Los Angeles to Las Vegas: Planning the Long, Empty Middle of I-15

Most people plan the two ends of this trip: getting out of the Los Angeles basin and getting into Las Vegas. The middle, from Barstow to the state line, gets no planning at all, and that is where the trip goes wrong when it goes wrong. It is a long, straight, empty road where a small problem has nowhere convenient to happen.

Why this corridor fills up

Caltrans District 8 says I-15 is heavily congested because of tourist travel to and from Nevada, on top of freight moving north. In practice, the heaviest loads tend to come on the climb over the Cajon Pass and on the return toward Los Angeles at the end of a weekend or holiday. Long queues in desert heat are where cars overheat and tempers shorten.

Fuel, water and the heat

• Fill up before the empty stretches, not when the warning light comes on.
• Carry water for everyone in the car, enough for a long wait in the sun.
• Watch the temperature gauge on long climbs. The DMV's guidance for extreme heat is to watch the gauge, avoid long periods at high speed, and turn off the air conditioning if the engine runs hot.
• Expect to use more fuel than the trip computer suggests. Fueleconomy.gov says air conditioning in very hot conditions can cut a conventional car's fuel economy by more than 25 percent, particularly on short trips.

If the car quits: where you may stop

Vehicle Code section 21718 prohibits stopping on a full-access freeway except when necessary to avoid injury or damage, when required by an officer or a sign, when the vehicle is disabled, or where stopping is specifically allowed. Pulling onto the shoulder to rest is not on that list; rest areas and exits are where you stop by choice.

If the car does fail, the DMV handbook's steps are: pull safely onto the right shoulder, get out on the side away from traffic if you must leave the car, call 511 or use a call box, and otherwise stay inside with your seat belt on until help arrives. The handbook makes exceptions where staying out of the car is safer — no room on the shoulder, a guardrail you can get behind, or a safe place away from the lanes. In summer, heat changes that calculation quickly; a car without air conditioning gets dangerous fast.

Crossing into Nevada: what your California policy does

A California auto policy normally travels with you to other states, but the exact promise is in your policy's territory section, so read it rather than assume. Two related points are worth knowing before you go. If you have a crash in Nevada, the reporting rules are Nevada's, so call the local authorities and your insurer rather than relying on California's SR-1 habits. And if you rent a car in Las Vegas, whether your own policy extends to it varies by insurance company; find out before you are standing at the counter being offered the rental company's cover.

The tow nobody prices in advance

Out here, a breakdown means a long tow back to a town with a shop. Towing and roadside coverage are usually optional, and they are written with limits by distance or by amount that vary by insurance company. Ask for the actual number before the trip. If you also have roadside help through a motor club or your car's manufacturer, know which one you will call first so you are not reading fine print on the shoulder.

If this trip is a regular one for you, we can check your towing limit and territory wording in a couple of minutes, and quote a better fit if either falls short.