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WHEN WILL COORS/BARCELONA WORK END? That’s what loyal reader Sam Vaughan wants to know.
She says the project has been going on for weeks, involves some sewer work, and wonders if there’s any end in sight.
So when will the intersection be construction free?
This month, according to David Morris at the Albuquerque-Bernalillo County Water Utility Authority.
Morris says “the 50-year-old sewer line under Coors near Barcelona experienced a collapse in late May, and then while repairs were under way there were two more collapses in the vicinity. This led our engineers to the conclusion that we should replace an entire 2,000-foot section of line along Coors rather than just patch the discreet collapses. Estimated cost at this point is $2 million, with an estimated completion toward the end of August.”
MORE ON THE NEW STRIPING AT N.M. 528 AND MEADOWLARK: Last week alert reader Doug Priestap pointed out the new dedicated right-turn lane from westbound Meadowlark onto northbound N.M. 528/Pat D’Arco Highway. In addition to asking why drivers lost a through-lane (the new right-turn-only lane used to be through or right turn), he also questions the signal timing.
“You’d think that if they eliminated one lane of traffic to get westbound Meadowlark traffic across the busy N.M. 528, they’d at least add time on the clock for the signal to allow more cars to cross,” Doug’s email says. “Not so. In the 15 seconds we get to move forward, five cars and one Fed Ex truck made it at 4:30 p.m. the other day. With all of the traffic coming out of the Smith’s parking lot, Wells Fargo, the road behind Smith’s, all of the traffic coming up Meadowlark from Corrales, in addition to the apartment complexes, you’d think the city would have the courtesy of extending the time on the signal before it changes. Typically, there’s almost a dozen vehicles at that time trying to cross over. Plus, get this: They didn’t even finish the striping work! The crosswalk and the three other signals were not painted, although they badly need it.”
City of Rio Rancho communications officer Peter Wells says “city traffic engineers re-analyzed the intersection of N.M. 528/Pat D’Arco Highway and Meadowlark Lane using the most recent data collected by the New Mexico Department of Transportation. Before the week of July 30 when the intersection was reconfigured, if traveling west on Meadowlark Lane across N.M. 528 the configuration was two dedicated left-turn lanes, one through lane, and one lane for through traffic or right turns. The configuration now is two dedicated left-turn lanes, one through lane, and one dedicated and shared bike lane/right-turn lane.”
And he says that’s because traffic counts show this new setup limits backups the best.
“The analysis indicated that the westbound through movement will still back up and all cars may not be able to get through on a green light, particularly during the evening peak hour,” Wells says. “In order to reduce the chance that the right-turn lane would be blocked by the through traffic, the westbound bike lane was converted to a shared bike lane/right-turn lane. This increased the length of the right-turn bay by nearly 300 feet, which is critical for operations during the evening peak for traffic. Without this adjustment, the through traffic would likely back up through the turn-bay entry, making the new turn bay moot.”
However, the city is aware that there will still be delays, especially during afternoon rush hour for the through traffic Doug mentions.
“Based on the most recent analysis, the intersection will operate about the same during the evening peak, with delay reduced for right-turning vehicles but increased for through vehicles. At other times of day, the delay will be slightly improved. At this time, N.M. 528 still carries far more traffic than Southern Boulevard or Meadowlark Lane, which means no extra green time will be allotted to the side streets.”
As for adding a through movement to the inside left-turn lane, Wells says “the right hand, left-turn lane was not changed to a through lane because doing so would adversely affect the eastbound through green time. Also, making that change would force both westbound through lanes to shift 12′ from left to right, and traffic engineers deemed this to be a safety hazard.”
And how this was paid for? Wells says “there was just enough money left using funds from the budget year ending on June 30 to carry out these changes. Re-painting the remaining symbols and crosswalks that are the city’s responsibility at this intersection will be completed during the coming fiscal year — July 1, 2012 to June 30, 2013 — as budget allows.
But Doug’s not done. “P.S. I thought this intersection was supposed to get a red-light camera. It would pay for itself in 24 hours for the amount of cars that run the red lights in all directions!”
You’ll have to take that one up with the state. Remember the city of Albuquerque had to remove its three red-light cameras that were on state roads (Coors and Paseo). Wells points out that “N.M. 528 is a state road and per a ruling by the New Mexico Department of Transportation Commission in March 2010, the placement of automated enforcement, i.e. red-light cameras, on state roads is restricted.”
Assistant editorial page editor D’Val Westphal tackles commuter issues for the Metro area on Mondays and West Siders and Rio Ranchoans on Thursdays. Reach her at 823-3858; road@abqjournal.com; P.O. Drawer J, Albuquerque, NM 87103; or go to ABQjournal.com/traffic to read previous columns.
