Interstate connecting Canada, Mexico may pass near Fernley, Nev.

FERNLEY, Nev. — Plans to build a U.S. interstate from Mexico to Canada include a pair of preferred alternatives that would route it through western Nevada near Fernley about 30 miles east of Reno, state transportation officials said.

In Nevada, 450 miles (724 kilometers) of Interstate 11 have been federally designated along the Highway 95 corridor, The Fernley Leader-Courier reported last week.

Construction on Interstate 11 has begun in southern Nevada. The current phase of the project aims to connect the Las Vegas and Phoenix areas.

“I-11 is a generational project that will be a hot topic throughout Nevada for years to come,” project manager Kevin Verre said.

Nevada Department of Transportation officials presented five proposed routes for the interstate in northern Nevada to Fernley residents last month.

Most attendees at the meeting agreed that two routes that pass through the Fernley area make the most sense. One is a route from Tonopah through Schurz and Silver Springs that connects with Interstate 80 west of Fernley. The other is a route from Tonopah through Schurz and Fallon, connecting with Interstate 80 east of Fernley.

“If the goal were to provide a highway from Mexico to Canada, that’s the most desirable,” said Frank Lipera, who lives between Fernley and Lovelock, of the second choice. “That’s the shortest route, and it takes the traffic out of Fernley.”