersection of Eastern Avenue and Bonanza Road should be done by Saturday.

Traffic moves along Tuesday on Frank Sinatra Drive at City Center as cranes on the other side of construction barriers tower over the scene.
Photo by Gary Thompson.

This week readers want to know about construction progress along Frank Sinatra Drive, the reason behind those balloonlike shapes outlined in tar on valley roads, and the law regarding riding bikes and skateboarding on sidewalks.

A reader asks: How much longer will Frank Sinatra Drive, behind Bellagio and CityCenter, be torn up? What about all the extra traffic that will be caused by CityCenter residents and occupants? Which roads will they be using to enter and leave?

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CityCenter is slated to be finished near the end of 2009 or early 2010, said Bobby Shelton of the Clark County public works department.

"Before the project finishes up, they will put Frank Sinatra Drive back into as good as or better condition as it was prior to their construction activities," Shelton said, referring to MGM/Mirage which owns the project.

Of course cleaning up the road will probably be the last facets of the construction. CityCenter will have access to both Frank Sinatra Drive and Las Vegas Boulevard when it is finished.

There also will be access to the Harmon Avenue bridge, which goes over Interstate 15, when the construction is done.

Wilma Neverovich writes: I have a question about Craig Road east of U.S. Highway 95. There are what I can only describe as a bunch of balloons drawn or outlined in tar on the pavement. Do you have any idea what they are for?

Wilma, I know exactly what you are talking about. You can see these weird tar balloons all over the valley.

Bob McKenzie, spokesman for the Nevada Department of Transportation, wondered whether what Wilma and I are noticing is tar bleeding out of an aggregate in the pavement.

But I pointed out is that the shapes are too well defined.

Shelton seemed to have the best guess out of the folks I spoke to as to what this is.

He said the shapes may be "counter loops," or loops cut into the roadway and then covered with a tar-like material, normally an epoxy. Those loops count vehicles and the speed at which they travel. The counter loops also can be used to classify what kind of vehicles are using the road -- for instance, small cars, pickups, tractor-trailers or multi-axle vehicles.

Mike writes: What is the law on bicycle riders and skateboarders on the sidewalks?

Capt. Richard Collins, head of the Metropolitan Police Department's traffic bureau, said bicyclists have to obey traffic laws and must travel on the right side of the road.

Nevada Revised Statute 484.503 states, "Every person riding a bicycle upon a roadway has all of the rights and is subject to all of the duties applicable to the driver of a vehicle."

NRS 484.509 states: "Every person operating a bicycle upon a roadway shall ... ride as near to the right side of the roadway as practicable, exercising due care when passing a standing vehicle or one proceeding in the same direction."

There is no NRS for skateboarders, Collins said.

"My officers tell me we write bicycle tickets usually when they are connected to some other hazardous issue," he said.

I discovered that the city of Las Vegas actually has a law stating skateboarders are not allowed to ride in the street, making sidewalks the only viable alternative.

Ordinance 11.22.130 states it is unlawful for anyone to ride a skateboard or similar device on any roadway, the sidewalks at the Fremont Street Experience or on any other public property when signs have been erected at the entrance prohibiting the use of the devices.

According to the ordinance, the only time a skateboarder can ride in the street is while crossing a street at a crosswalk.

Contact reporter Francis McCabe at fmccabe@reviewjournal.com or (702) 387-2904.

