LAS VEGAS (FOX5) — Four hundred new streetlights are now in operation on Boulder Highway within the city of Henderson, marking a milestone in efforts to improve safety on what has been called the deadliest road in the state.
The lights are part of the Reimagine Boulder Highway project, which began construction in August 2024. The city has been strategizing how to make Boulder Highway safer for all roadway users since 2017.
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Different approaches to safety
Clark County installed a chain link fence dividing Boulder Highway from Desert Inn to Flamingo, a four-mile stretch. The $1.6 million investment was meant to stop jaywalking and cut down on the high numbers of pedestrians hit and killed on the road.
A traffic safety advocate said she doesn’t think the fence is enough to keep people safe. She said crosswalks make the biggest difference.
Metro said there have been no fatalities around the new fencing since it has been added.
Visibility concerns
Drivers have long complained it’s hard to see pedestrians at night who cross the road at random, leading to deadly accidents.
“It’s hard to ride drive through at night because you know you can’t see… It’s so pitch dark out here,” one person said.
In 2015 alone, 11 pedestrians died on Boulder Highway.
“Boulder Highway has had more fatalities on it than any other road in the state of Nevada… it is wide, it is fast, it is dark,” Scott Jarvis, a Project Engineer with the City of Henderson contended in a 2023 interview with FOX5.
Project details
The city of Henderson said all of the new lights will bring immediate safety improvements to the 7.5-mile stretch within the city, protecting pedestrians, drivers and bicyclists.
Henderson is reimagining Boulder Highway with new bus lanes and a lower speed limit. The project is now well past its halfway point and is scheduled to be completed in August 2027.
Other work completed by the city of Henderson on their stretch of Boulder Highway to date includes:
- Installed more than 20,000 feet of underground storm drains to reduce flooding
- Upgraded traffic signal wiring at 17 intersections
- Placed more than 50,000 feet of conduit for streetlights
- Laid tens of thousands of square yards of asphalt for future transit lanes
- Built 7,800 square yards of red concrete bus stops to support reliable and accessible transit
- Relocated key utilities including water, electric, gas and communications lines
Clark County officials said they also plan on adding lighting at crosswalks along the stretch with the chain link fence in the middle of the road.
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