The scope
12.5 miles, $378 million
A bus-rapid-transit corridor down Maryland Parkway, with about $149.9 million in federal funding, from the Medical District to the airport.23
Clark County . The Issues . Getting Around
Getting around the east valley.
The roads you drive, the bus you ride, the crossings you cross, and the airport next door are all shaped at the county level. The biggest transit project in a generation is being built down the spine of this district right now.
Every figure below is tied to the Regional Transportation Commission, the county Department of Aviation, the state, or official traffic-safety data. This is the most physical, most felt set of issues a commissioner touches. Here is the road money, the Maryland Parkway project, the pedestrian-safety reality, and the airport that anchors the east valley economy.
$378M
Maryland Parkway transit project, through this district23
97
Clark County pedestrian deaths in 20246
58.4M
Record airport passengers in 20247
$1B+
Local road dollars raised by fuel-tax indexing4
Scroll to begin
I . The Lever
Roads and transit run through the county.
Two of the biggest transportation institutions in Southern Nevada answer, in part, to the county seat.
The Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada runs both the valley's public transit and a large share of regional road funding and planning. Its governing board is made of elected officials, including two members of the Clark County Commission.1 Separately, the airport is operated by the Clark County Department of Aviation, a county department overseen by the Commission.9 So the seat on this ballot reaches the bus, the road money, and the airport.
That matters in the east valley more than almost anywhere, because this district carries the corridors people actually rely on, dense arterials, heavy transit ridership, and the airport at its southern edge. A commissioner who shows up at the regional table can fight for the east valley's share rather than letting the resort corridor absorb the attention.
Transit and roads
The Regional Transportation Commission runs valley transit and regional road funding; two county commissioners sit on its board.1
The airport
Harry Reid International Airport is run by the Clark County Department of Aviation, overseen by the Commission.9
Why the east valley
The district's arterials and transit lines, and the airport at its edge, make this a transportation-heavy seat.1
II . The Project
Maryland Parkway is happening right now.
The single largest transit investment touching District E is under construction down its spine today.
The Maryland Parkway Bus Rapid Transit project is a roughly $378 million investment, including a $149.9 million federal grant, running about 12.5 miles along Maryland Parkway from the Medical District in the north to Harry Reid International Airport in the south, passing UNLV and the Boulevard Mall along the way.23 It adds dedicated and shared bus-and-bike lanes, about 42 new and enhanced shelters for shade, and a fleet of 15 hydrogen fuel cell articulated buses.3
It broke ground in August 2024 and is reaching substantial completion through 2026, with the city portion finishing first.3 The payoff is a faster, more reliable ride along the corridor and safer, shaded stops, but residents and small businesses are living with construction now. A commissioner's job is to hold the agency accountable for finishing on time, minimizing disruption to east-valley businesses, and making sure the new crossings genuinely improve safety.
The route
Through the heart of the district
It runs past UNLV and the Boulevard Mall and ends at Harry Reid International Airport, the spine of the east valley.3
The build
15 hydrogen buses, 42 shelters
A fleet of 15 hydrogen fuel cell articulated buses, with about 42 new and enhanced shaded shelters. Groundbreaking was August 2024.3
III . The Road Money
How the roads get paid for.
The steady local money that repaves arterials and fixes intersections comes from a fuel-tax mechanism the county controls.
Much of the valley's local road work is funded through Fuel Revenue Indexing, a county fuel tax that adjusts with inflation so road funding keeps pace with costs. In November 2025, the County Commission approved a 10-year extension of the program, which was otherwise set to lapse.45 Since it began, the indexing has generated over $1 billion and supported hundreds of road projects, and NDOT estimates it will bring in roughly $50 million to $55 million a year going forward.45
Be straight about the politics: the 2025 extension was contested, with some arguing it is a tax increase that should go to a public vote.5 That is a legitimate fiscal debate. The honest position is to insist that every road dollar shows up as paved streets and safer crossings in the east valley, not overhead, and to be transparent about how the money is raised and spent.
Fuel Revenue Indexing
A county fuel tax indexed to inflation that funds local road projects.4
Extended in 2025
The Commission approved a 10-year extension in November 2025, a contested vote.5
The scale
Over $1 billion generated to date, with roughly $50 to $55 million a year projected.45
IV . The Danger
The most relatable issue: crossing the street.