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Please enter your name Name: Please enter your email Email: Please enter a comment COMMENTS : (word count limit is 300) You have reached the maximum number of words allowed Current Word Count: Note: Comments made by reporters and editors of the Las Vegas Review-Journal are presented with a yellow background. wishing rdp the best wrote on February 28, 2008 10:08 AM: hahahahahaha, do you feel better now? rdp wrote on February 27, 2008 03:51 PM: "Nevada Revised Statute 484.503 states, "Every person riding a bicycle upon a roadway has all of the rights and is subject to all of the duties applicable to the driver of a vehicle." " I guess being subject to all the duties is very hard for people to understand. This isn't a conclusion, but the law. Go to the state site and trying reading for a change. I know, what a concept. Actually looking stuff up and learning the law. There is a definition for a roadway too..... You guys are getting dumber by the post!!! Yep, the kids in Summerlin are breaking the law. I guess a bike safety class in school is one thing the posters here missed. Nick, forget posting here and try reading for a change. If you expect the RJ to quote every applicable reference, you are truly lost. If you really want to learn before spitting this junk out, try going to the library and reading the annotated laws. The annotations include case law. That further defines the laws on the book. But, why would anyone here expect that? Missing not Omar, but civility. wrote on February 27, 2008 02:01 PM: rdp: Yes, obviously you're right there! Because all the 7-year-olds riding their bikes around Summerlin are encouraged to ride in the street, lest they be breaking the law. Better watch out for those renegade elementary schoolers! Also Missing Omar wrote on February 27, 2008 02:01 PM: Fact is, none of this week's three questions were answered: 1. How will the roads around CityCenter handle the increase in traffic? Not answered. 2. What is the black balloon stuff on Craig? A couple of guesses. 3. What is the law for bicycles on the sidewalk? I dunno, but here's what the law is on the road. Nick wrote on February 27, 2008 01:56 PM: rdp - You're a moron. You can't conclude that at all. The column answers a different question. Question: What is the law for riding bicycles on the sidewalk? Answer: The law for riding bicycles on the road is keep to the right. Question: What are the ingredients for cheddar cheese? Answer: Mozzarella cheese is made of milk. rdp wrote on February 27, 2008 11:48 AM: Missing Omar, Did you miss the class in high school which taught you how to read and analyze a paragraph?? "I'll repeat the questions what is the rule for bicycles on the sidewalk (not the roadway)? Are they allowed?" Apparently, you are one of the drivers that also drives on the sidewalk. If a bicycle must comply with the laws as a vehicle does, can you not conclude that since cars can't legally drive on the sidewalk, neither can a bike?? He explained it well enough, but maybe he should have watered it down to a hand holding explanation..... scott wrote on February 27, 2008 11:15 AM: I agree with VJ. The sigh holders are clueless and make things much worst. The Bellagio light on Sinatra has been in place for many months but like many projects in LV it does not operate. Unbelieveable!!!!! In the late ninties there was a sigh near Tropicana Ave. saying "future site of Frank Sinatra Dr. Many many years later it was completed as a four lane road only to be torn up to what it is now after only a few months for the City Center. The same goes for Harmon Ave. Did the city not have a clue that the City Center was coming. Missing Omar. wrote on February 27, 2008 09:36 AM: I don't really believe any of these questions from today's column were answered very thoroughly. I understand Bobby Shelton might be a tough(er) nut to crack, but you have to ask the right questions. And as for the last question re: bicycles on sidewalks -- I'll repeat the questions what is the rule for bicycles on the sidewalk (not the roadway)? Are they allowed? VJ wrote on February 27, 2008 04:37 AM: THEY NEED TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT THE FLAGGERS ON FRANK SINATRA DR AND MONTE CARLO DRIVE.. THEY NEED TO SEND THEM BACK TO FLAGGERS SCHOOL,OR TEACH THEM.. THAT THERE ARE OTHER VEHICLES THAT NEED ACCESS TO THE ROADS BESIDES THEIR CONSTRUCTION BUDDIES.. I HAVE SEEN THEM STAND THERE AND HOLD UP LINES OF TRAFFIC SO THERE CO-WORKERS COULD LEAVE, WHICH I HAVE NO PROBLEM WITH, BUT TO STAND THERE AND TALK WHILE HOLDING TRAFFIC IS A BIT MUCH.. PERINI CONSTRUCTION, TEACH THEM HOW TO CORRECTLY FLAG.