Interstate 515 Nevada

Overview

Interstate 515 overlaid the Las Vegas Expressway / Oran K. Gragson Freeway south from I-15 and Downtown Las Vegas to Henderson. U.S. 93 and U.S. 95 accompanied the commuter route from I-11 and I-215 (Bruce Woodbury Beltway) northward on the Henderson bypass to the Spaghetti Bowl interchange with Interstate 15. The Oran K. Gragson Freeway continues west toward Summerlin and north to Centennial in Las Vegas as U.S. 95.

Traffic reporters in Las Vegas generally referred to Interstate 515 as U.S. 95, and many business maps, such as those found in newspaper advertisements, erroneously showed this road as Interstate 95. I-515 used the mileposts for U.S. 95, so the exit numbers referenced the distance from the California border, south of Searchlight.

Formally established by Congress in 2012, the Interstate 11 corridor joining the Phoenix and Las Vegas areas overlays U.S. 93 northwest from the Mike O’Callaghan – Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge by Hoover Dam to the Boulder City Bypass, which fully opened by October 2018. I-11 was completed northwest from U.S. 95 to Foothills Drive in Henderson on January 27, 2018. Sign changes subsequently renumbered the southernmost extent of I-515 as I-11 following the opening of the new southbound lanes at Railroad Pass on August 15, 2017. The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) approved the establishment of Interstate 11 from the Arizona state line to I-215 on May 29, 2014.

The continuation of Interstate 11 north from Henderson replaced the remainder of I-515 to I-15 by Downtown Las Vegas. Alternatively the corridor could have used the Bruce Woodbury Beltway (I-215) west or followed a new terrain alignment around Henderson and Nellis Air Force Base to I-15 northeast of Las Vegas. AASHTO approved the northward extension of I-11 to SR 157 (Kyle Canyon Road) in northwestern Las Vegas in October 2022. The remainder of Interstate 515 was decommissioned as a result.

Route Information

North End – Las Vegas, NV
South End – Henderson, NV
Mileage – 14.444 (20.54*)
Cities – Las Vegas, Henderson
Junctions –

Source: 2022 State Maintained Highways of Nevada, Descriptions and Maps (NDOT)
* – December 31, 2021 Interstate Route Log and Finders List

I-515 Annual Average Daily Traffic (AADT)

Source: 2019 AADT Traffic Records Information Access (TRINA) – Nevada Department of Transportation (NDOT)

History

Interstate 515 was first established by the American Association of State Highway Officials (AASHTO) on July 13, 1976 for a short stretch of the Las Vegas Expressway (U.S. 95) linking I-15 east with U.S. 93 (Las Vegas Boulevard) at Downtown. The route was however not signed, and remained on paper only as the Las Vegas Expressway was lengthened further south toward Henderson. Signs were observed for Interstate 515 and the Oran K. Gragson Expressway by site contributor Cary Todd in 1993. The Henderson bypass portion of I-515 was finished in 1995.

Photo Guides

Interstate 515 Nevada

North End – Las Vegas, Nevada

West North at

I-515/U.S. 93-95 elevate around the north side of Downtown Las Vegas on a viaduct over N Las Vegas Boulevard (former SR 604) on the one mile approach to Exits 76A/B with Interstate 15. 07/22/17

Curving westward over N Main Street and Union Pacific Railroad lines, traffic separates for the two-lane flyover (Exit 76A) to Interstate 15 south along side the Las Vegas Strip toward Paradise. 03/09/19

The turbine interchange joining I-15 and I-515 with U.S. 95 (Oran K. Gragson Freeway) northwest to Centennial includes ramps with adjacent Martin Luther King Boulevard. Underway through July 2019, Project Neon reconstructed those connections in addition to an HOV flyover. 03/09/19

Exit 76B follows for the continuation of U.S. 93 north onto Interstate 15 through North Las Vegas. The two overlap to Garnett, where U.S. 93 turns north along Great Basin Highway as I-15 continues northeast to Mesquite and St. George, Utah. 03/09/19

South at

U.S. 95 (Oran K. Gragson Freeway) heads five miles east from SR 613 (Summerlin Parkway) to the Spaghetti Bowl Interchange with I-15/515. 03/09/19

Three lanes separate from U.S. 95 (Oran K. Gragson Freeway) south within the SPUI (Exit 77) at U.S. 95 Business/SR 599 (Rancho Drive for a distributor roadway to MLK Boulevard and Interstate 15 south. 03/09/19

Crossing over Rancho Drive, U.S. 95 south partitions with the roadway for Exit 76C/B as three lanes continue southbound toward Exit 76A for I-15/U.S. 93 north toward Salt Lake City and the Great Basin. 03/09/19

Exit 76A follows a sweeping curve onto I-15/U.S. 93 through North Las Vegas. U.S. 93 north overlaps with I-15 for 21 miles to Great Basin Highway north to Ely. 03/09/19

North at

Exit 42A constitutes separate flyovers for both U.S. 95 (Oran K. Gragson Freeway) northwest toward Summerlin and Centennial and parallel Martin Luther King Boulevard just to the west. U.S. 95 extends north from I-515 along a freeway 17 miles to SR 157 (Kyle Canyon Road). 03/04/19

