CHRISTINA EICHELKRAUT / PVT NDOT crews were in action this week along Highway 160 between Mountain Springs and Pahrump as work on adding paved shoulders along the westbound lanes began. Advertisement

Construction has begun on the notoriously treacherous Highway 160, where approximately 22 miles of the westbound lane will be widened and shoulders added.

Highway 160 has a justifiable reputation for being a dangerous road. Nevada Highway Patrol (NHP) reported 296 crashes -- which encompass all vehicular accidents, including those that do not include contact with another vehicle, such as rollovers -- in 2005, 16 of which resulted in fatalities.

For the year to date, NHP has already reported 258 crashes, 17 of which involved loss of life.

But accidents are not usually caused by the roadway, and, according to the Highway Patrol, Highway 160 is no exception. In fact, the majority of accidents reported are the result of driving behavior by motorists, and that can involve a variety of issues, from falling asleep at the wheel to the lack of shoulders.

Trooper Kevin Honea, NHP spokesman, pointed out that most of the fatal accidents that are reported are the result of drivers who drift off the main roadway and find themselves drifting in the desert.

Failure to stay on the road was the number one cause of fatal accidents statewide last year, as well as this year, said Trooper Honea. And it will most likely stay the main cause next year, he added.

"Increasing the shoulders is a good thing," said Honea. "But it's not going to change the driving behavior. Bottom line is, we as motorists need to learn to handle getting off the main roadway."

Drivers drift for a variety of reasons, but drifting most commonly occurs among drivers who are either drunk or have fallen asleep.

Then, when the motorist finds himself and his vehicle in the desert, he can often over-correct or turn quickly in an attempt to get back on the pavement, and by doing so lose control of the vehicle and even roll it over.

Honea said that when drivers fall asleep and begin to drift into the desert, they wake up confused and often attempt to veer sharply back onto the roadway, which in fact is the worst course of action for a driver to take in that situation.

The first thing a driver should do is get off the gas and "let the car settle," said Honea.

If any steering is necessary to avoid obstacles in the desert, such as a rock or telephone pole, it should be done slowly and deliberately, without acceleration, advised Honea.

Gravel and sand, although dry, have their own way of being slippery, and many cars end up rolling over in their attempt to get back on the road because the driver over-corrects.

Honea also admitted that when a motorist is awakened by the rumble strip on the side of the highway, the first instinct is usually to veer sharply left back on to the road. But the most important thing is to stay calm, slow down, and make sure any steering is done slowly.

Still, the new shoulders will likely make the road safer to some degree.

Bob McKenzie of Nevada Department of Transportation said that the shoulders could help reduce the number of rollovers because it will give drivers who do begin to drift more of an opportunity to correct properly before it is too late.

"A split second makes a difference," pointed out Mohamed Roas, the assistant district engineer for construction. The shoulders "give the driver a better chance of recovering."

But like Honea, both McKenzie and Roas emphasized the role that drivers themselves play in keeping the highway a safe road to drive.

"We hope that people drive the road more safely," said McKenzie. "But we're confident that it'll make it a safer road for the vehicles that do travel that route."

Don Hanley, engineer for Road and Highway Builders, the contractors hired by NDOT to complete the project, said the improved highway will have two 16-foot driving lanes and eight feet of shoulder, with six feet on one side and two feet on the other.

The company was given notice to proceed Sept. 11 and Hanley said the entire project would not be completed until well into next summer. Roas hazarded a tentative estimation of the project being completed by March or April of next year.

The project will upgrade the westbound lane to meet newer state highway standards. The eastbound lane, which is a newer road built when the highway was divided, was built to those standards when initially constructed.

Approximately one and a half miles of the project will take place in Nye County, beginning at the Clark/Nye line and continuing west. The project will cost Nye County $344,526, to be funded by the general transportation fund.

Clark County, in which approximately 20 miles of the construction will be done, beginning from a quarter mile south of Mt. Springs Summit, will get stuck with a whopping $10,115,474 bill.