On Feb. 11, the Nevada Department of Transportation began shifting northbound lanes on U.S. 395 as part of ongoing highway improvements in the North Valleys area.
The lane shift is intended to facilitate continued construction on the outside widening of the Panther Valley and Virginia Street bridge structures. The department said that northbound lanes will be moved to inside, newly-widened bridge decks from north of Parr Boulevard to just south of Golden Valley Road, while southbound lanes will remain unchanged. According to the Nevada Department of Transportation, motorists are reminded to drive attentively and slow down in work zones, with increased daytime construction activity and intermittent nighttime ramp closures expected throughout the project area.
The current work is part of a multi-year effort to widen and repave approximately four miles of U.S. 395 between North McCarran Boulevard and Golden Valley Road. The newly-constructed bridges include more than 500,000 pounds of reinforcing steel and 3,300 cubic yards of concrete. Lane reductions are in place around the clock, with speeds reduced to 55 mph through the work zone. Additional overnight lane closures continue, reducing highway lanes between specified evening and morning hours in both directions, along with intermittent ramp closures and marked detours.
The project aims to enhance traffic mobility and safety by adding an additional southbound lane between North McCarran Boulevard and Golden Valley Road, constructing auxiliary merge lanes between freeway ramps in both directions, building a braided freeway ramp for smoother traffic flow on northbound U.S. 395, repaving both directions of the highway segment, installing five new sound walls and retaining walls, incorporating aesthetic elements such as native plantings and rock treatments, and adding paved shoulders up to twelve feet wide for improved incident management.
According to the official website, the Nevada Department of Transportation manages about 5,400 miles of highways and more than 1,000 bridges statewide. The agency promotes roadway safety through programs targeting zero fatalities and advances multimodal planning for aviation, public transit, freight, bicycle and pedestrian needs (…)
The department organizes operations through three districts in Las Vegas, Sparks and Elko (…)
It covers southern, northwest and northeast Nevada through its districts (…)
A seven-member board oversees its activities (…)
The department aims to provide a reliable transportation system that boosts safety, quality of life and economic growth,” according to the official website.
Major construction is scheduled through mid-2026. Drivers can sign up for text alerts by texting “NorthValleys” to 866-540-8466 or visit 395NorthValleys.com for updates.
