A decorative wall with scenes from Hoover Dam’s construction will be the centerpiece of the future I-11 bypass at Boulder City, Nevada.A new section of Interstate 11 to bypass Boulder City will open May 23, with the remaining section to be completed this summer, according to the Nevada Department of Transportation.
The interstate is planned to eventually help provide a link between Mexico and Canada through Arizona, Nevada, Utah, Idaho and Montana by connecting with Interstate 15. It would also eventually connect Phoenix and Las Vegas, the only two cities in the country with over 1 million people that aren’t linked by an interstate, according to NDOT.
The $83 million sections currently being built will include a full diamond interchange at Railroad Pass with a loop ramp, and a 1,200-foot-long, 28-foot-tall cast-in-place concrete retaining wall with multi-colored graphics and extruded Cor-Ten steel figures and objects that illustrate scenes from the construction of Hoover Dam, NDOT says.
“It reflects the region’s social, cultural and economic history, acting as an iconic graphic gateway to Boulder City,” the agency says. “The textured retaining wall is coated with a special anti-graffiti film that serves as a deterrent for taggers.”
The 2.5-mile section opening May 23 is between Foot Hill Drive in Henderson and U.S. 95 in Boulder City. Work began on the project in 2015. The remaining 12.5 miles of the project, which also includes a 600-foot-long, two-lane cast-in-place flyover bridge between I-11 South and U.S. 93 East, is the responsibility of the Regional Transportation Commission.
The interstate will consist of concrete pavement. NDOT says it chose concrete over asphalt because it lasts longer and will result in maintenance savings.
The highway is part of the NAFTA and CANAMEX trade corridors and gets about 34,000 vehicles a day, with heavy truck traffic.
Other features of the project include a steel prefabricated pedestrian bridge connecting local trails, replanting 20,000 cacti, and 5 miles of fencing to protect tortoises.
Below is a map of the project and scenes from the construction:
