2 The Region Today. Growth. Meeting Transportation Objectives

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1 2 The Region Today Growth Las Vegas continues to be one of the fastest growing urbanized areas in the country. Gaming, proximity to natural scenic attractions, a favorable climate, and direct access by air and ground all combine to make Las Vegas a unique place to live and visit. Figure 2-1 displays population and employment history from 1990 through 2007 and projects population through The downturn between 2001 and 2003 was a function of the events of September 11, 2001 and the subsequent slowing down of the national economy. Since then, employment and population growth recovered. It is expected that the downturn in the national economy will be reflected in local growth through the end of 2008, when the planned opening of new hotel/casinos will provide new employment. Figure 2-1: Employment and Population Growth One measure of the impact that land use has upon congestion is the relationship between the locations of jobs and housing. Where there are an adequate number of homes near each employment center, more people will choose to live close to work or work near where they live. Figure 2-2 maps the Traffic Analysis Zones (TAZs) within the Las Vegas Valley that display a balance between jobs and housing. Meeting Transportation Objectives Throughout this chapter, there will be text boxes indicating which of our discussions and efforts are meeting transportation objectives. These objectives are linked to the goals discussed in the previous chapter of the RTP. For more detail on the objectives, please see Chapter 4 of the RTP. Figure 2-2: Jobs-Housing Balance As can be seen in Figure 2-2, there are some areas displaying such a balance. Also of note are the areas that are a mixture of the TAZs where housing or employment predominates. These include the Valley s older areas east and west of the Strip, residential areas adjacent to the St. Rose Parkway/ Lake Mead corridor, I-15 west of Nellis Air Force Base, and US 95 in the northwest. Communities in the fringes of the Las Vegas Valley are not as significant to mention as older communities closer to the Strip. This is because residential development in these communities precedes the development of any employment uses. REGIONAL TRANSPORTATION PLAN

2 Figure 2-3: Employment Density Figure 2-3 displays employment density. Downtown Las Vegas and the Strip are the highest concentrations of employment in the Valley. Laughlin, Nevada, and Bullhead City, Arizona, is a complementary pair of communities with Bullhead City providing about 72 percent of Laughlin s 12,000 employees. Land Use Changes As shown in Figure 2-4, growth in the Las Vegas Valley continues to expand outward from the older areas in the Las Vegas Valley. These figures assume the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Disposal Boundary will not change; even though it was expanded in 2002 after its original adoption with the Southern Nevada Public Lands Management Act (SNPLMA) of The BLM Disposal Boundary helps keep the growth within the urbanized area, but it can be expanded if development pattens change. The highest levels of new development are occurring in the northwest, north, southwest, and south parts of the Valley. The northwest and southwest are continuations of growth trends begun in the late 1990 s. 14 REGIONAL TRANSPORTATION COMMISSION OF SOUTHERN NEVADA

3 Figure 2-4: Valley Development, REGIONAL TRANSPORTATION PLAN

4 With this dramatic growth has come less urban sprawl than expected. Perhaps this is due to the BLM Disposal Boundary, with the valley s population density was almost 4,600 people per square mile in From surveying the land ownership patterns in Clark County, it is clear that several areas could become important suburban communities for the Las Vegas Valley. They include: w Pahrump to the west of the Las Vegas Valley in Nye County. w Mesquite at the northeast corner of Clark County and Glendale, Overton, and Logandale off of I-15 in the Moapa Valley northeast of the Las Vegas Valley. w Coyote Springs on the Lincoln County line northeast of the Las Vegas Valley. w Searchlight and Cal-Nev-Ari between Boulder City and Laughlin. w Sandy Valley, Hidden Valley, and the area east of Jean off of I-15 between the Las Vegas Valley and the California state line. Northeastern Arizona could also be developed for residential purposes and residents could travel to employment areas across Clark County. Collectively, the existing and proposed communities surrounding the Las Vegas Valley are already approved for residential development that could accommodate almost a million people. Whether these communities actually grow to these levels will depend on housing costs relative to those in the Valley and the ability of their developers to provide water and infrastructure components. Figure 2-5: Visitors Tourism Figure 2-5 displays growth in visitor volumes which have grown every year except for 2001 following the September 11 th terrorist attacks when volumes dropped 2.3 percent. The number of visitors is remaining constant in 2008, so it is likely to remain at 39 million. Room occupancy was just under 90 percent in early In addition to the visitor volume that is a part of the airport traffic reviewed below, tourists also arrive in Las Vegas by car. Traffic arriving from California on I-15 has increased 37 percent over the last decade from an average 29,530 vehicles per day in 1996 to an average 40,383 vehicles per day in The fact that most congested days are Friday and Sunday is an indication that much of this traffic is tourism related. 16 REGIONAL TRANSPORTATION COMMISSION OF SOUTHERN NEVADA

