SENATE MEMORIAL 56

53rd legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - second session, 2018

INTRODUCED BY

Elizabeth “Liz” Stefanics

A MEMORIAL

REQUESTING THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION TO STUDY PUBLIC SAFETY IMPROVEMENTS AND MEASURES FOR NEW MEXICO STATE HIGHWAY 14 BETWEEN INTERSTATE HIGHWAY 25 AND INTERSTATE HIGHWAY 40; REQUESTING A REPORT.

     WHEREAS, New Mexico state highway 14 between interstate highway 25 and interstate highway 40 is a two-lane country road with long stretches where visibility makes it unsafe or illegal to pass a slow-moving vehicle; and

     WHEREAS, New Mexico state highway 14 between interstate highway 25 and interstate highway 40 has very long, steep gradients, one of which is a two-mile descent into the village of Madrid; and

     WHEREAS, New Mexico state highway 14 serves as both a main street and a residential street as it winds through the village of Madrid; and

     WHEREAS, in the village of Madrid, a number of popular bars, restaurants and small shops line New Mexico state highway 14; and

     WHEREAS, there are no sidewalks with curbs in the village of Madrid, and residents and tourists tend to wander back and forth across the street as they decide where to shop, eat or have a drink; and

     WHEREAS, New Mexico state highway 14 between interstate highway 25 and interstate highway 40 also runs through the communities of Cedar Crest, Los Cerrillos, Golden, Lone Butte, San Marcos and Sandia Park; and

     WHEREAS, large, heavy freight trucks regularly use New Mexico state highway 14 between interstate highway 25 and interstate highway 40, and this traffic is projected to increase; and

     WHEREAS, there are particular public safety concerns related to the entrance into Madrid from the south. On many occasions, witnesses have seen heavy freight trucks making the two-mile descent into town that have not been able to reduce their speed to the posted limit of twenty miles an hour; and

     WHEREAS, a fatal crash in Madrid on September 21, 2016 underscored the risk of heavy freight trucks losing control as they enter the town;

     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that the department of transportation be requested to study the options for roadway improvements or other measures to increase public safety and decrease fatal accidents along New Mexico state highway 14 between interstate highway 25 and interstate highway 40 and present a report of its conclusions to the appropriate legislative interim committee prior to that committee's final meeting in 2018; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be transmitted to the department of transportation and to the following community organizations registered with Santa Fe county: the Cerrillos Hills Park coalition; the San Marcos association; the Turquoise Trail community association; and the Turquoise Trail regional alliance.

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