The east valley's wide, fast arterials make pedestrian safety one of the most pressing, least partisan issues a commissioner faces.
Clark County recorded 97 pedestrian deaths in 2024, falling to 83 in 2025, while total county traffic deaths fell from 296 to 239 over the same period.6 The 2025 improvement is real and worth crediting, but the toll is still far too high. Nevada ranks among the worst states in the country for its pedestrian death rate.6
The east valley is where this hits hardest. Wide, high-speed arterials like Boulder Highway, Maryland Parkway, Eastern Avenue, Nellis Boulevard, Lake Mead Boulevard, and Charleston Boulevard combine many lanes, fast traffic, long gaps between safe crossings, and dense pedestrian and transit activity. People here walk and ride the bus more than the valley average, which puts them in harm's way more often.
The concrete ask
More lighted, protected crossings on the corridors that are actually killing people.
Pedestrian safety is not abstract here. It is Boulder Highway after dark and the long blocks between safe crossings on Maryland Parkway. The Maryland Parkway project adds shaded, safer stops; the same logic, lighting, protected crossings, and slower design speeds, should reach Boulder Highway and the other dangerous arterials. This is a place a commissioner can push for lives saved, measured in the county's own numbers.
97 then 83
Clark County pedestrian deaths, 2024 then 2025; an improvement, still far too high.6
296 then 239
Total county traffic deaths, 2024 then 2025.6
Among the worst
Nevada ranks near the top of the country for its pedestrian death rate.6
V . The Engine
The economic engine next door.
Harry Reid International is a county department, and it sits at the southern edge of the district.
Harry Reid International Airport set an all-time record with 58.4 million passengers in 2024, then handled about 55 million in 2025, still one of its busiest years ever.7 Because it is run by the Clark County Department of Aviation, the airport is governed by the Commission this seat sits on.9 A study has put its economic impact at roughly $35 billion a year and about 250,000 jobs across Southern Nevada, though that figure rests on older data, so treat it as a scale, not a live number.8
For the east valley, the airport is both opportunity and responsibility. A large share of working residents in Paradise, Winchester, and Whitney either work at the airport or in the airport-dependent hospitality economy, and the Maryland Parkway transit line literally ends at the terminal. A commissioner helps oversee the Department of Aviation, which makes local hiring, ground access, and neighborhood quality-of-life near the airport part of the job.
58.4 million
Record passengers in 2024, with about 55 million in 2025.7
A county department
Run by the Clark County Department of Aviation, overseen by the Commission.9
Roughly $35 billion
A study's estimate of the airport's annual regional economic impact, on older data.8
VI . The Long Game
What is coming down the road.
Two long-horizon projects will shape how Southern Nevada moves for decades.
Harry Reid is approaching its capacity, which is why the region is planning a Southern Nevada Supplemental Airport in the Ivanpah Valley, south of the Strip near Jean and Primm. The federal environmental review restarted in 2025, with construction a roughly 2029-and-later prospect and cost figures still at the planning stage, so it is a vision, not a near-term deliverable.10 Separately, the Interstate 11 designation was extended through the valley across 2024 and 2025 as part of a long-term corridor plan.11
These are county-level and regional decisions a commissioner votes on or advocates within. The honest framing: support a fiscally responsible path for long-term capacity, while keeping the near-term focus where residents feel it, on east-valley streets, crossings, and transit.
Supplemental airport
A second airport planned in the Ivanpah Valley; federal review restarted in 2025, build is roughly 2029 and later.10
Interstate 11
The I-11 designation was extended through the valley in 2024 and 2025 as part of a long-term corridor.11
The posture
Plan responsibly for the long term, deliver for residents in the near term.10
VII . The Lane
What the seat actually decides.
Real power on transportation, and an honest account of the limits.
Through seats on the Regional Transportation Commission and oversight of the Department of Aviation, the county helps decide transit service, regional road priorities, fuel-tax road funding, and the airport's direction.19 What the seat does not do alone is build the interstates, which are a state and federal job, or single-handedly redesign every dangerous arterial overnight. It advocates, prioritizes, funds, and holds the agencies accountable.
