Curvy I-25 Means Lower Speed Limits

THAT SAFETY CORRIDOR SEEMS MIGHTY UNSAFE: So emails Morton Dann, who asks “why is that stretch of southbound Interstate 25 just after entering from westbound Interstate 40 called the ‘safety corridor’?”

“The speed limit is 55 mph starting shortly after entering and ending just before the exit for the Sunport (Gibson Boulevard). Most drivers are going 65, 70, 80 or more, day and night. There is no police presence I have seen in the past six-plus years since I moved to Albuquerque. I have tried to drive at 55, but I don’t feel safe due to the tailgating, flashing lights, finger signals, etc. I don’t see much difference between that stretch of road and the rest of either of the interstates and think a 65 mph limit would be just as appropriate. Any comment?”

The New Mexico Department of Transportation designates safety corridors to address high accident rates. NMDOT District 3′s Tony Abbo explains that “back in 2004/2005, we were mandated to have two safety corridors in each district. Since then, we did improvements to Interstate 40 so we did not see a need to keep that one (from Tramway east to the county line) in place. As for I-25, our district never got any data from planning to indicate that accidents went up, came down or stayed the same (on the stretch from Lomas to Los Lunas). We will follow-up with them to see if keeping the safety corridor designation is appropriate.”

Regarding enforcement, Albuquerque Police Department officer Tasia Martinez has said “citizens with traffic concerns in an area can call 242-COPS for immediate assistance or file a periodic watch request at their local substation.” And Abbo says the area could be problematic for patrols because “the shoulders are narrow in the area and APD may not feel safe giving citations in this area.”

Regarding the 55 mph speed limit vs. 65 mph, Abbo says “the roadway geometrics necessitate the posted speed through this area.” Back in 2005, he explained “there are places such as I-25 by the Lead and Coal interchange where excessive speed has led to some accidents. These accidents were as a result of the drivers’ failure to negotiate the curves along I-25 safely.”

He added, “Safety is our number one goal. … The expected outcome (of the safety corridors) is for people to slow down and adhere to the posted speed limit, which in turn would help in reducing the number and severity of accidents.”

BAD CAMERA KILLED EUBANK ARROW: Penny Jones asked via email last month “why has the left-turn arrow from west Paseo to south Eubank been turned off, now that Eubank is closed until January? Not good.”

And not planned. Robert Baker, Bernalillo County’s signs and signals guru, says the arrow “was turned off (Nov. 2) because we ha(d) a bad camera.”

Crews were in the process of replacing it the next week and it was “turned back on shortly. I apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused.”

THE HANDICAPPED PLACARD LAW APPLIES TO TEMPS, TOO: After a recent column pointed out state law allows drivers to get two of these parking placards for convenience, Richard Nemitz pointed out via email that statute 66-3-16(C) refers to “permanent limited mobility. What about temporary limited mobility? My wife has had the need for a temporary placard two times due to surgery. Does this ordinance take into account temporary placards?”

Taxation and Revenue spokesman S.U. Mahesh says yes, “this also applies to temp placards.”

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 and join in the conversation.
— This article appeared on page A4 of the Albuquerque Journal