US 93 Hoover Dam Bypass

[national highway 1]

What will the AZ section of US 93 be once it crosses the dam? Will it be state-maintained or handed over for county maintenance?

[KEK Inc.]

According to Copper2010, he claims that the road will end at the dam, and the Arizona section will no longer exist.  I think that's pointless, but I can see how that's advantageous for security. 

[roadfro]

I'm *very* confused as to why that photo appears to show only one lane in the southbound direction... I know that just north of the bypass project, the road is narrower, but I thought the entire bypass roadways were supposed to be two lanes each way.

The southbound road widens to two lanes shortly after the exit. The FHWA Record of Decision (1.4 MB pdf) shows the project's northern (western) start basically at this interchange. (I walked to the site from a parking lot at the Hacienda Hotel, which is shown outside the project limits.)

I had forgotten that the project limits were basically co-terminus with the interchange. Existing US 93 west of here is two-lane briefly into Boulder City.

Perhaps they wanted to leave this not fully improved, in the thought that existing US 93 might be widened. Ultimately, the mainline alignment will probably curve to the south when the Boulder City Bypass comes through--that project's eastern (southbound) limits are also roughly this interchange. (A lack of funding is probably pushing that project at least 10+ years into the future, unless something changes).

What will the AZ section of US 93 be once it crosses the dam? Will it be state-maintained or handed over for county maintenance?

According to Copper2010, he claims that the road will end at the dam, and the Arizona section will no longer exist.  I think that's pointless, but I can see how that's advantageous for security. 

According to those articles, vehicles will still be able to cross the dam from the Nevada side and park on the Arizona side...this parking access is being kept for larger vehicles and buses that cannot park in the structure on the Nevada side and would otherwise have no place to unload or turn around. The road would be blocked just past the parking areas.

I believe the existing US 93 on the Arizona side will be maintained as a roadway in some form, as a full interchange was constructed near the project limits on the Arizona side. There would be no access to the dam itself from this side. Presumably, the old highway would be used as an access road to power transmission lines and other random things that are out there. No clue as to whether it would be state highway or county road on the AZ side.

[kurumi]

I added some photos in Flickr: US 93 set

There was an opening ceremony today: http://www.examiner.com/day-trips-in-phoenix/hoover-dam-bypass-bridge-opening-celebration-today.

I'm not sure when it will fully open to traffic, or when the US 93 designation will be moved.

[Scott5114]

There was an article about the dam bridge in the paper out here. Guess this is pretty dam important!

(I am so sorry)

[myosh_tino]

There was an article about the dam bridge in the paper out here. Guess this is pretty dam important!

(I am so sorry)

Don't be.  Perhaps we should try to resurrect the currently locked Dam Jokes thread on the Off-Topic board. 

[Alps]

There was an article about the dam bridge in the paper out here. Guess this is pretty dam important!

(I am so sorry)

Don't be.  Perhaps we should try to resurrect the currently locked Dam Jokes thread on the Off-Topic board. 

Don't you dare...

[roadfro]

I'm not sure when it will fully open to traffic, or when the US 93 designation will be moved.

An article in the Las Vegas Review-Journal covering the dedication ceremony indicated that the bridge should be open to traffic by late next week.


I haven't seen anything regarding officially moving the US 93 designation to the bypass. The AASHTO route numbering committee meets just prior to the main AASHTO fall meeting/conference, which starts on October 28th this year. I cannot find the page where they used to post proposed numbering changes prior to their committee meetings (as they've done with the past few meetings), so I don't know if a joint NDOT/ADOT application has been submitted.

EDIT: Found the page, but there's no new proposals or other documents posted beyond the May 2010 committee minutes...

[rickmastfan67]

EDIT: Found the page, but there's no new proposals or other documents posted beyond the May 2010 committee minutes...

That's weird.  They normally have them posted by now.....

[Kniwt]

Now that the bridge is really open, I'm planning a visit next month. But I'm hoping to bicycle across in both directions.

