About the Project
Ludian was commissioned by the City of Henderson to perform a study and analysis in relation to a busy corridor near their upcoming 6,000 person events arena. The study and analysis were used to determine what congestion mitigation and transit options were available and ultimately Ludian made recommendations on next steps.
The Challenge
With the success of Las Vegas’ relatively new NHL team, the Vegas Golden Knights, the City of Henderson was tasked with constructing an arena for a minor league hockey team. The decision was made to house the new arena along Green Valley Parkway, replacing an underutilized theater and pavilion.
The location of the arena posed multiple transit challenges as Green Valley Parkway was already a busy corridor with both commercial and residential use and close proximity to the I-215 on and off ramps. The area was also home to a major shopping outlet and casino.
In addition to the location, the projected itself was received negatively by the local residents who were sceptical that a new stadium would increase the level of traffic, cause long traffic queues and impact their daily routines.
Multiple infrastructure solutions were proposed by the City of Henderson to combat concerns and increased traffic such as increasing the number of lanes and building an underground tunnel. Ultimately, Ludian was brought in to assess the proposed solutions as well as provide additional options from a technology perspective.
Ludian’s Approach
Ludian, using data provided by the City of Henderson and the RTC, developed a high performing interactive model that captured current traffic patterns and ran different scenarios against the proposed infrastructural solutions. Taking into account the data collected and the expected cost of new infrastructure, Ludian used its experience in intelligent transportation to propose an alternative using adaptive signal technology.
Leveraging the data collected, Ludian was able to model that adaptive signal technology would be a more effective solution (both in cost and performance) and would decrease travel time and make the corridor run smoother during events and normal traffic flows.
The Outcome
While the location of the new events arena was still negatively viewed by the locals, the residents reacted positively to proposed install of adaptive systems. City of Henderson also reacted positively as the install of the technology would potentially reduce the cost of the project by millions due to eliminating the need for infrastructural changings to the current road network.
Taking into account that Ludian’s recommendation was received positively and that the proposed technology would reduce the drive time and cut down on carbon emissions, the City of Henderson are now involved in a pilot program with the adaptive signal technology.