Crews widening narrow sidewalks that Las Vegas councilman called safety concern

City sidewalks are getting wider along a stretch of Charleston Boulevard that a city councilman flagged last May as a safety issue.

Crews were working this week to widen sidewalks on the north side of Charleston Boulevard at Fourth Street and at Las Vegas Boulevard — one of the locations where Councilman Bob Coffin said the problem is most pronounced.

“Two people can’t walk side by side; it’s awful close to the road and you could fall into traffic,” he said.

Crews were widening the sidewalks around the existing traffic signal poles. The work was along the lines of the remedy Coffin proposed when he raised the issue at a May council meeting.

He called the sidewalk-widening efforts in his ward “a pretty good fix” but noted other areas that still need to be addressed.

At the northwest corner of Charleston and Las Vegas Boulevard, a traffic signal pole is roughly 20 inches from the property line, and the other side of Charleston offers even less sidewalk space between the pole and the street. Adult-sized wheelchairs are often 26 inches wide.

The city has an overall plan for sidewalks to bring them into compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act with priorities, but the city isn’t required to fix all the identified areas right away, city spokesman Jace Radke said.

Contact Jamie Munks at jmunks@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0340. Find @JamieMunksRJ on Twitter.