Freeway traffic between California and Nevada fell to trickle as the hammer blow of the Covid-19 pandemic hit beginning in March. It’s only now, in November, that traffic levels have exceeded levels for this year from 2019.
The Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada last week released data on traffic volume on Interstate 15, the main freeway that Californians use to visit Las Vegas. The figures showed that volume had jumped almost 8 percent the first three weeks of October, the first year-over-year increase since the pandemic’s effects were felt nationwide.
Traffic volumes to Las Vegas reached their lowest point
RTC Deputy CEO David Swallow told the Las Vegas Review-Journal: “I-15 SB volume at Primm on Sunday, Oct. 25, was 36,500, which is the highest outbound volume since Labor Day weekend.” He added, “Max hourly volume occurred between 11 a.m. and noon, with 3,400 vehicles per hour.”
So much volume, in fact, that motorists are encountering delays caused by high-volume on I-15 southbound when they are returning after spending the weekend in Las Vegas and the number of lanes decrease.
A similar effect was observed for motorists near the Arizona border driving to Utah: a 6 percent jump, compared to a 3 percent drop that was noted in September.
Swallow concluded, “We’ve generally been holding steady in the 85-90 percent range compared to last year’s volumes since mid-June, with the noted week (third week of October) being at 90 percent of the same week in 2019.”
