The USA Parkway is a partially constructed, four-lane route proposed to connect Interstate 80 east of Reno-Sparks with U.S. 50 near Silver Springs.
I was scrolling through http://www.nevadadot.com/Projects_and_Programs/Road_Projects/USA_Parkway_-_I-80_to_U_S__50.aspx and noticed that the main page and the PDF presentation files from January 2012 show the USA Parkway as Nevada State Route 439 (look at the logo in the upper right corner on the first page of the PDF file). This is the first I've seen this designation for this route. Wikipedia seems to think this was going to be SR 805. Does anyone have insight on the proposed number of this route (and whether it will be constructed).
Regards,
Andy
Quote from: http://www.nevadadot.com/uploadedFiles/2009_USA_Pkwy_Study.pdfHowever, the USA Parkway has been given a designation of State Route 439, pending an acceptable agreement.
N-439: I-980?
There was some other study or document from when the idea of USA Pkwy was first being touted by the developer, and plans to link it up from the then short stub off I-80 down to US 50 in Silver Springs. That document mentioned something about it being proposed as SR 805. This number was likely picked by the developer based on the linking of highways 80 & 50--805 would not fit in the numbering scheme for secondary (formerly "state aid") routes. This never got off the ground though, as I think NDOT was skeptical about taking control of the roadway when the developer wasn't planning to construct it to NDOT standards.
I also read the linked document which mentioned the possible SR 439 designation. With the USA Pkwy proposals having gained more traction, I think there is more thought on NDOT's part to take over the road, as a regionally significant highway. It's worth noting that this proposed number does fit in with the primary route numbering scheme--in this case, being a never-before-used number early in the Washoe County grouping.
The most recent NDOT highway log (July 2012 update) makes no mention of the route.
I'm bumping this old thread because of the news about USA Parkway coming out of the special session of the Nevada Legislature this week, in which the deal with Tesla to bring their manufacturing plant to the industrial park off I-80 east of Reno was approved. As part of the deal, the state is buying the existing road built by the developer through the industrial park for $43 million, and has agreed to extend it as a four-lane expressway through the hills to connect with US-50 in the Silver Springs area. Apparently the state has promised Tesla that this road project will be fast-tracked with completion taking "a few years" rather than closer to a decade.
Here are a couple of newspaper articles discussing the role of the road in the Tesla deal:
1. Las Vegas Review-Journal (http://www.reviewjournal.com/news/nevada/roads-add-nearly-100-million-tesla-deal)
2. Nevada Appeal (http://www.nevadaappeal.com/news/local/12896707-113/deal-parkway-reno-tesla)
The Appeal article notes the benefits to residential and commercial development in the Silver Springs and Dayton areas when the road becomes available as a commute route.
QuoteWhen completed, the connection would not only greatly improve freight movement from the industrial complex to points south but open a path for workers living in the Dayton corridor to jobs at the Tesla plant and Tahoe Reno Industrial Center.
Edit: The Review-Journal article and the NDOT documentation linked by the OP as updated seem to confirm the numbering as NV-439.
The Las Vegas Review-Journal reports today (October 13):
QuoteThe State Transportation Board on Monday unanimously approved a $70 million design-build project for State Highway 439, also known as USA Parkway east of Reno in Storey and Lyon counties.
More here: http://www.reviewjournal.com/news/nevada/nevada-approves-70-million-tesla-related-road-work
Also included in the approved proposal (https://www.nevadadot.com/uploadedFiles/NDOT/About_NDOT/Board_of_Directors/USA%20Parkway%20%28SR439%29.pdf) is the widening of US 50 to four lanes from the existing east end of the four-lane highway in Stagecoach on out to the intersection of US 95A in Silver Springs, a distance of about 10 miles.
Has FritzOwl made this I-11 yet?
Quote from: NE2 on October 14, 2014, 02:34:10 PM
Has FritzOwl made this I-11 yet?
Shhhh!!!!!!! Don't give him any more ideas! :sombrero:
http://www.rgj.com/story/news/local/mason-valley/2014/10/14/ndot-approves-million-usa-parkway/17276347/
QuoteThe state's announcement several weeks ago of the deal to bring Tesla Motors to Nevada included a projected $40 million for the right-of-way to complete USA Parkway.
On Monday, the Nevada Department of Transportation made that official.
The NDOT board of directors, led by Gov. Brian Sandoval, approved approximately $43 million in costs for right-of-way, easement and existing road improvements on USA Parkway.
In addition, the board also agreed to several other projects on Northern Nevada highways to free money to complete USA Parkway by 2017.
QuoteUSA Parkway is a privately-built, approximately 6-mile roadway extending into the Tahoe Reno Industrial Center from Interstate 80. The project would add approximately 12 miles to USA Parkway and connect Interstate 80 east of Sparks with U.S. 50 in the Silver Springs area. It is argued the extension will increase mobility and reduce drive time for commuters and freight, as well as support economic development, reduce congestion and vehicle-related air pollution.
The state projects a 9-to-1 cost-benefit ratio for the project.
The Reno Gazette-Journal gives another update.
http://www.rgj.com/story/money/business/2015/07/27/usa-parkway-extension-sr-439-ndot-update/30628763/
Quote
Once finished in late 2017, the expanded USA Parkway – officially designated as State Route 439 – will also yield benefits related to quality of life and cost savings, said Meg Ragonese, NDOT spokeswoman. Those benefits have been cited as a key component to why the highway expansion has been fast tracked from its original 2019 completion date.
... As part of the USA Parkway extension project, NDOT will have to do work on the existing 6-mile stretch of road to bring it up to state standards. The road will have four total lanes, with two lanes going on each direction.
I drove on a short portion of USA Parkway when I was on my way to Montana a few weeks ago. I saw one NV-439 trailblazer at the interchange with I-80 but nothing more. And it is now shown in the NDOT highway log.
iPhone
Quote from: jrouse on July 31, 2015, 11:45:46 PM
I drove on a short portion of USA Parkway when I was on my way to Montana a few weeks ago. I saw one NV-439 trailblazer at the interchange with I-80 but nothing more. And it is now shown in the NDOT highway log.
That seems rather fast for NDOT in getting the road signed with the route shield.
However, NDOT didn't publish any quarterly updates to the route log on their website between roughly 3rd quarter 2014 and 2nd quarter 2015 (and the recent update didn't include the quarterly update memo as many of the previous editions did). So I'm not entirely when the state "officially" took over USA Parkway.
Update on the USA Parkway (Nevada 439) ...
http://www.rgj.com/story/news/local/leader-courier/2015/09/11/type-intersection-usa-parkway-topic-talks/72069586/?from=global&sessionKey=&autologin=
QuoteThe type of intersection where the proposed USA Parkway on Nevada 439 would connect to U.S. 50 in Silver Springs might not be a done deal, Lyon County manager Jeff Page said last week.
Page said Lyon County officials recently met with Nevada Department of Transportation representatives and developers who plan to develop in the western Silver Springs area about the planned SR 439, which commonly has been referred to as USA Parkway throughout the years.
He said the developers are not in favor of the currently proposed high-T intersection where USA Parkway would meet U.S. 50. Page said as he understands, this would be like the U.S. 395 and Johnson Lane intersection in north Carson Valley, and he wouldn't favor that type of intersection either for a four-lane roadway. He said the developers would prefer a high-speed roundabout intersection.
The USA Parkway construction project is being advanced as a design-build project, and he said NDOT told them the type of intersection would be included as part of the design-building process.
Page said the preferred intersection would be an overpass of some sort, but that is quite expensive so he didn't think that would be an alternative.
The design-build team is scheduled to be chosen in late 2015, according to NDOT documents, with construction to be completed by December 2017.
A high-speed roundabout is planned for the future at the U.S. 50 and U.S. 95 Alternate intersection in Silver Springs. However, that would be constructed with a four-lane extension on U.S. 50 to the 95A intersection and he said that would occur after USA Parkway is completed.
The developers of the Tahoe Reno Industrial Park constructed a portion of USA Parkway from Interstate 80 to the industrial park. However, this project would include construction of the southerly 12.5-mile stretch to complete an 18-mile, four-lane roadway linking to U.S. 50 at Opal Avenue in Silver Springs for an estimated $70 million project.
According to NDOT documents, this would be an 86-foot-wide section of two travel lanes in each direction with 8-foot-wide shoulders and a center median.
The impetus for the completion of USA Parkway southward to Silver Springs, which has been discussed since as early as 2000, was the efforts to attract the Tesla battery gigafactory to TRIC and the state made concessions to develop and fund the roadway as part of the recruitment effort. The state moved up the completion date from a prior 2019 date.