Which leads to my question: I haven't been able to find anything about everyday bicycle access to the bridge. It seems safe to assume that the shoulders are legal bike lanes, but if I'm approaching from the Nevada side, how far will I have to go into Arizona before I can turn around and return?

Perhaps I'm just not very good with teh google.

[roadfro]

The bypass is a freeway-grade facility. I haven't seen it for sure, but I would imagine that bicycling would be prohibited on the portions of the bridge designed for vehicles. There's no real significant amount of bicycle traffic going on this portion of US 93 regularly

If the bridge isn't prohibited to bicycles, you'd have to go all the way to the Arizona interchange before you could turn around. I believe this is about 2 miles past the bridge, making it about a 10-mile round trip starting from the Nevada interchange.

[rickmastfan67]

I just saw a video that somebody posted when they drove over the bridge and I saw no pedestrian walkway and no bicycle area.

[mgk920]

I just saw a video that somebody posted when they drove over the bridge and I saw no pedestrian walkway and no bicycle area.

The walkway is on the east side of the bridge (the side closer to the dam).  It is separated from the driving lanes by a fairly high concrete barrier.

Mike

[Bickendan]

The bypass is a freeway-grade facility. I haven't seen it for sure, but I would imagine that bicycling would be prohibited on the portions of the bridge designed for vehicles.

That doesn't mean much out west of the Mississippi. For example, Oregon -- the state where I do know the bike laws -- bicycles are permitted on the interstates outside of urban areas (Portland, Eugene/Springfield, Medford, possibly Hood River and The Dalles). It's prohibited on US 26 from exit 73 (Canyon Rd/SW Jefferson St) to I-405 (so through the Glencullen/Vista Ridge Tunnel), US 30 from NW Nicolai St to exit 16 on I-84, I-205 north of exit 8 (OR 43) (there's a bike path parallel to the freeway -- with ODOT approved mileposts, north to south!!!), I-5 from exit 289 to Vancouver, and the length of I-405. Eugene, it's the length of the OR 126 freeway (inclusive of I-105), more than likely the length of OR 569, and logically, the length of Delta Highway, and I-5 from OR 99 to OR 569. Exits 27-30 in Medford, possibly 33 in Central Point.

If the bridge isn't prohibited to bicycles, you'd have to go all the way to the Arizona interchange before you could turn around. I believe this is about 2 miles past the bridge, making it about a 10-mile round trip starting from the Nevada interchange.

That sounds like a good short ride. I'll need to do that sometime.

[roadfro]

I just saw a video that somebody posted when they drove over the bridge and I saw no pedestrian walkway and no bicycle area.

The walkway is on the east side of the bridge (the side closer to the dam).  It is separated from the driving lanes by a fairly high concrete barrier.

The concrete barriers walls on the bridge were purposefully designed so that you cannot see Hoover Dam from most passenger vehicles...this is to discourage drivers from slowing/stopping on the bridge in order to look at the dam. The wall height is also to deter people on the walkway side from climbing over into the travel lanes.

The bypass is a freeway-grade facility. I haven't seen it for sure, but I would imagine that bicycling would be prohibited on the portions of the bridge designed for vehicles.

That doesn't mean much out west of the Mississippi. For example, Oregon -- the state where I do know the bike laws -- bicycles are permitted on the interstates outside of urban areas (Portland, Eugene/Springfield, Medford, possibly Hood River and The Dalles).

Generally speaking, bicycles are typically prohibited on freeway-grade facilities. This is especially the case when there is a non-freeway facility nearby that provides reasonable access to or between the same points. I would imagine that bikes would be prohibited from the bypass and encouraged to take old US 93...I haven't been there to see it at all, so I can't speak with any certainty.

[Sykotyk]

True, roadfro. Nevada requires bikers to exit at every town and can only reenter the freeway on the other side of town. It's pretty well signed on I-80, at least.

Sykotyk

[myosh_tino]

I was in Las Vegas in early November and I made it a point to go visit the new US 93 bridge and I was blown away by how massive this bridge is and the views it provides of the Hoover Dam.  Here are some of my observations...

