KTNV: 'Fully open for business': I-15 and Tropicana Interchange Project officially complete

LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — "The resort corridor is fully open for business."

That's the word from Nevada Department of Transportation (NDOT) Communications Director Joe Harrington, as local and state officials gathered in Las Vegas Tuesday morning for the ribbon cutting for the I-15/Tropicana Project.

The three-year, more than $350 million project reconfigured everything about the Interstate 15 and Tropicana Avenue interchange in the heart of the resort corridor along the Las Vegas Strip.

Now, after years of work and many freeway closures, lane reductions and countless detours, officials have marked the full completion of the project.

Federal, state and local elected leaders in attendance included Nevada Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), Rep. Susie Lee (D-NV), Gov. Joe Lombardo (R) and Clark County Commissioners Tick Segerblom (D), Justin Jones (D) and Jim Gibson (D).

The interchange is a vital connection for Las Vegas — handling upwards of 60,000 commuters a day — and the I-15/Tropicana project added new on and off ramps, wider sidewalks, better signage and a totally redesigned intersection at Tropicana and Dean Martin Drive — including the addition of a new road underneath Trop called Joey Bishop Drive.

It's main focus, though, was "Dropicana," when NDOT crews tore down the original Tropicana bridge over I-15 that was built in 1966, and replaced it with a brand new, wider and safer bridge that's designed to handle all the traffic in the area, especially on event days at nearby Allegiant Stadium, T-Mobile Arena and Michelob ULTRA Arena — the latter two actually hosting games the day of the ribbon cutting, with the Vegas Golden Knights opening up their NHL preseason slate against the Los Angeles Kings, and the Las Vegas Aces hosting the Indiana Fever in the second round of the WNBA playoffs.

Federal, state and local leaders praised the project's completion, and the collaborative effort it took across all levels of government to get it done.

"This is more than an interstate," Rep. Lee said. "It's a lifeline for tourism and for everyday Nevadans trying to get to work, school and home."

Even though the I-15/Tropicana Project is officially wrapped up, there's still a ton of construction going on all over town.