Super Bowl LVIII is in the rearview mirror and by almost all accounts it was an incredible success. We say “almost” because despite the best efforts of everyone involved, one aspect of the big game proved to be a big headache: traffic.
Traditional news and social media platforms were inundated with photos, videos and livestreams of snarled traffic jams as visitors looking to use a vehicle to move about the Las Vegas Strip instead found themselves in what was effectively a parking lot, praying for an escape route.
While increases in traffic congestion around big events like the Formula One race and the Super Bowl are unavoidable, the scope, scale and frequency of traffic nightmares around major events has become increasingly difficult for tourists, locals and elected officials to ignore. With the prospect of both professional baseball and basketball arriving on the Strip in the near future, an intolerable situation could become nonstop torture.
If Clark County wants to continue hosting world-class events that deliver world-class memories and experiences, we need a world-class mass-transit experience on the Strip.
We are aware that for many people, the words “mass transit” might inspire images of graffitied buses or the cavernous subway stations that somehow manage to feel both overcrowded and isolated at the same time.
But Las Vegas is the entertainment capital of the world, and we are uniquely situated because of the nature of the Strip to make mass transit an entertaining, enjoyable and, dare we say, Instagrammable experience.
Imagine boarding a light rail that has observation cars with walls and ceilings made of tinted polycarbonate glass. As the train rolls down the Strip (yes, straight down Las Vegas Boulevard, not Koval Lane, Paradise Road, Dean Martin Drive or Sammy Davis Jr. Drive), you can look out and up at the lighted signs, intricate architecture, entertaining attractions and tempting billboard advertisements of one of the most recognizable streets in the world. Each of the stations could be an experience of its own as well.
A ride like that would be a tourist attraction by itself.
A single light rail route that runs north and south could connect the proposed Brightline Station at Warm Springs Road to Cashman Field, and everything in between, including Harry Reid International Airport, the Strip, the Arts District and Fremont Street. Unlike taxicabs or ride-hailing services, there would be no concerns about who the driver is, whether they are safe or the route they might take. Unlike buses, there would be no concerns about whether a person got on the correct numbered route.
By providing park-and-ride facilities at the north and south ends of the line, even locals and Strip employees could enjoy easy, affordable access to the resort corridor, Arts District and downtown Las Vegas without needing to drive across town, pay for expensive parking, or know which properties provide three hours of free parking.
Imagine not having to worry about where to park or whether you’ll be back to your car before the free window for parking expires. Or being a tourist and knowing that no matter where you end up on the Strip or downtown that you have a safe, reliable and affordable means of getting back to your hotel room.
Perhaps most importantly, tourists and locals alike would enjoy reduced congestion, less stress and more convenient opportunities to build positive memories of spending time and money on gaming, entertainment and nightlife.
Time is money, especially here in Las Vegas, where every minute spent off the gaming floor or outside a bar, restaurant or entertainment venue means lost revenue for our largest employers and fewer tips for the hospitality workers who are the backbone of the region’s economy. Keeping tourists moving quickly could mean billions more in revenue.
With visitor numbers on the rise, a new airport and Brightline train service expected within the next decade, and Formula One becoming a fixture for the city, the time for an exciting, ambitious and world-class mass transit experience is now.
The Strip deserves a light rail line worthy of the glitz, glamour, entertainment and hospitality that has come to define our desert oasis. The state of Nevada, Clark County and the municipalities contained therein, should act now to make light rail a reality.