Collisions Triple Along the Road to Las Vegas

Traffic accidents along a busy stretch of Interstate 15 in the high desert have been on the rise since a freeway construction project began last year, making trips to Las Vegas during the upcoming Memorial Day weekend a greater gamble for Southern California motorists.

Since work began in April 2002 to widen Interstate 15 between Victorville and Barstow, the number of accidents has grown steadily, with collisions more than tripling on some stretches of the desert freeway, according to the California Highway Patrol.

Crews have lined most of the 26-mile construction zone with heavy concrete barriers that, in some locations, are only inches from fast-moving traffic. Caltrans officials say the narrower shoulder and median space may have contributed to an increase in accidents by reducing the space motorists need to avoid slow or stalled vehicles.

Still, state Department of Transportation officials and CHP officers blame much of the increase on reckless drivers who fail to slow down in the construction zone.

Caltrans has lowered the speed limit from 70 mph to 60 mph through the construction area, but CHP officers say they routinely cite motorists for speeding at more than 100 mph on that stretch.

“Any way you slice it, it’s driver error,” said CHP Officer Adam Cortines, who patrols the interstate from Barstow to the Nevada line.

CHP officials believe excessive speed may have caused an accident on I-15 in March that injured about 100 passengers when a tourist bus heading from Las Vegas to Los Angeles collided with another bus that had stopped in the construction zone traffic. Dazed and bloody passengers crawled or were pulled from the wreckage. Forty-six of the injured were hospitalized.

Motorists who regularly take Interstate 15 to Las Vegas say the construction makes the trip a bit more harrowing.

“The barriers are too close to the road,” said Louis Aguilar, a Los Angeles resident who was headed for Las Vegas with his family on a recent Friday. “It’s too scary,” he added as he gassed up his red Mustang at a station near Barstow.

David Sigler, a Long Beach resident who recently spent a few days in Las Vegas, said he slowed down through the construction zone but still noticed many motorists driving at least 85 mph.

“If you want to lower the accident rates, you need to do more police enforcement,” he said.

CHP to Increase Patrols

Anticipating a rise in traffic to Las Vegas during Memorial Day weekend, the CHP plans to increase patrols along the interstate to crack down on speeding, drunk driving and other violations.

In the five-month period after construction started, collisions there jumped by 35% to 50 accidents per month, from an average of 37 per month during the same period the previous year, according to the CHP. Injury and fatality rates remained relatively stable, suggesting that the additional accidents were mostly minor. On the entire stretch of Interstate 15 from Victorville to the Nevada border, CHP statistics show an increase in traffic accidents of nearly 40% in the 12 months since construction began. Fatality rates have not grown significantly but injury rates have nearly doubled, according to the CHP.

The $120-million widening project -- adding a lane in each direction -- was designed to accommodate traffic volume on I-15 that has tripled since 1972. Caltrans engineers predict volume will double again -- to 100,000 average daily trips -- by 2025.

The growing traffic is attributed to the skyrocketing popularity of Las Vegas as a holiday destination. Nevada’s gambling mecca has been among the top five travel destinations for Southern Californians for several years, according to the Auto Club of Southern California.

With gasoline prices declining, Las Vegas may be an especially tempting destination over Memorial Day weekend.

“Motorists should plan to expect some delays,” said Jeff Spring, a spokesman for the Auto Club. “Road trips to Las Vegas are arduous as it is.”

The new southbound lane is expected to open in January, and the new northbound lane about 12 months later.

Work crews close one lane in each direction as construction continues six nights a week. But Caltrans plans to keep those lanes open during the Memorial Day weekend.

Caltrans officials concede they may have to consider still another I-15 expansion in 10 to 15 years if traffic volume continues to grow at the current rate, said department spokeswoman Rose Melgoza.

Traffic Volume Grows

Part of the increase in accidents could be due to the growing volume. In November, Caltrans completed a 14-mile stretch of the Foothill Freeway between La Verne and Rancho Cucamonga, giving Southern Californians another link to Interstate 15. Caltrans officials have yet to analyze traffic volume numbers for I-15 since the Foothill Freeway was extended.

However, even before that, CHP crash statistics show accidents began to increase gradually after the I-15 construction project north of Victorville began in April 2002. Speed has been a persistent problem on Interstate 15 between Victorville and the Nevada line, a mostly straight stretch that cuts through the Mojave Desert, according to Caltrans officials.

The road can been especially dangerous when the traffic includes big-rig trucks hauling goods in and out of Southern California, tourists in unwieldy motor homes and young Southern Californians trying to make a quick weekend trip to Las Vegas with little sleep and little patience for slower traffic, CHP officials said.

“Some people slow down and some don’t care,” said CHP Officer Bob Scranton, who patrols I-15 near Victorville.