Project description
A team of landscape architects led an unprecedented effort to change how the State of Nevada addresses landscaping and aesthetics in their day-to-day planning decisions. The team’s mandate was to develop a Landscape & Aesthetics Corridor Plan for the State of Nevada that would guide all future decisions regarding the landscape and aesthetics of transportation projects within the state.

Nevada’s record levels of statewide growth stimulated the rapid development of safe and cost-effective highways. However, quick implementation has led to some costly retrofits after community organizations demanded a more active role in road improvement projects. The Governor of Nevada wanted to ensure these types of situations were eliminated. He believed the State needed to establish a program that would help them avoid similar mistakes in future transportation projects. Therefore, the Nevada Department of Transportation hired a team of landscape architects and engineers to develop a plan that directs the decisions and policies affecting the aesthetic quality of all Nevada’s highways.

Corridor Planning builds upon the Master Plan which set the policies, the process, the vision, and the mechanisms for the plan. Corridor Planning establishes a management tool that provides design guidance and priorities for future projects. It is a working document used to make day-to-day decisions for all aspects of transportation planning projects. NDOT established three high priority corridors (more than 700 linear miles) that include the major interstate highways and the largest population centers within the state:

• Interstate 15 Corridor: Interstate 15, I-215, and US-95 from the US-93 junction to the SR 157 junction.
• Interstate 80 Corridor: Interstate 80 and US-95 from Winnemucca to the Oregon border at McDermitt.