NDOT began the environmental assessment for completion of USA Parkway to U.S. 50 back in 2012 and after gathering public and stakeholder input, completed the environmental studies in late 2014, which came to a finding of no significant impact with the build alternative. The EA was needed to satisfy requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act to evaluate and document impacts. It was required if federal funding were used and for right-of-way on BLM-administered land.
According to current plans, the signalized T-intersection at U.S. 50 would feature acceleration and deceleration lands and no stop for eastbound traffic. The signal would impact eastbound traffic planning to turn left onto USA Parkway and westbound traffic and southbound traffic. The process after the decision document was issued early this year was to issue the Request for Qualifications in January to come up with a short list of design-build teams and then to issue a Request for Proposals during the summer. The design-build team is scheduled to be chosen this fall.
^ Honestly, it would make more sense to put in a diamond interchange or a trumpet, and to do that now while there's still some chance of it costing less than normal and/or typical estimates.
The construction phase of the remaining 12 miles of USA Parkway is now underway with completion scheduled for late 2017. The final paragraph of the NDOT press release indicates that they settled on a roundabout at the US 50 intersection.
http://nevadadot.com/News/Press_Releases/2016/NDOT_Advises_Drivers_of_Periodic_Lane_Closures_for_Construction_of_USA_Parkway_(State_Route_439)_Extension.aspx (http://nevadadot.com/News/Press_Releases/2016/NDOT_Advises_Drivers_of_Periodic_Lane_Closures_for_Construction_of_USA_Parkway_(State_Route_439)_Extension.aspx)
Quote from: gonealookin on July 12, 2016, 05:54:34 PM
The construction phase of the remaining 12 miles of USA Parkway is now underway with completion scheduled for late 2017. The final paragraph of the NDOT press release indicates that they settled on a roundabout at the US 50 intersection.
http://nevadadot.com/News/Press_Releases/2016/NDOT_Advises_Drivers_of_Periodic_Lane_Closures_for_Construction_of_USA_Parkway_(State_Route_439)_Extension.aspx (http://nevadadot.com/News/Press_Releases/2016/NDOT_Advises_Drivers_of_Periodic_Lane_Closures_for_Construction_of_USA_Parkway_(State_Route_439)_Extension.aspx)
A roundabout...really?!?!
I mean, I have nothing against roundabouts–I'm all for them, actually. But at the end of what's anticipated to be a significant freight route, that doesn't make sense to me...
This is a likely alignment for I-11, so it may remain a roundabout for less than 20 years.
I don't think SR 439 is a likely alignment for I-11, but the access via US 50 is a potential possibility for it.
My best guess is that they're expecting that the opening of Tesla and related businesses in the industrial park together with the completion of USA Parkway will bring growth along US 50 in the Silver Springs area, so this roundabout which is in the middle of what is now a 65 mph highway would basically be a western entrance to Silver Springs. The 2015 article quoted by Andy above mentions that "developers in the western Silver Springs area" had input into the intersection design. Silver Springs is a dispersed desert community now and the notion that it will become more like, say, Fernley, seems speculative.
It seems like roundabouts are just the fad of highway engineering right now. California has really been jumping on that bandwagon. But I don't know about a roundabout on a road with a 65mph limit, unless they're planning on making an overpass for thru traffic. It seems like that's just asking for accidents.
I'm not trying to bait a discussion of nationalism, but I think this is kinda the worst name ever for a road. Obviously something like "Bill Cosby Boulevard" would be worse, yes, but what was wrong with "American Parkway"?
^ The existing portion of the route was built privately, and that's the name they gave the roadway. The name is kind of ingrained at this point and NDOT likely didn't have anything better to call it upon assuming control of it. But gotta agree with you to a certain extent.
Quote from: gonealookin on July 12, 2016, 05:54:34 PM
The construction phase of the remaining 12 miles of USA Parkway is now underway with completion scheduled for late 2017. The final paragraph of the NDOT press release indicates that they settled on a roundabout at the US 50 intersection.
http://nevadadot.com/News/Press_Releases/2016/NDOT_Advises_Drivers_of_Periodic_Lane_Closures_for_Construction_of_USA_Parkway_(State_Route_439)_Extension.aspx (http://nevadadot.com/News/Press_Releases/2016/NDOT_Advises_Drivers_of_Periodic_Lane_Closures_for_Construction_of_USA_Parkway_(State_Route_439)_Extension.aspx)
Found a news article on this as well .... http://www.rgj.com/story/news/2016/06/08/ndot-usa-parkway-open-late-2017/85609130/
The article pretty much offers the same information as the news release, but it also offers a quick run down of facts about USA Parkway:
Quote
At a glance:
USA Parkway extension will be designated as State Route 439.
