Despite crash reductions, Zero Fatalities still the goal

The stretch of Interstate 15 between St. Rose Parkway and Primm is one of the deadliest in the country, authorities say.

Whether in a rush to see the gleaming lights of Las Vegas or heading to California, drivers making the commute on I-15 seem to always be in a rush.

But drivers may want to slow down, because Nevada Highway Patrol troopers say they are done giving warnings.

“If there is a violation, you will get stopped,” said trooper Loy Hixson.

NHP’s Zero Fatalities campaign lowered car accidents on the St. Rose Parkway to Primm stretch of I-15 significantly in 2013 compared with 2012, Hixson said. There was a 62 percent reduction in crashes over that time.

But there is more work to be done. “Our numbers are still too high,” said Damon Hodge of the Nevada Department of Transportation. “Again, the goal is zero fatalities. That means no drinking, no texting and driving, and always keeping an eye out on the road.”

Despite the reduction in accidents, along with the 44 percent decrease in injury crashes, there were still five fatalities on the deadly stretch of freeway last year, the same total from 2012.

“We’re all working to try to game plan how to manage the roads when there is an accident,” Hodge said.

NDOT is one of several entities that are part of Traffic Incident Management, a coalition involving NHP, the Federal Highway Administration, Las Vegas police and the Department of Public Safety, among others.

One of the ways the group hopes to end roadway fatalities is an NDOT project, completed last year, that analyzes the speed and volume of traffic on Las Vegas freeways.

The information collected by underground computer chips, or ‘flow detectors,’ is fed back to the Freeway Arterial System of Transportation in Carson City.

From there, the Regional Transportation Commission updates digital boards on Clark County highways with accident information, as well as traffic wait times.

“It’s been a big success in terms of reducing accidents along the valley’s freeways,” Hodge said.

Hixson added that another reason for the decrease in accidents has been the digital boards that show the Zero Fatalities warnings, which sometimes display Nevada’s fatality statistics.

Troopers are also targeting the most dangerous stretch of the entire I-15: St. Rose Parkway to Primm, which sees an average 43,864 vehicles a day.

Most citations are given for speeding, and the high rate of speed isn’t worth the expensive ticket, Hixson said. He noted the amount of time saved is often not much when driving faster.

And with undercover troopers on the freeway armed with radar detectors, Hixson said drivers who are speeding will get pulled over.

Tickets for any moving violation start at $190. If drivers exceed the speed limit by 11 mph to 20 mph, the ticket increases to $310. If drivers are going faster than 21 mph over the speed limit, tickets can cost up to $400.

According to Hixson, 80 percent of those speeding drivers were California residents.

“We’d rather have them spend their money in the casinos instead of paying for tickets,” he said.

Hixson remained confident that Nevada can reach zero fatalities on its freeways.

“If we didn’t think it was realistic then we wouldn’t put the idea out there,” he said. “People have to remember that as soon as they leave their house, they have a family to return to.”

Contact reporter Steven Slivka at sslivka@reviewjournal.com. Follow @StevenSlivka on Twitter.