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Shop at Jay’s Market at 190 East Flamingo Road at the Koval Lane intersection east of the Strip.
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By Alan Snel, LVSportsBiz.com Publisher-Writer
It’s a rare local government that hands over the economic lifeblood road of its region to a private sports promoter for weeks and months to stage a 90-minute car race.
But that’s what the Clark County commissioners did in 2023 — on the urging of the public LVCVA tourism agency — to allow Liberty Media-owned Formula 1 to privatize 3.8 miles of roads in the Strip corridor, including a healthy stretch of the famed Strip, for a race circuit that disrupted life along Southern Nevada’s major business artery like no other event in Las Vegas history.
After last year’s Race Debacle on the Strip, the F1 Las Vegas Grand Prix submitted a traffic management plan to Clark County May 1.
Its explains how the race promoter will install fencing, barriers and light mounts and close lanes and roads, transforming public streets and right-of-ways into its palatial and private sports event Nov. 21-23.
“In order to host the Las Vegas Grand Prix on the streets of Las Vegas, the buildout of the track requires
installation of temporary elements such as lights, vehicle barriers, temporary pedestrian and vehicle
bridges, and temporary traffic signals,” the traffic management plan said.
“Track installation impacts to the public right-of-way during overnight hours (generally 9PM – 6AM) are scheduled to begin the week of September 2. The track installation is expected to take 11 weeks and be completed the week of November 18 (Race Week).”
But disruptions will continue as the dismantling of the track and gear will last through the week of Dec. 23. That’s 17 weeks from early September to late December.
The traffic plan said installation of the track will happen last on the Strip. This is how the report put it, “Due to the traffic demands and the iconic elements of the Las Vegas Strip, this section (Las Vegas
Boulevard) of the track installation will be completed last.
“Barrier placement will begin the week of November 11 and will be completed on Tuesday, November 19. This corridor will also be the first to have track barrier removed (week of November 25) to allow the Las Vegas Boulevard to quickly be restored to normal use. The dismantle of the track is expected to start at 9:00 PM on Sunday, November 24, immediately following the conclusion of the 2024 Las Vegas Grand Prix. The dismantle of the track within the public right-of-way is expected to take approximately 5 weeks.”
But Clark County government officials refused to make the public document available to the public when the Las Vegas Grand Prix gave it to the county, finally releasing the traffic plan (TMP) to LVSportsBiz.com Thursday morning.
“The TMP outlines expected impacts associated with these activities and provides planning level approaches to minimize their influence on the Clark County public,” the transportation plan said. Last year, the race’s impacts during nine months were hardly, as the report put it, “minimized.”
The 124-page report outlines a 17-week plan on how the grand prix event will install the fencing, barriers, light mounts and new traffic light sequences along the 3.8-mile track — and when and where roads will be closed.
In 2023, the Las Vegas Grand Prix disrupted business and transportation for nine months on the Strip and surrounding roads, outraging workers and local business owners.
Ellis Island hotel-casino, which is on the race route, has sued F1 and Clark County, alleging road disruptions and race cost its business millions of dollars. A group of about five other neighboring businesses plans to also file a lawsuit against the race promoter and the county, accusing them of costing them millions of dollars in lost revenues.
This year, Las Vegas Grand Prix representatives have said the work related to the F1 race will be reduced to only three months compared to the nine months in 2024.
But the traffic report made public today outlines a 17-week plan to create and dismantle the track. The road disruptions’ final week is Dec. 23, Week 17, according to the report.
This is how the report started:
“The circuit used for the LGVP has been developed as a street race, with significant portions of the track utilizing public roadways. Given the high speeds associated with Formula 1 racing, substantial temporary track barriers and fencing are needed to maintain safety for the drivers and spectators alike.
“In addition, the closed nature of the circuit requires that temporary vehicle and pedestrian infrastructure be installed to allow access to be maintained to the many properties, including hotels, restaurants, retail, and other destinations that are within the track boundaries.
“The installation (and subsequent removal) of these elements necessitates work within the public right-of-way and creates associated impacts to vehicles, pedestrians, and transit.”
The installation of the six temporary pedestrian and vehicle bridges begins in mid-September, including a temporary bridge on Flamingo Road that will span Koval Lane and the race track. Here’s a photo of the bridge from last year when it was four lanes, two lanes in each direction. The grand prix said this year’s bridge will have only one lane in each direction.