Traffic Safety Priority

County Commissioner Micheal Naft is joined by other local government leaders to sign the Traffic Safety Pledge. Pictured: Mayor John Lee, Clark County Chair Marilyn Kirkpatrick, Deputy Chief Andrew Walsh, Commissioner Micheal Naft, Mayor Debra March, & Mayor Carolyn Goodman.

Clark County Commissioner Micheal Naft hosted County Commission Chair Marilyn Kirkpatrick, and Mayors from North Las Vegas, The City of Las Vegas, and Henderson to sign a Traffic Safety Pledge. The newest County Commissioner raises awareness and recognizes the value of well constructed safe roadways because “as a western state we have wide roads, we have long roads and we have fast roads.” The goal of the Traffic Safety Pledge is to “promote safe, healthy, and equitable mobility for all.” The challenges of maintaining the high standard of infrastructure that Southern Nevada is known for comes down to a quality of life issue for many Nevadans and guests who use it every day according to Andrew Bennett of the Nevada Department of Public Safety’s Office of Traffic Safety.

Tech Solutions Guide Roadway Safety

Southern Nevada is one of the best places for development of road safety innovations because of its excellently constructed roadways. One approach Planners from the Regional Transportation Commission and Clark County are considering is The Complete Streets Program for street and sidewalk improvements. A specific suggestion is to make both sidewalks and streets wider to accommodate multiple means of transportation and promote pedestrian safety. Clark County Commission Chair Marilyn Kirkpatrick encouraged having a general standard of ten feet for sidewalks as a way to improve traffic issues.

Craig Raborn is the Manager of Planning at the Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada and prioritizes job sites as an important safety issue. As he said “In Southern Nevada one of the critical road safety issues for us is all the construction that is happening so we partnered with some technology companies to actually put devices on cones, vehicles and even some workers that are in work zones so that movement is tracked and identified and is able to be signalled out so the traffic control devices can help” make for safer conditions. Innovations like these make it possible for smartphone apps like Waze to be able to alert drivers where road work is being done in real-time to prevent crashes in the first place.

Clark County and the Traffic Safety Coalition agree that there is a need for a new outlook to road safety. The Board of County Commissioners, which Marilyn Kirkpatrick and Micheal Naft are members, directed the Department of Comprehensive Planning to find a new vision to logistics in the County. One way this will be accomplished is a directive to reevaluate a code developed in 2000 to bring Clark County into the 21st Century with new infrastructure developments. Similar to the Complete Streets Program, the Traffic Safety Coalition would like to see the multi-national traffic safety project called Vision Zero implemented. Vision Zero has been successful in other areas and focuses on fixing pedestrian issues, because improvements to pedestrian conditions improves the road in most other aspects too. While each Department and entity see different approaches to improving Southern Nevada’s roads, each agree it will take years of road work to make progress.

Apprenticeship

Mission

SNLTT Laborers Local 872’s primary mission is to furnish participating signatory contractors with a highly skilled, well trained and motivated workforce. This work force is in constant training to meet the growing demands of a continuously changing industry. With the skills they need and the desire they possess, 872’s apprentices’ and journey workers become highly skilled professionals. They acquire the ability to exceed and excel as qualified and effective construction craft laborers and leaders in their industry. Southern Nevada Laborers Training Trust is a joint managed trust fund; our goal is to provide members, signatory contractors our union and partners with state of the art training. Promote safety, leadership, respect, discipline and constant quality improvement; and in the 872 way strength; justice and honor.

Leading the Charge Overseas & Locally

GABRIEL LUCERO IS ALWAYS READY TO TAKE CHARGE. STARTING WITH THE US MARINE CORPS. HE FOUND HIS WAY TO THE LOCAL 872 TRAINING CENTER. WHERE GABRIEL HAS EXCELLED TO THE LEVEL OF ASSISTANT PROJECT MANAGER ON PROJECTS. MANY OF HIS FAMILY MEMBERS HAVE REPRESENTED LABORERS LOCAL 872 ON JOB SITES TOO. JOINING LOCAL 872 BECAME A REALITY FOR HIM SIX MONTHS AGO AS NEW PROJECTS LIKE THE STADIUM AND HOTEL RENOVATIONS PICKED UP. THIS IS HIS JOURNEY.

What was your experience before joining Local 872?

My diverse background includes serving four years in the United States Marine Corps, over five years in the travel industry, three years in healthcare and most recently with a staffing industry. My last position I served as an Assistant Project Manager focusing on the maintenance and development of large solar projects at various locations (NV, MS, VA & CT) across the country.

Did your previous experiences help you as a member of Local 872?

Absolutely, I’ve been exposed to a variety of working elements. Ranging from a war zone to the corporate world, giving me that versatility to adapt to any environment.

How did you learn about Laborers Local 872?

Both of my parents and plenty of family members have either worked or are currently working with Local 872. I’ve always had exposure to the Laborers Union, but it wasn’t until six months ago that I really started to look at it more in depth. Due to all the new exciting projects such as Raider’s Stadium, the baseball stadium and all the changes on the strip!

What questions did you have when you joined Local 872 and how did they get answered?

The most important question (for me) was stability. However, after speaking with family members and Marco Hernandez, I felt joining the Local 872 was a great opportunity. They reiterated the upcoming projects and the potential opportunities that will come with some change.

What jobs have you been placed on?

I’ve been dispatched with a demolition company and worked at the Aria and Resorts World.

What opportunities came to you because of Joining Local 872?

So far I’ve been doing demolition, which is a great start! But it’s definitely given me motivation to acquire as many certifications as possible. I have an unquenchable thirst for curiosity and the more I learn from my peers, and safety’s just motivates me to continue learning as much as possible.