A look at the new freeway

By 2007, officials expect, the view of Carson City will be altered by almost 9 miles of freeway.

When completed, the state capital will have a six-lane freeway extending from Lakeview Hill in north Carson to the Spooner Summit Junction in south Carson.

Here is the latest map provided by the Nevada Department of Transportation showing the general layout of how the freeway traverses Carson City.

The first leg of the freeway is 3.8 miles extending from Lakeview Hill to Highway 50 East. The costs for this portion of the project have climbed to about $120 million.

The project was split into two phases to expedite the work. NDOT is expected to award the bid for Phase 1A within the month.

Phase 1A was estimated at $15.8 million, but bids came in the $14 million range. Construction is expected to start on Phase 1A in late March or early April. Phase IA of the project includes the construction of bridges over College Parkway, Emerson Drive, Northgate Lane and Arrowhead Drive.

Phase 1B fills in the freeway between the bridges and includes bridges over Highway 395 North and Carmine Street. The design for Phase 1B is about 30 percent complete and new designs like roundabouts on Arrowhead Drive will be heading to public review meetings Feb. 15.

Bids for the $80 million Phase 1B of the freeway's northern leg should be posted in February 2001.

The first phase of the freeway also includes almost $6 million of drainage work that will be the first step in the implementation of the city's storm drainage plan.

The drainage system will be an extensive construction of several water detention basins, channels and drains. Without the drainage system, the freeway would act as a dam keeping water from the Carson River.

The freeway's five-mile southern leg extends from Highway 50 east to the Spooner Summit Junction. The second leg has an estimated $160 million price tag, and as of yet, no funding, but NDOT officials have said they have no intention of building half of a freeway. Construction is expected to begin on the southern leg in 2004 and to finish in 2007.

Shown on this map is the reconfigured southern interchange, where the freeway extends to Highway 50 and Spooner Summit. The previous design had the freeway bending toward Carson Valley along Highway 395, with exit ramps to Spooner Summit.