Q: What’s the best crosstown shortcut from north to south?
A: In a town where construction is ubiquitous and seemingly planned by sociopathic scientists engaged in a rats/maze experiment, finding shortcuts is essential. Whether it’s darting through a neighborhood to avoid a long light, getting off a freeway at just the right time to avoid construction, or learning to drive at times other people don’t, if you live in Las Vegas, you need shortcuts.
The best? If you’ve got to travel south from downtown at rush hour and don’t want to use the crowded freeways, you’ve got to use Main Street. It’s a little rough from Bonanza Road through Charleston Boulevard, where you’re likely to hit a long light. But after that, it’s smooth sailing past furniture and auto-repair shops all the way to the Stratosphere. If your destination is the Fashion Show Mall or any of the casinos on the west side of the Strip, turn right on Wyoming Street, then left on Industrial Road, and take that all the way to the mall. You can also hook up with Frank Sinatra Drive, and from there visit any hotel from Caesars all the way down to Mandalay Bay. (You can take Frank Sinatra all the way to Russell Road to get to Town Square and hop on the I-215 Beltway from Las Vegas Boulevard, too.)
If your destination is the Howard Hughes Center, the airport or points south, make the sweeping left onto St. Louis Avenue, which quickly bends right and becomes Paradise Road. From there, you’ve got access to the casinos on the east side of the Strip, and it’s a straight shot directly into McCarran International Airport and the I-215 Beltway. (Warning: During big conventions, watch out for slowdowns in front of the convention center around Desert Inn Road.)
Of course, now that transportation authorities know about the Main Street/Paradise/Industrial shortcut, it will surely be closed for repaving. So use it quickly!