It will reduce vehicle miles traveled by 451,000 people by 2035.
The 12.5 mile-long extension will reduce freight delay by 886,080 hours annually.
More than 17,000 vehicles are expected to drive on USA Parkway by 2035.
Two safety undercrossing will be installed to help reduce vehicle-animal crashes.
About 30,000 vehicles travel on the Interstate 80 and U.S. 50 corridors near the future USA Parkway alignment daily.
The project is expected to provide up to $35 million in annual savings.
The roadway is expected to open by late 2017.
Found another article that outlines the reasons for the roundabout at USA Parkway and US 50. it looks like an earlier plan was a T intersection.
http://www.rgj.com/story/news/local/leader-courier/2015/09/11/type-intersection-usa-parkway-topic-talks/72069586/
QuoteHe said the developers are not in favor of the currently proposed high-T intersection where USA Parkway would meet U.S. 50. Page said as he understands, this would be like the U.S. 395 and Johnson Lane intersection in north Carson Valley, and he wouldn't favor that type of intersection either for a four-lane roadway. He said the developers would prefer a high-speed roundabout intersection.
The USA Parkway construction project is being advanced as a design-build project, and he said NDOT told them the type of intersection would be included as part of the design-building process.
Page said the preferred intersection would be an overpass of some sort, but that is quite expensive so he didn't think that would be an alternative.
The design-build team is scheduled to be chosen in late 2015, according to NDOT documents, with construction to be completed by December 2017.
A high-speed roundabout is planned for the future at the U.S. 50 and U.S. 95 Alternate intersection in Silver Springs. However, that would be constructed with a four-lane extension on U.S. 50 to the 95A intersection and he said that would occur after USA Parkway is completed.
BUMP for a project update...
NDOT reaches USA Parkway extension milestone (http://www.rgj.com/story/news/local/leader-courier/2017/02/04/ndot-reaches-usa-parkway-extension-milestone/97499658/) - Reno Gazette-Journal, 2/4/2017.
Construction on the extension of USA Parkway has reached the halfway point. Roundabout at southern end junction with US 50 will start in spring, and project is still expected to complete late this year.
Glad it's not a T, bummed it's not an interchange.
Still curious to know what NDOT considers a "high-speed roundabout". I'm envisioning something with a quarter-mile radius and the ability to drive through it at highway speeds. I couldn't find any plans on the project site that showed this roundabout, thought I did find one for the Silver Springs roundabout, one for the old T-junction, and discussions about the difficulties of making it a grade separated interchange (hint: airport).
In lieu of speculation, here's how I'd make the roundabout work:
- There will be two dedicated eastbound lanes that bypass the roundabout altogether, similar to the original T-junction plan.
- Single lanes dedicated to westbound->northbound and southbound->westbound movements, similar to the Silver Springs roundabout. USA Parkway's south->west lane will function like an exit-only lane, peeling off the right. US-50 westbound's lane, however, would branch off from a new third lane a quarter-mile or so in length.
- The roundabout itself will be two lanes wide for east-west traffic with single lane connectors for north-south movements.
This would ensure uninterrupted eastbound, west->north and south->west travel. However, if Silver Springs is planning on capitalizing from this highway's completion, more fluid south->east movements may be warranted (however
that would work...).
Quote from: JasonOfORoads on February 07, 2017, 07:07:48 AM
Glad it's not a T, bummed it's not an interchange.
Still curious to know what NDOT considers a "high-speed roundabout". I'm envisioning something with a quarter-mile radius and the ability to drive through it at highway speeds. I couldn't find any plans on the project site that showed this roundabout, thought I did find one for the Silver Springs roundabout, one for the old T-junction, and discussions about the difficulties of making it a grade separated interchange (hint: airport).
In lieu of speculation, here's how I'd make the roundabout work:
- There will be two dedicated eastbound lanes that bypass the roundabout altogether, similar to the original T-junction plan.
- Single lanes dedicated to westbound->northbound and southbound->westbound movements, similar to the Silver Springs roundabout. USA Parkway's south->west lane will function like an exit-only lane, peeling off the right. US-50 westbound's lane, however, would branch off from a new third lane a quarter-mile or so in length.