Can shape
Transit service and regional road priorities through the RTC board, and the airport through the Department of Aviation.19
Can fund
Local road work through the fuel-tax indexing the Commission controls.4
Cannot do alone
Build interstates or fix every arterial overnight; those need the state, the feds, and time.11
VIII . The Proposal
Where Manny stands.
These are candidate positions, offered as proposals, not enacted county policy.
Manny's transportation focus is the east valley's daily reality. Finish Maryland Parkway right. Hold the agency to its timeline, minimize the hit to small businesses during construction, and make sure the new shelters and crossings actually make the corridor safer.3 Make crossings safer where people are dying. Push the lighting and protected-crossing improvements onto Boulder Highway and the other dangerous arterials, measured against the county's own pedestrian numbers.6
Demand value for road dollars. Every fuel-tax dollar should show up as paved streets and safer intersections in the district, with transparency on how it is raised and spent.45 Treat the airport as a jobs engine. Use the county's oversight role to push for local hiring and good ground access while protecting nearby neighborhoods.9
Finish Maryland Parkway right
On time, with minimal small-business disruption and genuinely safer crossings.3
Safer arterials
Lighting and protected crossings on Boulder Highway and the corridors with the worst record.6
Value and jobs
Accountable road spending, and an airport that hires the east valley.49
Take Action
Report it, or check it.
Practical links for the things people actually need: a dangerous crossing, a transit route, the project schedule.
Transit
RTC routes and service
The Regional Transportation Commission publishes valley bus routes, schedules, and service updates.1
The project
Maryland Parkway status
The project site has the current construction schedule, maps, and what to expect along the corridor.3
Report it
A road or safety problem
Report a roadway, signal, lighting, or crossing problem in the unincorporated county to Clark County, which maintains local roads.12
The airport
Airport and ground access
Harry Reid International publishes parking, ground transportation, and traveler information for the airport at the district's edge.9
Myth vs Fact
What the county does and does not run.
Transportation responsibility is split across governments. A few common mix-ups, corrected.
Myth: the commissioner builds freeways
Fact: interstates and state highways are largely a state and federal job; the county advocates within them.11
Myth: the city runs the buses
Fact: the Regional Transportation Commission runs valley transit, and two county commissioners sit on its board.1
Myth: the airport is a federal operation
Fact: Harry Reid International is run by the Clark County Department of Aviation, a county department.9
Myth: pedestrian deaths are just bad luck
Fact: they cluster on wide, fast arterials, which is a road-design problem the county can act on.6
Myth: the gas-tax money disappears
Fact: fuel-tax indexing has generated over $1 billion for local road projects, and the spending is public.4
Myth: nothing can fix Boulder Highway
Fact: lighting, protected crossings, and slower design speeds are proven tools the county can push for.6
Plain Words
The transit terms, in plain English.
A few acronyms show up a lot in transportation. Here is what they mean.
RTC
The Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada, which runs valley transit and regional road funding.1
Bus Rapid Transit (BRT)
A faster bus service with dedicated or priority lanes, fewer stops, and upgraded stations, like the Maryland Parkway project.3
Fuel Revenue Indexing
A county fuel tax that rises with inflation so local road funding keeps up with costs.4
Arterial
A major, high-capacity surface street, like Boulder Highway or Maryland Parkway, that carries heavy traffic.6
Department of Aviation
The Clark County department that runs Harry Reid International Airport, overseen by the Commission.9
Supplemental airport
A planned second commercial airport in the Ivanpah Valley to relieve Harry Reid over the long term.10
The Short Version
If you remember five things.
The whole page, distilled. Each line is backed by the sources below.
The seat reaches your commute
Two commissioners sit on the transit board, and the county runs the airport.19
Maryland Parkway is being built now
A $378 million transit line down the district's spine, from the Medical District to the airport.23
Crossing the street is dangerous
97 pedestrian deaths in the county in 2024, on arterials like Boulder Highway.6
Roads run on a fuel tax
Fuel-tax indexing, extended in a contested 2025 vote, funds local road work.45
The airport is the engine next door
A record 58.4 million passengers in 2024, run by the county, anchoring east-valley jobs.79
Questions
Fair questions.
The things people actually ask about getting around the east valley.