5 Airports There are 11 existing airports and one planned airport in Clark County. In addition to McCarran International Airport, Henderson Executive, Jean Sport Aviation, Mesquite, Perkins Field (in Overton), and North Las Vegas Airports are operated by Clark County. Henderson Executive and North Las Vegas are considered reliever airports to Mc- Carran and offer staffed air traffic control facilities. General aviation is accommodated at Boulder City Municipal and Mesquite airports; however no air traffic control facilities are available. The proposed Ivanpah Airport is to be located between Jean and the California state line and will accommodate some McCarran traffic by This new airport will be a large-scale airport serving scheduled passenger and a minor amount of freight traffic. Figure 2-6 displays annual passenger counts at McCarran International Airport, the sixth busiest airport in the nation. Ivanpah s location adjacent to I-15 can be expected to generate additional traffic on what is already a congested roadway. Studies are underway to determine the optimal method of conveying airport and peak period traffic to and from Las Vegas. Figure 2-6: McCarran International Airport Passengers Surface Transportation Data Rapid population and employment growth has resulted in increased travel demand and traffic congestion in the Las Vegas area putting pressure on the roadway infrastructures. Each day more than 100 cars are added to the roadways. Total daily miles traveled on the roadway network has increased from 12 million in 1990 to over 33 million miles projected for Roadway Capacity and Systems Vehicular travel accounts for approximately 90 percent of all trips made on roadways in Southern Nevada. I-15 runs through the heart of the Las Vegas Valley connecting Las Vegas with the rest of the nation. I-15 northeast of the Valley connects Las Vegas with Salt Lake City and I-15 southwest of the Valley leads to Los Angeles. I-15 and US 95/93 Interchange, known as the Spaghetti Bowl, is the major transitional point for travelers and commuters. The traffic on I-15 is mixed with inbound and outbound truck traffic and parallels the Strip, adding to the congestion. REGIONAL TRANSPORTATION PLAN

6 What is Level of Service (LOS) LOS is the means of describing the level of roadway congestion. LOS is represented by the letters A through F, with A generally representing free flowing traffic movements and F bumper-to-bumper traffic. US 95 connects with Reno and the northwest areas of the county. It joins with US 93 at I-15, traveling to just west of Boulder City. Then, it turns south and proceeds to the California border. Apart from the regular traffic, this corridor is heavily used by local and through truck traffic. During peak periods the segments flowing into the curve at Rainbow Boulevard and into the Spaghetti Bowl are particularly congested. The High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) lane running between Lake Mead Boulevard and Valley View Boulevard relieved some of this congestion when it opened in late Congestion Management - FAST The Freeway and Arterial System of Transportation (FAST) system is a multi-jurisdictional integrated traffic management system that streamlines the efficiency of metropolitan area traffic operations. FAST functions include providing information for travelers and incident management. FAST has expanded its Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) deployed corridors that include closed-circuit television cameras; dynamic message signs; nonintrusive performance monitoring devices that detect vehicle volume, speed and occupancy; ramp meters at 17 freeway entrances; a Highway Advisory Radio system; and an upgraded distributed traffic signal system. Figure 2-8 display the location of coordinated signals, ramp meters and dynamic message boards. The corridor signal synchronization system is US 93 connects north central Clark County with Henderson and Boulder City via the Las Vegas Valley. It joins I-15 north of the Valley, traveling to US 95 at its junction with I-15. US 93 and US 95 are coincidental from the Spaghetti Bowl through Henderson, splitting west of Boulder City. Figure 2-7 displays freeways, major streets and roadway congestion in the Las Vegas Valley. The arterial road system evolved from the Public Land Survey System grid which divides most western states into square miles. These roads are supplemented by other roads that began as connectors to outlying communities, including Las Vegas Boulevard. Las Vegas Boulevard is also designated a Scenic Byway between Sahara Avenue on the North and Russell Road on the South. According to the Texas Transportation Institute, travel times during the peak (or rush hour) periods have remained constant in recent years. This means that the RTC has been successful in terms of reducing the rate of traffic congestion. Several congestion management strategies have contributed to this result. Figure 2-7: Roadway System and Congestion, REGIONAL TRANSPORTATION COMMISSION OF SOUTHERN NEVADA

