Spaghetti Bowl work progressing quickly

Work on the Spaghetti Bowl interchange of Interstate 15 and U.S. 95 could be complete early next spring, as much as six months ahead of schedule, Nevada Department of Transportation officials said Friday.

Work on the $93 million interchange overhaul started in December 1997 and was scheduled to take about 36 months to complete. However, work has raced ahead of the projected dates, already earning contractor Meadow Valley Contractors $875,000 in incentive bonuses.

Meadow Valley could garner another $900,000 if they finish the west-to-south bridge 120 days or more ahead of schedule, Bob McKenzie, NDOT public information officer, said.

The target date for completion of the westbound U.S. 95-to-southbound I-15 bridge is mid-July. Gus Michaels, assistant district engineer, said the work on the bridge could be finished as early as February and should be open to motorists in March or April.

A final major bridge should be finished sometime in the spring, said Tom Patton, Meadow Valley project manager.

"We're very pleased with the teamwork effort between Meadow Valley Contractors and the state of Nevada and all the subcontractors," Patton said.

NDOT's Michaels and McKenzie agreed.

"It'll just be a better interchange," Michaels said. "It'll be a benefit for everybody."

The old Spaghetti Bowl, constructed in the 1960s, was notorious for guiding frustrated drivers through bumper-to-bumper traffic between the valley's two largest highways. An estimated 300,000 vehicles per day use the busy interchange between I-15 and U.S. 95.

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