Yes. Two county commissioners sit on the Regional Transportation Commission board that runs transit and regional road funding, and the county runs the airport through its Department of Aviation. The seat reaches the bus, the road money, and the airport.19
A roughly $378 million bus-rapid-transit line, with about $149.9 million in federal funding, running about 12.5 miles along Maryland Parkway from the Medical District to the airport, past UNLV and the Boulevard Mall. It broke ground in August 2024.23
It is reaching substantial completion through 2026, with the city portion finishing first. The project site has the current schedule. The accountability job is to keep it on time and limit disruption to businesses along the corridor.3
Major corridor work always brings disruption, but how much depends on phasing, access, and communication. That is exactly where a commissioner can press the agency to protect the businesses that keep the corridor alive during the build.3
Clark County had 97 pedestrian deaths in 2024 and 83 in 2025, and Nevada ranks among the worst states for pedestrian death rate. The east valley's wide, fast arterials are a big part of why.6
The wide, high-speed arterials carry the heaviest toll: Boulder Highway has a long-documented reputation as one of the valley's most dangerous corridors, along with stretches of Maryland Parkway, Eastern, Nellis, Lake Mead, and Charleston. They combine speed, many lanes, and long gaps between safe crossings.6
Through the regional transportation board and county road dollars, it can push lighted and protected crossings, better-lit bus stops, and slower design speeds on the deadliest corridors, and then measure the result against the county's own death and injury numbers.16
Largely through Fuel Revenue Indexing, a county fuel tax that rises with inflation. It has generated over $1 billion to date, and the Commission extended it for ten more years in a contested November 2025 vote.45
It was contested on exactly that point, with some arguing the indexing should go to a public vote. It is a legitimate fiscal debate. The honest standard is transparency about how the money is raised and proof that it shows up as real road work.5
The Clark County Department of Aviation, a county department overseen by the Commission. So the airport's direction is, in part, a county-seat responsibility.9
It set a record with 58.4 million passengers in 2024 and handled about 55 million in 2025. A study has estimated its annual regional impact at roughly $35 billion and about 250,000 jobs, though that figure is based on older data, so use it as a scale rather than a current number.78
A Southern Nevada Supplemental Airport is planned in the Ivanpah Valley south of the Strip. Its federal environmental review restarted in 2025, with construction a roughly 2029-and-later prospect and costs still at the planning stage. It is a long-term vision, not a near-term project.10
A long-planned interstate corridor; its designation was extended through the Las Vegas Valley across 2024 and 2025. The interstate program is largely a state and federal effort, with the county advocating within it.11
Maryland Parkway is one of the valley's busiest transit corridors, which is why it was chosen for the rapid-transit upgrade. East-valley residents rely on transit more than the valley average, so service quality here is a real equity issue a commissioner can champion.3
Not directly. Interstates and state highways are largely a state and federal job. The county's lane is transit, regional road priorities, local street funding, and the airport, plus advocacy on the bigger corridors.111
No. The transportation facts here are nonpartisan and sourced. This is the Manny Kess campaign's site, and his positions are clearly marked as proposals in the "Where Manny stands" section.1
In the unincorporated county, Clark County maintains local roads, while the state handles state highways. For a pothole, a dead streetlight, or a broken signal on a local street, report it to the county.12
Yes. The project uses 15 hydrogen fuel cell articulated buses, which are quieter and lower-emission than older diesel buses. This corrects an "all-electric" description that circulated elsewhere.3
It upgrades the corridor with faster, higher-capacity service: priority lanes, fewer stops, and better stations. The goal is roughly a 20 percent faster trip along Maryland Parkway than the route it replaces.3
The Maryland Parkway transit line runs to Harry Reid International Airport, and the Regional Transportation Commission runs other service to the airport as well. Routes and schedules are on the RTC site.13
No. The Southern Nevada Supplemental Airport is planned far to the south, in the Ivanpah Valley near Jean and Primm, not in the east valley. It is a long-term project, with construction a 2029-and-later prospect.10
A large share of pedestrian deaths involve dark, wide, high-speed arterials with long gaps between safe crossings. That is exactly why lighting, protected crossings, and slower design speeds matter so much on corridors like Boulder Highway.6
On local unincorporated roads, the county sets the design and speed environment; on state highways, the state does. That is why the county can meaningfully shape safety on its own arterials.612
This: if a crossing or corridor near you is dangerous, report it to the county, and reference the county's own pedestrian-death numbers when you do. Data plus a specific location is how a fix gets prioritized.612
Yes. The project includes dedicated and shared bus-and-bike lanes along part of the corridor, alongside the upgraded transit stations. The project site has the full design.3
Neighborhoods near the airport live with flight noise and traffic, which is part of why county oversight of the Department of Aviation should weigh neighborhood quality of life, not just passenger counts.9
Regional road priorities run through the Regional Transportation Commission and the county, funded in large part by the fuel-tax indexing. Residents can weigh in through the county and the commission, which is how a long-neglected east-valley street gets moved up the list.14
Keep Exploring
More on the county and the district.