7 What are peak and off-peak travel times? Many motorists travel during peak travel times in the early morning and late afternoon hours This is around time people travel to and from work. Most other hours of a weekday are considered off-peak travel times. designed to monitor and control more than 1,000 signals at the busiest intersections in the city. The 20 dynamic message signs provide drivers with information about roadway conditions and travel times. The 75 closed-circuit television cameras are linked into RTC s website, so that travelers may view freeway and some major arterial conditions in real time. FAST is linked to the 511 System, a real time source of information on roadway maintenance, construction, weather, and incidents that the general public can access by phone or internet. NDOT and FAST operate a Freeway Service Patrol, which provides free roadside assistance to disabled vehicles and after accidents. In 2006, they provided assistance some 43,442 times. Congestion Management Meets Objectives: 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 2.1, 2.3, 3.1, 3.2, 3.3, 3.4, 3.6, & 5.2. Figure 2-8: FAST Facilities Congestion Management Club Ride Club Ride Commuter Services is a trip reduction program that includes a computerized ride matching system and an incentive plan to reward commuter vehicle trips. It is accomplished by encouraging commuters to use transit, carpools, vanpools, and to bike and walk. Elements of the Club Ride program include: w Computerized Rideshare Matching, w Vanpool Incentive Program, w Transportation Coordinator Training and Network of Southern Nevada, w Monthly and Quarterly Prize Drawings, w Emergency Rides Home, and w Best Workplaces for Commuters designation through the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). REGIONAL TRANSPORTATION PLAN

8 Telecommuting and alternative work schedules are also employer-based strategies. By 2006, almost 90 percent of all rideshare registrants were from worksites that have partnered with the Club Ride program. Employers are eligible to subsidize or to allow their employees to pre-tax income up to $105 per month for transit or vanpool fares. In addition to their work site, commuters may register on the internet or at an outreach event. Any commuter in Southern Nevada may obtain a match list of those who live in their neighborhoods and work along the route. RTC has completed studies of the potential for park and ride locations throughout the region and of strategies for public/private partnerships for facilities development. The purpose is either to capture commuters as they enter the Valley, begin their commute or to provide centralized transfer locations. Several other shared sites are identified. Public Transportation All RTC Transit services are operated under competitive contracts with private operating companies. Fixed route bus service in the Las Vegas Valley is provided by the RTC under the previous name of Citizens Area Transit and is now called RTC Transit. Bus rapid transit, in its own roadway lane, began as the Metropolitan Area Express (MAX). New services will be called ACE to complement services provided with the double decker bus called the Deuce. The system operates with a fleet of 339 buses, 10 MAX transit vehicles, 90 Deuces, and 167 paratransit vans. All fixed route, MAX, Deuce, and paratransit vehicles meet the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) accessibility standards. Purchases planned through April 2009 include 50 RTC Transit vehicles, 50 MAX/ACE vehicles, and 40 Deuce vehicles. Valley, including Boulder City. Paratransit service is a shared-ride, door-to-door program for those certified eligible through a personal functional assessment. Paratransit provides 70,000 to 80,000 rides each month. There are about 10,000 certified clients. Transit planners generally agree that people are willing to walk one quarter mile, the equivalent of two blocks, to access transit service. Figure 2-9 displays areas in the Las Vegas Valley that are within one-quarter mile of fixed route transit service. About 63 percent of Clark County residents live within about two blocks of transit service. The RTC Transit system provides a network of 37 regular service bus routes, the double decker Deuce serving the Strip, and the MAX route runs on North Las Vegas Boulevard, supplemented by 13 neighborhood routes catering to the needs of senior citizens. Fifteen routes provide 24-hour service, while most of the other regular service RTC also contracts to provide paratransit services for the disabled, several infrequently scheduled routes, and an on-call service targeted to the elderly. Paratransit services are provided within the urbanized area of the Las Vegas Figure 2-9: Area within ¼ Mile of an RTC Transit Route 20 REGIONAL TRANSPORTATION COMMISSION OF SOUTHERN NEVADA

