Great News: The North I-15 Is Almost Done!!!!

NDOT announced today that the northern part of the I-15 construction is almost done and the lanes will be opened on Christmas Eve. (What is it with Christmas Eve? Health care vote + the I-15 is fully opened. One horrible and one great news)
The construction finished almost 10 months AHEAD of schedule.
From the Las Vegas Sun: Consider it a Christmas gift — major construction on Interstate 15 north of the Spaghetti Bowl will be finished and all lanes and ramps will be open on Christmas Eve.
When ramps to and from Lake Mead Boulevard open Thursday, construction on the freeway will essentially be completed, and 10 months ahead of schedule, the Nevada Department of Transportation and project contractors announced on Tuesday.
The $240 million project to widen I-15 from the Spaghetti Bowl to Craig Road began Sept. 7, 2007, and wasn’t scheduled for completion until next fall.
The early completion is a result of the project being the first design-build project in the state, said Joseph Schroeder, the project manager for North Corridor Con
structors, a joint venture of contractors Las Vegas Paving and CH2M Hill.
http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2009/dec/23/i-15-construction-coming-close-early/

Gov. Jim Gibbons, love him or hate him, deserves credit for this project ending early as this was a State project.
Some work still needs to be done, which will happen when the weather warms up.
Now, if NDOT will turn on the metered traffic lights on the Cheyenne southbound on ramp, this will go a long way of eliminating traffic jams in the area.
Again, congratulations to NDOT, the construction workers and Gov. Jim Gibbons for getting this job done 10 months early. One question, did it save any money by finishing early. The article didn't say anything about this. Hopefully, all construction projects in Nevada will be like this.