- The roundabout itself will be two lanes wide for east-west traffic with single lane connectors for north-south movements.
This would ensure uninterrupted eastbound, west->north and south->west travel. However, if Silver Springs is planning on capitalizing from this highway's completion, more fluid south->east movements may be warranted (however that would work...).
Check out the Public Meeting Handout from 8/11/2016. It includes a graphic depicting the proposed roundabout layout and another showing a proposed aesthetic treatment. Looks like a fairly standard roundabout with two circulating lanes most of the way (but does add a third lane eastbound to handle the east>north movement).
Your idea for the roundabout ignores the fact that Opal Avenue (where USA Parkway connects to US 50) is a 4-legged intersection, so can't have the eastbound bypass lanes you proposed. If that limitation wasn't present, I think your idea would be great.
I didn't realize the USA Parkway connection (utilizing Opal Avenue) was so close to the Silver Springs Airport runway... Another reason they should have aligned the connection with the Ramsey-Weeks Cutoff–that would have been far enough from the airport that a diamond interchange could have been constructed.
Quote from: roadfro on February 07, 2017, 10:51:49 AM
Your idea for the roundabout ignores the fact that Opal Avenue (where USA Parkway connects to US 50) is a 4-legged intersection, so can't have the eastbound bypass lanes you proposed. If that limitation wasn't present, I think your idea would be great.
I see. I threw out that idea without looking at the map. However, I looked up the satellite view of the area, and unless I'm missing something*, the Opal intersection doesn't look like that big an obstacle to overcome. There's a and lotta nothing out there, so just make Opal dead-end at the NE corner of the airport property. That would free up the necessary space to allow the eastbound through lanes.
Quote from: roadfro on February 07, 2017, 10:51:49 AM
I didn't realize the USA Parkway connection (utilizing Opal Avenue) was so close to the Silver Springs Airport runway... Another reason they should have aligned the connection with the Ramsey-Weeks Cutoff–that would have been far enough from the airport that a diamond interchange could have been constructed.
You're right that the alignment would line up so much better with the cutoff. Good ol' NDOT. I hope there was a good reason. That said, unless I'm missing something* again, what if we shifted the southern terminus slightly west to the vast expanse of nothing between Onyx and Opal and made it a trumpet interchange? You could then keep Opal as-is but reconfigure Bowers Ave to intersect Opal instead of US-50. Twain south of 50 would be dead-ended. You could even depress 50's grade a little to minimize vertical clearance issues with the airport.
My only sticking point is Bowers' intersection with the Parkway. There's a host of options:
- 4-way intersection at the current location
- 4-way intersection shifted northward a little
- An over- or underpass
- Blocking the road on each side of the Parkway
- RIRO on each side of the Parkway
- An interchange
- A roundabout (ha!)
- A compact complicated Spaghetti Bowl-style interchange that is combined with the US-50 interchange because f*ck you
Last one aside, I'd probably go with dead-ending Bowers on both sides, removing its intersection with 50, and extending it east to meet Opal instead. If demand warrants otherwise, I'd recommend RIRO but still have Bowers meet Opal.
*other than things like ROW acquisition and redesign costs
Today's edition of the Reno Gazette-Journal has a new video showing construction progress.
QuoteThe 12-mile, $76 million USA Parkway extension project is getting closer to completion. Ames Construction, the contractor working on the Nevada Department of Transportation project, says the road that will connect the I-80 to U.S. 50 should be done by the end of the year. Ames Construction provided the aerial footage for this video.
http://www.rgj.com/videos/news/2017/05/18/getting-gigafactory-get-easier-later-year/101851342/
Enough work has been completed on the roundabout that US 50 traffic is flowing through it as of today (http://www.nevadaappeal.com/news/local/traffic-in-silver-springs-shifting-to-new-usa-parkway-roundabout/), rather than detouring around it.
QuoteU.S. 50 speed limits through the roundabout will permanently be lowered as low as 25 mph.
Considering how out in the middle of nothing the roundabout is...grrrrrr...
Quote from: gonealookin on July 18, 2017, 08:29:55 PM
Enough work has been completed on the roundabout that US 50 traffic is flowing through it as of today (http://www.nevadaappeal.com/news/local/traffic-in-silver-springs-shifting-to-new-usa-parkway-roundabout/), rather than detouring around it.