9 the downtown area, while the other goes to different senior-oriented locations each day of the week. Figure 2-10: Silver STAR Routes routes operate over a seventeen to twenty hour day, seven days a week. The system carried almost 64 million passengers in 2007, which is almost a five percent increase over There are two Non-ADA services available in the Las Vegas Valley. The Flexible Demand Response (FDR) system specializes in subscription trips for disabled and non-disabled seniors traveling to social service agencies. Meanwhile, the Silver STAR transit routes are community fixed routes developed for the transportation needs of senior citizens. So far, both services are carrying close to 22,000 passengers. Both services connect with regular RTC Transit fixed routes. (See Figure 2-10). The Southern Nevada Transit Coalition (SNTC) operates daily service via the Silver Rider Transit System in Laughlin, Mesquite, and Bunkerville. Service into the Las Vegas Valley runs several times per month, depending on the route. It includes stops at the Downtown Transportation Center (DTC) and the South Strip Transfer Terminal (SSTT), so passengers can use the RTC Transit system. In 2007, the Laughlin service saw ridership of more than 400,000, while Mesquite saw almost 75,000. SNTC senior services riders totaled 6,500 for the first year of Laughlin service and 10,700 in 2007 for Mesquite. SNTC is working to start bus service from Pahrump in Nye County to Las Vegas and senior service in Sandy Valley and Goodsprings. Private Transportation Services Taxis are a key mode of travel for visitors. Taxi trips have grown at varying rates and, as displayed in Figure 2-11, very consistently with the growth in tourism. Taxis have become more popular since 1990, growing from 0.46 trips per visitor to 0.67 trips per visitor in The private Las Vegas Monorail Company owns the monorail that operates from Sahara Avenue through the Convention Center to Tropicana Avenue in a corridor east of the Las Vegas Strip. The Company is responsible for the design and construction management of the system. The City of Las Vegas Transportation Services Division operates two public bus routes: one in Public Transit Meets Objectives: 1.1, 1.4, 2.3, 2.4, 2.6, 3.4, 4.1, 4.3, & 5.2. Figure 2-11: Taxi Trips and Visitors REGIONAL TRANSPORTATION PLAN

10 Bell Trans, a private company, runs four trolley routes on the Strip, South Strip, Downtown, and East. The trolley, a bus with a trolley-like shell, runs at 15-minute intervals on the Strip and 30-minutes elsewhere. Fare is $2.50 one way or $6.50 for a day pass. The major hotel/casinos along Las Vegas Strip and in downtown Las Vegas provide shuttle service for its patrons to McCarran Airport. Local casinos often provide shuttle service for senior residences in order for their residents to patron these casinos. There are various private companies that serve the Las Vegas Valley with limousine and shuttle bus service, often advertising their services online in various Vegas tourism websites. In addition to the public transportation and paratransit service providers, seniors and the disabled may also use transportation services offered by more than 50 non-profit and for-profit services operating in Clark County. Many of these organizations use federal funding from agencies other than the US Department of Transportation to provide or arrange for transportation services for their clients. The Coordinated Public Transit-Human Services Transportation Plan (found in the appendices) defines service gaps and overlaps and encourages development of cooperative programs that will use federal resources more effectively Bicycle and Pedestrian Trips The RTC is working to improve conditions for bicyclists and pedestrians, encouraging them to become an integral part of the transportation mix. In 1995, RTC Street Standards were revised to require that all RTC funded roadways include a minimum 14-foot wide curb lane (not including the gutter). The standard was revised so that bicycles could use the outside edge of the right lane. However, there are streets that do not have marked or signed bike facilities, yet are considered bicycle travel compatible. Because of this, the RTC has installed about 1,200 of the Share the Road signs pictured in Figure There are now standards for adopted bicycle routes meeting the shared use travel facility standard. Bicycle & Pedestrian Trips Meet Objectives: 1.6, 3.4, & 7.4. Figure 2-12: Share the Road Sign 22 REGIONAL TRANSPORTATION COMMISSION OF SOUTHERN NEVADA

