The planned Oak View development off Blue Diamond Road and Las Vegas Boulevard grew in size and cost, but developer Tim Leiweke said the public money will not be sought for the project.

The Nevada congressional delegation is backing an application from Brightline West and the Nevada Department of Transportation (NDOT) for $3.75 billion to build a high-speed rail line from outside of Los Angeles to Las Vegas, hoping the infusion of federal funds can get construction on the long-awaited project underway this year.

As it stands, only one active Amtrak line runs through Nevada, connecting Sacramento to Reno, which then goes on to connect to Winnemucca, Elko and, eventually, Salt Lake City. Las Vegas has no passenger rail service. But a new group is looking to change rail in the state as a whole, and state leaders are eyeing the possibilities as well. 

Software developers, civil engineers and operations managers are among the top 10 in-demand jobs in Southern Nevada, according to a regional “2022 Workforce Blueprint” released Tuesday.

While unemployment rates have nearly fallen to pre-pandemic levels and high-tech companies such as Google are taking an interest in the state, economic diversification continues to be a top-of-mind challenge for cities in tourism-dominated Nevada. 

Quigley said in a brief interview on Wednesday that she remains a strong believer in the project — a 170-mile, $4.8 billion high-speed train between Las Vegas and Victorville, California — but that her own personal interests and desire to remain involved in charitable and philanthropic interests led her to leave the project.

Democratic presidential hopefuls pocketed more than half a million dollars in itemized contributions from Nevadans in the third quarter of the year as they prepare for a final push ahead of the early nominating contests in February.

Tina Quigley, the longtime head of the Regional Transportation Commission, announced Thursday that she’s retiring from her post in November, ending her career in the public sector. She previously spent 15 years working at McCarran International Airport. While mum on her next steps, Quigley sat down for an interview on the Indy Matters podcast to discuss her tenure with the RTC.

For the first time since the double-decker buses made their Strip debut in 2005, the RTC started subsidizing the resort corridor route in the most recent fiscal year. Ridership and revenue have fallen dramatically since September 2015, when ride-share companies began legally operating in Southern Nevada. 

Uber and Lyft have a new competitor — the Regional Transportation Commission. The RTC has launched an on-demand ride-share service called “Trip to Strip,” which shuttles passengers to various locations within the tourist corridor.

Las Vegas’ future could hold a new underground mass transit system — but it’s no subway. The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority announced a partnership with the Elon Musk-linked Boring Company Wednesday that would see an underground tunnel connect the sprawling Las Vegas Convention Center campus end-to-end by the time a new expansion is slated to open in early 2021.

Legislative committees are focusing less on bills and more on presentations on Thursday, with plans to hear about the performance of Nevada’s marijuana taxes, the state’s early childhood education system and regional transportation authorities.

The man-of-the-people persona he’s exuded in his first several weeks in office as he and his wife have embarked on an eating tour of Carson City and toured the rural portions of the state belies the reputation Sisolak earned as a headstrong negotiator in a decade serving on the County Commission.