QuoteU.S. 50 speed limits through the roundabout will permanently be lowered as low as 25 mph.
Considering how out in the middle of nothing the roundabout is...grrrrrr...
Silver Springs, like Fallon to the east, has become a retirement mecca due to relatively low housing costs, a moderate climate (but it
does get a bit cold in the winter east of the Sierras), and proximity to the Reno-Carson-Tahoe area for amenities. Slowing down traffic on US 50 would likely be one of the measures taken to "convert" this area from a basically rural environment to a more densely populated exurb. I'm just surprised roundabouts haven't popped up (yet) on US 395 in the Gardnerville/Minden area, which has been experiencing similar growth patterns for a couple of decades.
Update: According to the NDOT project page (https://www.nevadadot.com/projects-programs/road-projects/usa-parkway), there will be a ribbon cutting for USA Pkwy on August 28th and the road is expected to open to traffic on September 8th.
http://elkodaily.com/mining/road-projects-to-help-comstock-mining-sell-assets/article_975a4e25-a1a9-554c-bea4-69dbbd244788.html
QuoteAs the Nevada Department of Transportation celebrated the completion of the new Infinity Highway, formerly U.S.A. Parkway, on Monday, Comstock Mining Inc. announced that the infrastructure improvements will help the company sell its nonmining-related assets in the area.
Three months ahead of schedule, NDOT completed the $75.9 million project and a large multilane roundabout at the intersection of the Infinity Highway, or State Route 439, and U.S. Route 50. The roadway improvements are in the vicinity of Comstock Mining's certified, shovel-ready, 98-acre Comstock Industrial Site and senior water rights in Silver Springs.
(https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/elkodaily.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/35/43500806-ab27-5d4e-a538-a93ce22c23b5/59a5c0494e14e.image.jpg)
And the next thing to cross the desk of NDOT's legal department is a suit and/or cease-and-desist from Infinity Speakers for using their name and logo (unless they prearranged waivers). Infinity's owned by Harman International; and they're one of the more litigious home-electronics companies around (they sued a company for whom I was working back in the '70's). Let's see if the new highway name persists!
Quote from: sparker on August 31, 2017, 04:10:36 PM
And the next thing to cross the desk of NDOT's legal department is a suit and/or cease-and-desist from Infinity Speakers for using their name and logo (unless they prearranged waivers). Infinity's owned by Harman International; and they're one of the more litigious home-electronics companies around (they sued a company for whom I was working back in the '70's). Let's see if the new highway name persists!
Can one really Trademark a Mathematical symbol, such as the Infinity sign? Heck, SBC's (before they bought old AT&T and changed their name to AT&T) logo was an Infinity sign for years in the 90s/2000s
Interestingly, the Reno Gazette-Journal article I saw the other day made no mention of renaming USA Pkwy as Infinity Hwy...
Quote from: ilpt4u on September 01, 2017, 12:17:31 AM
Quote from: sparker on August 31, 2017, 04:10:36 PM
And the next thing to cross the desk of NDOT's legal department is a suit and/or cease-and-desist from Infinity Speakers for using their name and logo (unless they prearranged waivers). Infinity's owned by Harman International; and they're one of the more litigious home-electronics companies around (they sued a company for whom I was working back in the '70's). Let's see if the new highway name persists!
Can one really Trademark a Mathematical symbol, such as the Infinity sign? Heck, SBC's (before they bought old AT&T and changed their name to AT&T) logo was an Infinity sign for years in the 90s/2000s
Actually, the later iterations of the Infinity Speaker logo showed the symbol not as equilateral from left-to-right, but with the right side raised in a "swoop"; the "traditional" Infinity symbol was only used in the earlier products from that company (pre-about 1984 or so, when they were sold to Harman). That difference alone would be enough to allow trademark of the variance but not the original/traditional -- so the symbol on the BGS may indeed be safe from legal issues. Now the name itself -- Harman
did threaten to sue Nissan Motors when they first announced their now-"Infiniti" brand as an upscale rival to Lexus and Acura -- hence the particular spelling of the brand. Like I said earlier,
very litigious!