11 Bicycle Facility Expansion The 2004 Alternative Mode Master Plan Study involved the RTC s member entities, NDOT, the Nevada Office of Traffic Safety, and the Safe Kids/Safe Communities Partnership. The study established a series of goals and objectives designed to: w Identify facility alignments, w Assure coordination, w Define procedures for facility modification, and w Create a process for continuing coordination. Several key accomplishments resulted from the master plan study. The first was the adoption of 690 miles of bike lanes, 390 miles of bike routes, and 760 miles of off-street shared use trails, making Las Vegas first in the US miles of planned facilities (Thunderhead Alliance, Benchmarking Study, 2007). Most important, however, is the fact that the cycling system comprised of lanes, routes, and shared use paths, providing cyclists with a comprehensive network for access to practically every destination in the Las Vegas Valley. (See Figure 2-13.) Besides the implementation of bike facilities and shared use trails, new street standards were established that widened the overall right-of-way by 10 feet and the sidewalk by four feet, and created a 2-foot dry utility corridor buffer between auto and foot travel. Finally, the group recommended that the cycling facility be a bike lane. See the RTC s website, for a complete set of specifications and standard drawings. The RTC developed an interactive web-based application for its website allowing users to view bike facilities in relation to roadways. Since 1997, when the RTC installed bike carriers on all of the RTC Transit buses, there has been a steady increase in passengers riding their bikes to the bus as displayed on Figure The monthly average of bicycles on buses has increased from 43,304 in 2004 to 54,872 in About one percent of passengers access the bus by bicycle. Figure 2-13: On- and Off-Street Bicycle Facilities Figure 2-14: Bikes on Buses REGIONAL TRANSPORTATION PLAN

12 Freight Air, rail, and truck modes and a pipeline each have a role in moving freight. With intermodal rail being the exception, rail tends to carry the higher bulk, lower value cargo. Trucks tend to carry higher bulk, higher value cargo, including industrial goods, components, and merchandise. High value, small shipments requiring expedited delivery tend to be sent by air. Liquid fuel is shipped through a pipeline that is accessed at a terminal near Range Road and Las Vegas Boulevard North in the northwest part of the Valley. Air freight activity in Southern Nevada is almost entirely through McCarran International Airport, with the North Las Vegas share less than 1 percent. McCarran cargo traffic has grown 30 percent from 1997 to There are two intermodal (rail and truck) freight corridors running through Southern Nevada: the CANada MEXico Corridor (CANAMEX) and the Economic Lifeline Corridor. The Economic Lifeline Corridor, newly identified as a Corridor of the Future, between Los Angeles and Salt Lake City, includes I-15 and the Union Pacific Railroad (UPRR). The CANAMEX includes US 93, I-515, and I-15. As displayed on Figure 2-15, Tropicana Avenue and Rainbow Boulevard are additional National Highway System (NHS) corridors as is the McCarran International Airport Connector between the Airport and I-215. Although there are an estimated 10,000 truck freight movements per day in the Las Vegas region, this represents only 6 percent of average daily traffic on I-15 and I-515 and about 7 percent of average daily traffic on US 93 and US 95. I-15 and US 93 account for over 90 percent of the total truck volume traversing the regional boundary. I-15 carries an estimated 6,500 trucks daily at the southwest entry to the Las Vegas region and approximately 2,800 trucks daily at its northeast edge. US 95 freight volumes are estimated at 600 trucks daily at the southeastern edge of the region and 500 trucks daily at the northwestern boundary. Southern Nevada is served by the Union Pacific Railroad (UPRR). As displayed on Figure 2-15, the mainline generally follows I-15 from the California line through the Las Vegas Valley. The main line connects Los Angeles-Long Beach with Salt Lake City and the UPRR transcontinental line to eastern destinations. The Arden rail yard near Blue Diamond Road and South Jones Boulevard is the only operational yard used for general purposes. There is another yard northwest of the Valley, near Range Road and I-15 in North Las Vegas that serves nearby industrial facilities. A third facility near the intersection of CC 215 and I-515/US 93/95 in Henderson serves a private industrial park. When passenger rail service was provided on UPRR tracks, there was an Amtrak station on Main Street near Ogden Avenue. Intermodal passenger service is now provided by Greyhound Bus at its terminal on Main Street north of Bridger Avenue. 24 REGIONAL TRANSPORTATION COMMISSION OF SOUTHERN NEVADA

