Las Vegas: Transportation

Approaching the City

Seemingly isolated in the middle of the desert, Las Vegas is, in fact, easily accessible. McCarran International Airport, located 5 miles south of the business district, is the 6th busiest airport in the United States; in 2005 the airport unveiled its new, $125 million expansion, an 11-gate wing that is expected to allow the airport to handle an addition 3.1 million passengers annually. Forty-four air carriers operate out of McCarran.

The city is served by three major highways. I-15 connects Las Vegas with Los Angeles and Salt Lake City. U.S. 95 leads into the city from the northwest and U.S. 93/95 enters from the southeast.

Amtrak Thruway provides bus service between Los Angeles, California, and Las Vegas. Greyhound provide bus service to and from nearby Las Vegas with connections throughout the west.

Traveling in the City

The streets of Las Vegas are laid out in a grid system. The primary north-south routes are Main Street and Las Vegas Boulevard—locally known as the "Strip"—which runs parallel to I-15. Main east-west thoroughfares are Flamingo Road, Tropicana Avenue, and Sahara Avenue. Within the city U.S. 95 is known as the Las Vegas Expressway.

Citizens Area Transit (CAT) operates 49 routes to points throughout the city and metropolitan area, with buses and trolleys serving the "Strip" every fifteen minutes. CAT services extend throughout Clark County, providing service to 150,000 riders each day with 305 buses that cover 49 routes. The Las Vegas Monorail runs along a four mile route along "the Strip," linking major resorts, hotels, attractions, and the convention center. Plans to extend the route to downtown were being discussed in 2005.