Ironically, Harman has of late downgraded their Infinity division into a label for lower-priced home-theater speakers; the company's long-time assault on the state-of-the-art in the field was abandoned in the early 1990's when company founder Arnie Nudell resigned when Harman cut capital & staff for the division (scuttlebutt was they did so just to get him and his huge salary to quit!). But in the meantime they had opened a new high-end speaker division (Revel) and a brand-new plant in Taiwan to build those units. But re Infinity -- it's technically still operational, so Harman may or may not elect to protect their trademark.
The new USA Parkway SR 439 has reduced the travel distance from Yerington to Reno from 85+ miles to 69 miles using Ramsey cutoff to USA Parkway making the time shorter to about 1 hr 10 min from the almost 1 1/2 hr drive before. :clap:
Quote from: nevadabil on October 18, 2017, 03:29:09 PM
The new USA Parkway SR 439 has reduced the travel distance from Yerington to Reno from 85+ miles to 69 miles using Ramsey cutoff to USA Parkway making the time shorter to about 1 hr 10 min from the almost 1 1/2 hr drive before. :clap:
Interesting- I also realized it works as a Reno-Las Vegas route as well, using this, along with ALT 95 cuts the route to 438 miles from 445 using 80/50/95 through Fernley and Fallon. Not that the distance is huge, but I'm thinking avoiding the truck traffic, stoplights, slow speed limits and roundabouts through Fernley and Fallon. This is all assuming using the Ramsey Cutoff road through Silver Springs is reasonably fast. Having just done the drive down 95 I would have used this route but didn't show up as an option in Google.
The completed USA Parkway hy 439 doesn't show up on google or imaps at all but does show up mostly on my windows 10 map program on my desktop, stopping just short of the connection with US 50 where the roundabout would be. It doesn't show up on google earth either. BTW the speed on Ramsey cut off is 45 but is about 1.7 miles shorter than US 95A to US 50, where you have to slow down and stop. This route takes off about 15 miles off the commute from Yerington to Reno 69 miles from Goldfield ave Yerington to I80 / I580 interchange in Reno.
Quote from: nevadabil on October 19, 2017, 11:47:02 AM
The completed USA Parkway hy 439 doesn't show up on google or imaps at all but does show up mostly on my windows 10 map program on my desktop, stopping just short of the connection with US 50 where the roundabout would be. It doesn't show up on google earth either. BTW the speed on Ramsey cut off is 45 but is about 1.7 miles shorter than US 95A to US 50, where you have to slow down and stop. This route takes off about 15 miles off the commute from Yerington to Reno 69 miles from Goldfield ave Yerington to I80 / I580 interchange in Reno.
Thank you for the info, I will use this next time! I'm thinking it will overall save about 45 minutes on the drive all things considered.
At the south end of NV 439, this week marks the start of construction on US 50 which will complete the four-laning of that highway from I-580 in Carson City to US 95A in Silver Springs. The construction area is about 9 miles long, about 6.5 miles to the west of the existing US 50/NV 439 roundabout plus the 2.5 miles between NV 439 and US 95A. Construction runs from now until fall 2020, at which point the existing four-way stop at US 50/US 95A in Silver Springs will have been replaced by, yes, another roundabout.
NDOT info on the "US 50 Phase 2" widening project (https://www.nevadadot.com/projects-programs/road-projects/u-s-50-phase-2-widening-project)
Quote from: gonealookin on March 27, 2019, 01:14:53 PM
At the south end of NV 439, this week marks the start of construction on US 50 which will complete the four-laning of that highway from I-580 in Carson City to US 95A in Silver Springs.
All nice and good, but I would have much rather seen upgrades first to the segment between US 95A and US 50A in Fallon. That part of the highway is on substandard alignment, and much of it even lacks paved shoulders. (The two-lane segment west of Silver Springs at least had good shoulders already.)
Other than the obvious safety hazards for motorists, as it is now, US 50 east of US 95A is pretty much no-go for solo bicyclists (even though some group events use it), and there's no other reasonably safe and direct route to Fallon. (95A to Fernley is even worse!)
I'll be interested to see some traffic counts that show the effect of the opening of NV 439 on US 50 east of Silver Springs. You're right about conditions on that stretch of road, but as of the 2017 traffic count there just wasn't enough traffic there to move improvements there onto any priority list.
Unless those numbers show a big spike in traffic, I'd guess there won't be anything more than miniscule improvements until and unless there's a firm commitment to upgrade the Reno to Las Vegas connection and the route chosen were to go through the Fallon area, whether that's Interstate 11 or sub-Interstate level upgrading of US 95.