Yahoo Sports Las Vegas F1 Generated $884 Million in Spending and Other Eye-Popping Figures
A 2023 Las Vegas Grand Prix debriefing report recently released by Clark County, Nevada shows that the total economic impact of spending for the event was a staggering $884 million. That headline figure just scratches the surface of what the first Formula One race in Las Vegas in 41 years meant to the area.
The Las Vegas GP of 2023 was one of the most highly anticipated Formula One races in recent memory. And after a rather inauspicious start, the action on the track generally lived up to the hype. However, there is a lot more to the story than just what transpired on the track. What was the impact going to be to local residents, and businesses? Was all the effort going to be worth it? The results outlined in this debriefing report are fascinating.
Visitors of the 2023 Las Vegas GP spent 3.6 times as much as the typical Las Vegas visitor, per the report. The average length of stay was 4.1 nights and more than $4,100 dollars per trip was spent. That is $1,000 per night and that total does not even include the price of the race tickets.
Las Vegas GP spent nearly $88 million on public infrastructure. Wages for local workers totaled $52 million for the first full year of work. Las Vegas GP related infrastructure development supported almost 2,200 jobs. Between event operations and visitor spending activity nearly 5,100 additional jobs were needed. The race generated $77 million in state and local taxes. That is more tax revenue than any other event in the history of Las Vegas. Clark County staff spent over 17,000 hours preparing for the GP.
The 2023 Las Vegas GP took place on November 19. On that day the Harry Reid International Airport (LAS) was the 2nd busiest airport in the United States with 2,197 operations. For the first time in Las Vegas history a Boeing 747-800 operated at LAS to support the Las Vegas GP cargo operation.
Local residents were impacted by construction and race activities. The Regional Transportation Commission (RTC) Freeway and Arterial System of Transportation (FAST) had to manage constant changes to roadway configurations. Starting in October of 2023 more than half a dozen routes were detoured, impacting 25,000 customers a day. This resulted in up to one-hour long delays, as the report claims. Some local businesses were perhaps more vocal about the disruptions of the GP, saying they had "no choice left"but to sue the GP over how much it shut down the city.
Fans, also, were not altogether unanimous in praising the race. Two legal firms brought a class action suit against the race organizers on behalf of 35,000 fans who got a total of 8 minutes of practice to watch.
The initial contract to race in Las Vegas runs through 2025, but the goal is to extend it to run through 2033. That will require some additional work, which includes working on the manholes around the course. The report noted that 12 manholes need to be raised to grade and six of them need to be rehabilitated. No one wants to see a repeat of the manhole cover fiasco from 2023. But the manhole cover situation is just one of many callouts made in this report that will need to be addressed to ensure a successful Las Vegas GP for years to come.
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