Arizona tourists are an important piece of the Las Vegas economic puzzle, motoring here 3.5 million times in 2011. Phoenix Magazine describes the existing commute as a "cumbersome, 285-mile drive, with [a] halting, stop-and-go leg in Sun City and pokey interludes through Wickenburg and Kingman."
However, as much as two hours could be shaved off that long haul if the federal government builds a proposed Interstate 11, beginning in Casa Grande, just southeast of Phoenix, and funneling Arizonans into Las Vegas by way of the Mike O’Callaghan-Pat Tillman Bridge that bypasses Hoover Dam. An additional detour would sweep around Boulder City to the south, right past the Railroad Pass Casino, connecting with the 515, which roughly parallels old Boulder Highway. One of the ideas being contemplated is making the Hoover Dam-to-Vegas leg a toll road, presumably for sparing one the considerable inconvenience of snaking through Boulder City itself.
Phoenicians would connect with I-11 in Buckeye, then travel northwestward over a supersized version of the existing Route 93, which is clotted with traffic lights and intersections. Sports mogul and developer Jerry Colangelo is a big I-11 backer and no wonder: The Buckeye leg of I-11 will bisect his Douglas Ranch real estate development, putting many potential customers at his front door. Another proponent, the I-11 Coalition, touts the route’s potential to link at least four other interstate routes, effectively creating a north-south interstate spanning the U.S. from the Canadian to Mexican borders: the "Canamex corridor," an idea that’s been kicking around since 1995.
But red tape and questionable priorities in Washington, D.C., could keep I-11 on ice for years, possibly until 2032. Enabling legislation was passed this year – but no funding was allocated. Two years of preliminary study are also required, rights of way will have to be purchased, and so forth. Sierra Club litigation is also expected, since I-11 will plow through land primarily inhabited by desert bighorn sheep. In circumventing Boulder City, the route would also run along two big parcels of Bureau of Reclamation Land (i.e., hazmat sites), ergo the need for a preliminary study. But if and when I-11 is built, it opens the possibility of finally connecting Vegas and Reno by interstate highway, too.
So, for the near term, you’ll have to resign yourself to balky, six-hour slogs up to Vegas. That will be music to Arizona casino owners (various Native American tribes, in this case), who will continue to enjoy that much more of a competitive advantage over their Strip brethren far to the north.
