For those of you not aware of this, the brand new $240 million bypass bridge next to the Hoover Dam is opening to pedestrians this week!
Word has it they will be opening it to traffic shortly afterward to less fanfare.
This is almost a month before it was scheduled to be finished. Although I have not seen it up close, those who have say it is dam impressive!
Does this mean that when I go to Vegas and want to see Hoover Dam that traffic won’t be backed up two miles to get there?
It’s too bad I’ve already seen it.
Yep!
Not only that, but people from Arizona/Nevada will now be able to shave off a lot of time when they drive to and fro.
I think it would be hysterical if the bridge became a huge tourist attraction and people started driving over the dam to save time.
I’ve been thinking of starting a thread to ask if anyone has any old recollections of Hoover Dam. I’ve been there three times (once just driving across, once to take the tour, once more to take the really good tour that was sold out the previous time), but only in the last few years. I’ve seen old movies that were set there, and it seems like it wasn’t nearly as heavily visited. There’s an episode of The Rockford Files where Jim arranges a ransom payoff at the middle of the dam; it’s midday and the place is deserted.
The dam-top road will be closed to thru traffic.
I was in Vegas a few months ago and went to see the dam. The bridge is indeed impressive. Here are some pics of the dam and bridge in a state of near completion.
You know what the Hoover Dam needs? A roller coaster, the terrain would just be great for a roller coaster.
Oddly, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation does not return my e-mails anymore.
I would prefer a flume ride. Ends with one helluva drop.
Neat. I visited the Hoover Dam exactly a year ago and saw this bridge under construction. At the time the arch was complete but the road surface section was not there (I’ll see if I can post my photos in an anonymous fashion). It seems it went up pretty quickly after that.
I don’t think you’ll be able to drive on the dam once this is open, but I assume you can still park and walk over it? It is too bad, I enjoyed driving over the dam and being forced to slow to a crawl helps take it in, but I speak as a tourist and not a regular commuter!
Cool, thanks for sharing
I think it’ll be neat to be able to see the dam from that perspective, but I’m a little bummed-- the view from the dam top looking out that direction was a neat one (even with all the wires and such, I was struck by how pretty it was).
IIRC, he ends up chasing the bad guy all the way through the dam and down the stairs to the bottom. He finally catches up to him when they’re both too pooped to run anymore.
My Hoover Dam photos are available (http://s1097.photobucket.com/albums/g345/DriverEight/Hoover%20Dam%20and%20Route%2093%20Bridge/?start=all), showing construction of the bridge as of early October 2009. I’d be interested if anyone can explain how they build the arch in place.
That’s the one. There’s different levels of tours at the dam; the best one takes you through some of the same tunnels (at least, they look exactly the same).
Was Hoover Dam ever really like that, though? Could you just drive out to the middle and stop to conduct a ransom drop without backing up traffic in two states?
Gosh, I wish I had a reason/the money to go to Vegas.
Going to Vegas is damn near free nowadays-- I don’t even gamble, but I regularly get $20-$30 rooms at the Hardrock. You can fly into Vegas for next to nothing from most major hubs.
My point is: you may need a reason, maybe, but finances shouldn’t stop ya 
Usually, booze is the biggest expense, but you can get around that. Just sit down at a nickel poker or slot machine and let them bring you drinks. Once you get a good buzz on, you can get on the monorail and start having some fun.
If the dam is still open for tours, that’s worth doing.
Absolutely. And on top of that, many of the hotels (even the super cheap ones) are giving free, all day buffet passes with each room. So, really, Vegas can be done INSANELY cheap.
Depends… when we were thereabouts a couple months ago, the backup was because of the rather cursory security checkpoint.
Oh - and in fairness, the Glen Canyon Dam bridge would seem to be just as impressive (we saw that on the same trip).
