Rio Rancho lawmaker demands NMDOT release traffic study

RIO RANCHO — A state lawmaker from Rio Rancho isn't mincing words for the New Mexico Department of Transportation.

Rep. Alan Martinez, a Republican, sent a letter Dec. 11 to NMDOT Secretary Ricky Serna demanding "the swift completion and public release" of a study along the NM 528 corridor at the intersection with Pasilla/Rivers Edge after it committed to conducting a study in the area. 

Martinez invited Serna and other NMDOT officials to a town hall on June 24 to hear residents' suggestions to fix the corridor and discuss a new traffic study, which the secretary said would be complete by September.

In the two-page letter, Martinez, the House minority whip, wrote that in October, NMDOT informed him that there was "a limited set of preliminary findings" about the corridor and an "engineering review was underway." But since then, Martinez claims he has not received an update from the agency.

"This lack of communication undermines public trust and raises serious concerns about whether this issue is truly being treated as a priority," Martinez wrote.

He urged the completion and release of the study because "New Mexicans deserve transparency, accountability, and timely action, not continued delays and uncertainty."

On Thursday, NMDOT Communications Director Kristine Bustos-Mihelcic responded to Martinez's letter, but it did not address the lawmaker or his letter directly. 

Bustos-Mihelcic wrote that the report is "in the evaluation stage" and on Dec. 18, NMDOT will provide an overview to the State Transportation Commission of the measures that will be implemented based on findings of the traffic study.

She added that NMDOT continues to coordinate with the city on the traffic study and other road safety evaluations. Agency officials even shared preliminary draft copies of the study with Rio Rancho officials. Serna and his staff also met with Rio Rancho Mayor Gregg Hull, City Manager Matt Geisel and other city officials to discuss the data that was collected.

"NMDOT is committed to both short-term, actionable improvements and long-term strategies that enhance safety and traffic flow for the entire NM 550 and US 550 area, including the NW Loop," Bustos-Mihelcic wrote. "We appreciate the City of Rio Rancho’s collaboration and remain fully aligned in working toward meaningful, data-driven improvements for the community."

Martinez said in an interview that after NMDOT delivers the report to the commission, he would like Serna and his team to come back to Rio Rancho to discuss the findings.

"(NMDOT) owes it to the people of District 23 to come and sit with them and give the findings of this report and listen to what the community itself has to say about it," Martinez said. "I will tell you this: I believe Secretary Serna is a man of his word. I'm very optimistic the secretary will live up to his promise."

Deputy City Manager Peter Wells said the city has no comment on Martinez's letter, but said it "looks forward to learning more about NMDOT’s recommendations and (the) next steps." Hull did not immediately respond to a request for comment.