Passing over Alta Drive and Bonneville Avenue, Interstate 15 north separates with Exit 42A for U.S. 95 north. Project Neon added HOV ramps departing from the inside lanes to a new flyover linking I-15 with U.S. 95. 03/04/19

Exit 42B carries two lanes of traffic from I-15 north to I-515/U.S. 93-95 southbound around the north side of Downtown Las Vegas. 03/04/19

South at

1.5 miles north of the Spaghetti Bowl Interchange with U.S. 95 (Oran K. Gragson Freeway) and Interstate 515 south on I-15/U.S. 93 at the N 5th Street overpass in North Las Vegas. 03/03/19

I-15/U.S. 93 curve southwest from the Owens Avenue overpass with five lanes to Exit 42. Three lanes continue southward toward McCarran International Airport (LAS) and Paradise. 03/03/19

Succeeding exit ramps depart from Interstate 15 south for Washington Avenue and the split of U.S. 93 south for I-515/U.S. 95 to Henderson and Boulder City (via I-11). 03/03/19

Exit 42 departs for both for U.S. 95 (Oran K. Gragson Freeway) northwest to Summerlin and Centennial and I-515/U.S. 93-95 south toward Hoover Dam, Mojave County, Arizona (via I-11) and Searchlight. 03/03/19

A flyover takes U.S. 93 south onto I-515/U.S. 95 along the north side of Downtown Las Vegas. The ramp to U.S. 95 (Oran K. Gragson Freeway) north splits with a connection to Martin L. King Boulevard south of SR 579 (Bonanza Road). 03/03/19

North End Throwback

South at

Exit 76B for I-15 south to Los Angeles previously departed just ahead of the Martin Luther King Boulevard underpass. A c/d roadway for I-15 was constructed during expansion of U.S. 95 (Oran K. Gragson Freeway). Photo by Jeff Royston (12/00).

U.S. 95 (Oran K. Gragson Freeway) south approaching the Spaghetti Bowl Interchange with I-15/U.S. 93 before Project Neon construction started. 07/22/14

As part of Project Neon, HOV flyovers were constructed from U.S. 95 south to I-15 south and from I-15 north to U.S. 95 north. 07/22/14

North at

Interstate 15 curved northward ahead of the previously off-ramp (Exit 41B) for Charleston Boulevard (former SR 159) west on the one mile approach to I-515 (Oran K. Gragson Freeway). 07/15/17

I-15 north at I-515/U.S. 93-95 (Oran K. Gragson Freeway) during early stages of construction for Project Neon. 07/15/17

Southern End – Henderson, Nevada

South at

I-515/U.S. 93-95 meet I-215 (Bruce Woodbury Beltway) west and SR 564 (Lake Mead Parkway) south at the Henderson Bowl Intercahnge just south of Auto Show Drive (Exit 62). 03/07/19

Interstate 515 south becomes I-11 beyond I-215/SR 564 en route to Boulder and Hoover Dam. I-515 exits were renumbered from the systems interchange with I-215 southward starting in March 2019. 03/07/19

East at

Interstate 215 east concludes at the four level interchange with I-11 south, I-515 north and SR 564 (Lake Mead Parkway) in a half mile. 03/01/19

Traffic partitions at the east end of I-215 for I-515/U.S. 93-95 north to Las Vegas and I-11/U.S. 93-95 south to Railroad Pass. 03/09/19

SR 564 (Lake Mead Parkway) extends east from the end of I-215 and the exchange with I-11/515 through Henderson to the south boundary of Lake Mead National Recreation Area. 07/22/17

West at

State Route 564 travels 8.41 miles southwest from the south boundary of Lake Mead Recreational Area to the Henderson Bowl Interchange joining I-215 with I-11 south to Boulder City and I-515/U.S. 93-95 north to Downtown Las Vegas. 07/27/17

Former South End – – Henderson, Nevada

A long off-ramp connects SR 582 (Boulder Highway) with I-515/U.S. 93-95 south ahead of the Wagonwheel Drive overpass. I-515 ended in one mile, with U.S. 93/95 shifting onto the new travel lanes of Interstate 11 south through Railroad Pass. 07/12/15

The last of the Henderson subdivisions, including Old Vegas Ranch and Paradise, appeared along the final half mile of Interstate 515. 07/12/15

I-515 concluded just ahead of the Paradise Hills Drive underpass. U.S. 93/95 used to downgrade into an at-grade highway, but 2017 construction of I-11 upgraded the southbound roadway into limited access standards to Railroad Pass Hotel & Casino. I-11 opened from Railroad Pass east to a new parclo interchange with U.S. 95 south to Searchlight on August 15, 2017. 07/21/17

Northbound Interstate 515 began beyond the U.S. 93/95 overpass spanning Paradise Hills Drive. 07/21/17

A previous begin shield assembly for Interstate 515 north, with less area development along the south side of Henderson. 11/11/00

Page updated November 11, 2020.