PDV extension a 'game changer' as NMDOT studies next part

Paseo del Volcan, a connecting road vital to Rio Rancho's community, has been a two decades-long discussion in Sandoval County and New Mexico as a whole. Now, the New Mexico Department of Transportation is kicking the project into gear with a study of the next section of PDV to be extended.

As most residents know, a segment of PDV exists between US Highway 550 and Unser Boulevard. The extension would take PDV all the way south to Interstate 40. The new area of road being studied starts at Rainbow Boulevard and generally follows 28th Avenue west, turning south after Vista Road and extending south along 20th Street to Southern Boulevard – a distance of approximately seven miles.

Sandoval County is currently developing the design plans for the extension of PDV between Unser and Rainbow boulevards. Sandoval County is the local lead following the NMDOT Tribal/Local Public Agency Procedures with funding authorized for both design and construction.

County Manager Wayne Johnson says this extension is a game changer for the metro area.

"PDV has been seen as a catalyst for economic development in Rio Rancho and in southern Sandoval County," Johnson said.

Most of the land around the area in question is available for commercial development. Johnson says economic-based jobs would come out of that area should PDV be extended as intended.

"An economic-based job is a job that brings new money into a region. Retail is not considered an economic-based job because it just moves money around within the system," he explained.

An example of economic-based jobs is manufacturing like Intel, which is considered one of the establishing companies in Rio Rancho.

But there's a problem with extending this road and, naturally, it's to do with money. Johnson says this project is not inexpensive and hasn't been from the start.

"It's 150 million or more now and going up. This is not a static, fixed price," he added.

A couple miles of road development can cost upward of $5 million, but money isn't the only issue with PDV.

"You've got a lot of moving parts, especially in Sandoval County. There's a lot of individual landowners that you have to deal with to obtain the right of way necessary to create a state highway, and that's been one of the projects that NMDOT has been working on for many years. The land, I think all of it in Bernalillo County has has been acquired, but they're still at about 90% acquisition, according to their news release here or their website, for the overall project in Sandoval County," Johnson explained.

This is also a project that won't happen in a couple of months. Because of the funding issues and land acquisition road blocks, this project is measured in years. The 25-year period that the community already waited for this part of the extension was directly related to funding. Johnson said the state has $3.5 billion in excess funding, so the project timeline could happen in the next two to five years.

Though the hope is the extension will bring that economic development Johnson was talking about, it does not guarantee it. However, Johnson says there is more to look forward to than just economic development.

"If you've ever tried to drive from I-40 to 550 on the west side of the river, you understand what I mean. Getting anywhere north-south along the west side of Albuquerque and Rio Rancho is problematic at best and a traffic nightmare at worst," he said.

Many obstacles rose up when the West Side was being developed. Johnson says Rio Rancho ran into problems like drainage and arroyo bridges for north-south travel.

The extension is a means for Sandoval County and west Bernalillo County to gain corridor access to trade ports on the U.S. West Coast of the US, such as Los Angeles. The extension would also connect Sandoval County to some of the larger companies already established on Atrisco Vista, where the PDV extension would exit on I-40. Companies like Amazon, Tempur-Pedic and Federal Express are currently out there.

Johnson also says the anticipation is more access to white collar jobs. The goal is to create a business-friendly environment with plenty of housing. Johnson says even though "we're pretty good at building houses out here in Rio Rancho," there still aren't enough.

Businesses are ready for this extension, but Johnson says the excitement has dwindled over the years because the project is taking longer than anyone would like.

But, he says, residents should be excited at this development.

"The residents should be excited about the potential for new jobs on the west side of the river because right now, Rio Rancho residents, about 68% of them, travel to Albuquerque every day to go to work. That's a problem. It's a problem for the economy and here in Sandoval County. The company pays a lot of taxes. We want to have them generate those taxes within Sandoval County and Rio Rancho area," he added.

Johnson further explained that if more people commute north to south via PDV, the congestion that comes with people crossing the river for work would lessen.

"So if you're concerned about the environment, that reduces things, like air pollution, and reduces road miles and road wear on all of our river crossings," he said.

The NMDOT study is a small step toward the next phases of the project.

While the wheels are turning on the project, it is still unclear if the full extension project will reach completion anytime soon. For more information on the NMDOT study, visit dot.nm.gov/projects/paseo-del-volcan/.