From the Nevada side, US 93 is indeed only 2 lanes until it reaches the Hoover Dam exit (Exit 2, pictured in an earlier post).  Only at that point does the road expand to 4 total lanes.  The drive across the new bridge is pretty bland partly because the guardrails and center median are 5+ feet tall thus preventing drivers from seeing the dam or the Colorado River unless your in a semi.

While the bridge does have a pedestrian walkway on the dam side, you will need to take the Hoover Dam exit from US 93 and pass through the security checkpoint to access the rather small parking area.  I got there around 9:30AM and was able to find parking pretty quickly but within minutes of getting out of my car, the entire lot filled up.  From the parking area, to get to the bridge means walking up 3 flights of stairs or 6 switch backs although there are displays on how and why the bridge was built, how much it cost to build, the construction timeline and biographies of Pat Tillman and Mike O'Callaghan if you need a break.  Once on the bridge, the views of the Hoover Dam and Lake Mead are breathtaking.

I probably spent over an hour on the bridge but then drove down to the Hoover Dam visitor center parking garage to get a view of the bridge from Hoover Dam.  The view from the dam was equally breathtaking.  I couldn't get to the observation deck (on top of the bronze circular building by the dam) to take more pictures of the bridge because I didn't want to pay $8 for access to that observation deck.  BTW, the dam tour now costs $30, dam parking is $7 and, I swear this is true, the cafe in the parking structure is selling Dam and Double-Dam Cheeseburgers.  I didn't notice the price but I'm sure they were going to be pretty darn high (ok, ok, I'll stop with the dam references before I get in trouble ).

The only camera I had with me was my iPhone 4 camera which took pretty good pictures but next year (yes, I go the Las Vegas at least once a year), I've got to remember to take my digital camera.

Edit: One other thing I noticed.  While the Hoover Dam exit from US 93 is numbered appropriately (Exit 2), the first exit on the Arizona side is also Exit 1 (or 2, can't remember).  I'm pretty sure US 93 is a north-south highway so wouldn't Exit 1 (or 2) be located at US 93's southern terminus or does Arizona number exits from north-to-south rather than south-to-north?

[agentsteel53]

security checkpoint

assholes.

[Alps]

BTW, the dam tour now costs $30, dam parking is $7

assholes.

[agentsteel53]

I'd pay an extra $20 to skip the TSA.

[Alex]

Brent Jonas posted a northbound video of the bypass this week. Check it out!

[xcellntbuy]

A fantastic video.

[NE2]

Looks like a computer rendering. Must be the new pavement.

[roadfro]

Edit: One other thing I noticed.  While the Hoover Dam exit from US 93 is numbered appropriately (Exit 2), the first exit on the Arizona side is also Exit 1 (or 2, can't remember).  I'm pretty sure US 93 is a north-south highway so wouldn't Exit 1 (or 2) be located at US 93's southern terminus or does Arizona number exits from north-to-south rather than south-to-north?

The Arizona exit is Exit 2 (Kingman Wash Access Road).

The Wikipedia article on US 93 in AZ indicates mileage increases from south to north, but I've seen ADOT press releases on the construction work that indicate the opposite.

[myosh_tino]

Edit: One other thing I noticed.  While the Hoover Dam exit from US 93 is numbered appropriately (Exit 2), the first exit on the Arizona side is also Exit 1 (or 2, can't remember).  I'm pretty sure US 93 is a north-south highway so wouldn't Exit 1 (or 2) be located at US 93's southern terminus or does Arizona number exits from north-to-south rather than south-to-north?

The Arizona exit is Exit 2 (Kingman Wash Access Road).

The Wikipedia article on US 93 in AZ indicates mileage increases from south to north, but I've seen ADOT press releases on the construction work that indicate the opposite.

Isn't that a little odd?  A quick peek at the Arizona freeway system leads me to believe exit numbers increase from south to north (i.e. I-17) or west to east (i.e. US 60).  Why US 93 is different puzzles me.  I guess it's just an Arizona oddity.