13 Figure 2-15: National Highway System Facilities REGIONAL TRANSPORTATION PLAN

14 Figure 2-16: Current Train Volumes Compared to Current Train Capacity Figure 2-16 shows that the current 15 to 25 movements per day on the UPRR line through Las Vegas are well below capacity. Without improvement, traffic is expected to exceed capacity by Part of the Henderson Branch, within the UPRR right-of way and southeast of I-215, has been sold to the City of Henderson. UPRR retains the right to provide rail service and does so once each day. Safety Motorized Crash Data Fatalities in Nevada have been declining as a function of vehicle miles traveled. The rate peaked in 1996 at 2.99 fatalities per 100 million vehicle miles. By 2006, the rate had declined to 2.00 having risen from a low point of 1.71 in Seatbelt use has increased since 1998, 76 to 91 percent compared to the national average increase from 65 to 81 percent. While accidents involving people driving under the influence or not using seatbelts are declining as a proportion of all accidents, such accidents are most likely to be fatal (NDOT, Facts and Figures, 2007). Non-Motorized Crash Data A key component of the assessment of current conditions is the report of bike and pedestrian crash data. The Nevada Office of Traffic Safety is working with the Nevada Department of Transportation through the Safety Conscious Planning Effort, discussed as part of the Safety Element, to revise the procedures and update the technologies that are now being used to develop the crash reports. Additionally, the Transportation Research Center (TRC) at University of Nevada Las Vegas has been updating the techniques for crash reporting and has developed a continuing report on crash statistics. TRC also reports that pedestrian fatalities in Clark County have ranged from 33 percent in 2001 to 51 percent in Only one quarter of the pedestrians fatalities were at intersections, 29 percent of these pedestrians had been drinking, and more than half of the fatalities occurred at night. Crosswalks are not available at every major intersection, while subdivision communities are built primarily for vehicle travel and not pedestrian travel. Improved pedestrian circulation patterns could help to reduce pedestrian fatalities by providing more convenient places for people to cross the street. With 10 or fewer bicycle fatalities in Nevada each year, it is not possible to ascertain the factors most likely to contribute to these deaths. The fact that failure to yield by any vehicle is listed as the top contributing factor in 62.5 percent of bike fatalities as compared with a national rate of 21.5 percent does indicate that improved awareness of cyclists by motorists would improve bike safety. Safety Meets Objectives: 7.1, 7.2, & REGIONAL TRANSPORTATION COMMISSION OF SOUTHERN NEVADA

15 Other activities designed to improve safety and increase the amount of data available includes the following. w NDOT is leading a statewide effort to reduce crashes for all transportation options through engineering, enforcement, education and legislation. The RTC works with the State and other community partners to implement the effort. w The TRC is evaluating the effectiveness of a series of countermeasures in reducing pedestrian conflicts and crashes. w RTC has been part of the steering group which meets monthly to discuss the testing and general safety issues facing the Las Vegas Valley. w The RTC hosts a working group that includes representatives from each of the local entities, NDOT, Office of Traffic Safety of Nevada (NV Dept of Public Safety), UNLV TRC, Safe Community Partnership, and the BLM. The purpose of this group is to coordinate non-motorized travel activities, address safety issues, and remedy any problems associated with various entity Plans. Security The region has not been a target of any acts of terrorism by foreign or domestic terrorist groups. Nevertheless, RTC is planning for such eventualities, particularly for its transit system. The regional system includes multiple transit entities working in conjunction with local and state agencies. Intelligence, law enforcement bulletins and homeland security alerts are provided through a variety of resources. The agencies involved in this regional Security Meets Objectives: 8.2 & 8.3 effort known as the Southern Nevada Regional Transit Security Working Group (RTSWG) include: w Nevada Division of Emergency Management, Office of Domestic Preparedness, w Clark County Urban Area Working Group, w Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada, and the w Southern Nevada Transit Coalition. Clark County jurisdictions and public safety organizations have entered into several mutual aid agreements with neighboring jurisdictions. These compacts allow participating agencies to provide emergency services, supply material and equipment, and exchange information when a declared disaster occurs within the participating jurisdictions. A support agreement with the School District is pending. Emergency response within Clark County is ordinarily handled by the appropriate public safety agency(ies). When the nature or complexity of an incident requires additional support, the Office of Emergency Management will activate the Clark County Emergency Operations Center (EOC) or alternate EOC. The EOCs provide multiple communications systems and emergency power for long-term activation. RTC s primary role is to be the Transportation and Resource Coordinator responsible for providing support to field operations in evacuation services and transportation of critical resources and supplies. In addition to specific training and logistical and operations exercises, the RTC cooperates with first responders to provide security for the annual New Year s Eve celebrations on the Strip. Activities are coordinated at an off-site command center that is informed by cameras on the Strip and other communications. In September 2004, RTC officially launched its Transit Watch program, a public education campaign patterned after the successful Neighborhood Watch program. Transit Watch targets transit employees, passengers, and neighborhood residents with a call for active involvement in staying alert and working together to maintain a safe transit environment. REGIONAL TRANSPORTATION PLAN

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