Getting around is one duty of the seat. Here is more of what the county does.
The map
Places & Landmarks
The airport, UNLV, the Boulevard Mall, and the rest of what is in and around the district.
A county job
Water
Where the valley's water comes from, the conservation record, and what the county seat decides.
The corridor
The Commercial Center
Revitalizing the east valley's historic commercial heart, block by block.
A note from Manny
Safe streets. Roads that get fixed. An airport that hires us.
Finish the work. Light the crossings. Count the results.
Transportation is the most physical thing the county touches, and the east valley feels it every day, in the construction on Maryland Parkway, in how dangerous it is to cross Boulder Highway, in the airport jobs down the road. I want to finish the projects we started, fight for safer crossings on the streets that are actually hurting people, make sure every road dollar shows up as pavement, and treat the airport as a jobs engine for our neighborhoods. Measure it in the county's own numbers.
Sources & Method
Every figure, sourced.
Transportation claims should be checkable, and every one here is tied to the transit agency, the county, the state, or official traffic data.
- Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada, board of commissioners (the board's makeup, including two Clark County commissioners): rtcsnv.com board
- Regional Transportation Commission, Maryland Parkway federal grant (the project cost and the federal funding): rtcsnv.com Maryland Parkway grant
- Maryland Parkway project (route, scope, shelters, fleet, schedule): marylandparkway.com
- Regional Transportation Commission, roadway funding and Fuel Revenue Indexing (the program and its cumulative impact): rtcsnv.com roadway funding
- Nevada Current, county extends fuel-tax indexing (the November 2025 ten-year extension and the debate): nevadacurrent.com fuel tax
- Las Vegas Review-Journal, 2025 traffic deaths (Clark County pedestrian and total traffic deaths for 2024 and 2025, citing the Nevada Office of Traffic Safety): reviewjournal.com traffic deaths
- Harry Reid International Airport, 2024 passenger record (the 58.4 million figure): harryreidairport.com 2024 record
- Las Vegas Review-Journal, airport economic impact (the roughly $35 billion and 250,000 jobs estimate, based on an Oxford Economics study using older data): reviewjournal.com airport impact
- Harry Reid International Airport, operated by the Clark County Department of Aviation (governance and statistics): harryreidairport.com operations
- Federal Register, Southern Nevada Supplemental Airport environmental review (the 2025 restart of the EIS process): federalregister.gov supplemental airport
- Nevada Department of Transportation, Interstate 11 (the corridor and the designation extension): dot.nv.gov I-11
- Clark County Board of County Commissioners (the body that appoints members to the RTC board and oversees the Department of Aviation): clarkcountynv.gov commissioners
How we handled the numbers. The Maryland Parkway figures come from the transit agency and the project site, the safety figures from Review-Journal reporting of the Nevada Office of Traffic Safety data, and the airport passenger records from the airport itself. The fleet is 15 hydrogen fuel cell buses, which corrects an earlier "all-electric" description seen elsewhere.
What to treat with care. The roughly $35 billion airport economic-impact figure rests on an older study, so we present it as a scale rather than a live number. The supplemental-airport cost and timeline are planning-stage estimates, not commitments. Confirm the current Maryland Parkway schedule and the live airport counts at the linked sources.
Found something to fix? If a figure here is out of date, the campaign wants to know. Accuracy is the whole point. Reach the team through the main site.