Nevada State Route 159
State Route 159 is a east–west highway in Clark County, Nevada, United States, providing access to Red Rock Canyon and formerly serving as a thoroughfare in the Las Vegas Valley. A portion of the west end of the route is designated a Nevada Scenic Byway.
Route description
SR 159 has two distinct segments. The first segment is a rural two-lane highway that begins at its junction with SR 160 and Erskine Junction Way. From here, two things happen. First, the designation Blue Diamond Road continues onto SR 159. Second, the highway proceeds northwesterly through the town of Blue Diamond toward Spring Mountain Ranch State Park. The last signs for Blue Diamond Road can be found at an at-grade intersection with Castalia Street. After this intersection, SR 159 is officially known as Red Rock Canyon Road, despite the name being completely unsigned. From there, the highway curves northeastward around Red Rock Canyon to the Las Vegas city limits west of the Las Vegas Beltway. As it enters the census-designated place of Summerlin South, SR 159 transitions into its second—and disconnected—segment: a major section-line arterial road of the Las Vegas Valley. An at-grade intersection with Sky Vista Drive reveals the first signblades for Charleston Boulevard. The western section of SR 159 ends at an interchange with the Las Vegas Beltway.State Route 159 resumes at an incomplete interchange with Martin Luther King Boulevard and Charleston Boulevard. It then provides access to I-15 via a grade-separated interchange. Next, SR 159 intersects Industrial Road and South Grand Central Parkway, the latter providing access to the North Premium Outlets. Finally, the central portion of SR 159 ends at an intersection of Commerce Street.
State Route 159 resumes again at 25th Street, just east of the northwestern terminus of SR 582 as Fremont Street. It then heads due east, mostly along the border of Las Vegas and Sunrise Manor, serving as the north–south axis for street addresses. SR 159 reaches its eastern terminus at Nellis Boulevard.
History
A portion of Charleston Boulevard was previously designated US 95 Alternate to bypass Downtown Las Vegas. The designation began at Fremont Street and continued westward to Rancho Drive, where it curved northward to reconnect to US 95. The alternate route was discontinued in 1982.Approximately of SR 159 in Red Rock Canyon was designated a Nevada Scenic Byway on June 30, 1995.