Speed limit drops to 50 mph on popular road to Red Rock

Cyclists have won another victory for their safety on state Route 159.

The speed limit on the well-traveled road, which leads to Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, has been lowered by the Nevada Department of Transportation to 50 mph, from 60 mph.

The impetus to lower the speed limit started with avid cyclist Zane Marshall, who petitioned state Sen. Shirley Breeden, D-Las Vegas.

"We believe 60 mph is too fast," Marshall said. Getting hit by a car going that speed leaves a cyclist with no chance of survival.

"At 50 mph you have at least some chance of surviving, Marshall said.

Marshall regularly cycles on state Route 159. He races with an amateur team and cycles between 100 and 200 miles a week, depending on if he's training for a race.

Breeden authored the bill that led to the speed limit change, though the law did not specifically suggest 50 mph. It gave authority to the director of the Nevada Department of Transportation to create a maximum speed that takes into consideration several factors, including the activity of bicycles and pedestrians and the history of crashes in the area.

Lowering the speed limit is only one of the steps taken by officials to make the road safer during Transportation director Susan Martinovich's tenure.

The road has always been favored by bicyclists and joggers. But with population growth in Pahrump and off nearby state Route 160, also known as Blue Diamond Road, there was a mass migration of traffic to Route 159 as an alternate route to and from Las Vegas.

As a result, Route 159 started gaining a lethal reputation.

One high-profile incident was the death of off-duty Las Vegas police officer Don Albietz, who was hit by a tractor-trailer in July 2005 while training for the bicycle portion of a triathlon.

The Transportation Department has already widened shoulders of the road to give cyclists more room, ordered big rigs to use alternate routes, erected fencing to keep wildlife off the road, and added more "Share the Road" signage.

"This road is getting a lot of attention and we're not going to stop studying it," Martinovich said. "I don't want to stop with what we have done. We will keep an eye out for hot spots," and see what improvements can be made, she said.

Martinovich was reluctant to include rumble strips as possible safety measures.

Many hard-core cyclists oppose them, Martinovich said.

Jim Little, vice president of the Las Vegas Valley Bicycle Club, explained that at the speeds some avid cyclists go -- about 30 mph -- hitting a rumble strip would cause cyclists to fall and likely be injured.

Marshall concurred. Rumble strips present a challenge because cyclists often have to quickly get out of the way of debris on the side of the road or pass other cyclists, Marshall said.

But not all cyclists oppose the idea. Jacob Snow, an avid cyclist and also the general manager of the Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada, said rumble strips could go a long way in preventing vehicles from drifting onto the side of the road.

"It would be a benefit out here," Snow said of rumble strips. "It would let drivers know when they were drifting into a bicycle lane."

Snow added that since the road was widened, he believes there's more than enough room for cyclists to pass other cyclists or avoid debris without crossing the white line that separates motorists from the bicycle lane.

Meanwhile, there will be more of a law enforcement presence on the road because of the speed limit change, said Trooper Kevin Honea of the Nevada Highway Patrol.

Motorists can expect a little bit of an educational period, Honea said. Initially a motorist caught driving 60 mph may only get a warning, he said.

But if a driver is caught doing 80 mph, "they're getting cited," Honea said.

Contact reporter Francis McCabe at fmccabe@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2904.