County to get look at pedestrian bridge plans

Construction of two elevated walkways that should provide safety to pedestrians and restore sanity to motorists may finally begin in December, according to Clark County officials.

Preliminary plans for the $8 million project that includes bridges across Las Vegas Boulevard and Flamingo Road will be presented Tuesday morning to the Clark County Commission.

Bobby Shelton, public information officer for public works, said the bridge design is about 40 percent complete and should be finished by September. The design will match the footbridges being built by the Bellagio hotel-casino.

The bridge project has been tossed about since a proposal to build tunnels below Las Vegas Boulevard fell through more than three years ago.

While the Bellagio agreed to construct two bridges linking its property to Bally's and Caesar's Palace, the county plans to build the overcrossings from Caesar's to Barbary Coast and from Barbary Coast to Bally's.

The county will pay half the bill and Barbary Coast, Bally's and Caesar's Palace will pitch in to make up the difference.

The purpose of the project is to lift the swarms of tourists who are sometimes oblivious to motorists and traffic lights above the streets.

"Pedestrians have a false sense of security when they're walking between those white lines," Shelton said. "Motorists may be watching, and may be not. Pedestrians have to compete with vehicles and we want to eliminate that."

Shelton estimated that some 70,000 vehicles zip through the intersection and about 10,000 pedestrians walk through the intersection each day.

Once the massive Italian-themed Bellagio opens, those numbers are expected to skyrocket.

The format of the bridges is similar to those on the south end of the Strip at Tropicana and Las Vegas Boulevard. Shelton said since those overcrossings were built, twice the number of vehicles are able to pass through the intersection during each light cycle.

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