Lack of plows, salt on U.S. 550 questioned
WHERE ARE THE U.S. 550 PLOWS? That question comes from Tim Van Valen, who emails, “I was on U.S. 550 New Year’s Eve and passed the fatal wreck (that killed a 12-yearold boy just outside of Cuba) just after it happened. We left Bloomfield just about as it was getting dark, a little after 5 p.m., with intermittent snow and considerable snow from the prior day on the ground and pavement. My wife and I were driving back from the Pacific Northwest for Christmas with family.
“We observed that from Bloomfield to well south of Cuba there appeared to have been no plowing and certainly no sand or salting. There were fairly long stretches where one could not see pavement, despite considerable heavy truck, car and pickup traffic. We saw one plow the whole way to Bernalillo. We did not skid, but it was fairly nerve wracking and slow going. I lived in the northern U.S. when growing up and going to college and have considerable experience with the do’s and don’ts of driving in snow . ...
“U.S. 550 is a heavily traveled four-lane highway, and we found it odd that it appeared to us that little-to-no effort had been made to clear the highway. The lack of sanding and plowing was particularly surprising because we also noted that highways — mostly two-lane highways not as heavily traveled — we had been on the day before and on New Year’s Eve in Oregon, Utah and southwest Colorado, which also had considerable snow, had been plowed and sanded and were reasonably safe.”
Tim says it “may or may not have contributed to the fatal wreck, but I thought I’d pass our observations and concern with those responsible for safety on 550 in this area.”
In fact, according to the Journal news story Jan. 3, State Police said “the weather was a contributing factor in the crash, alcohol was not involved, and seat belts were properly used.”
And it seems to come down to three trucks that have more than 400 lanes miles to clear.
Jan L. Niclas, the assistant district engineer for maintenance for New Mexico Department of Transportation’s District 6, says, “The Cuba Patrol had three trucks clearing the snow on each 12-hour shift during the snow storm. The patrol is responsible for clearing the snow off the following routes:
■ U.S. 550 four lanes from mile post 35.6 to 103.9
■ N.M. 126 two lanes from mile post 0 to 25.5
■ N.M. 197 two lanes from mile post 0 to 30.7
■ N.M. 96 two lanes from mile post 0 to 8.8 and
■ N.M. 537 two lanes from MP 0 to 5.7.”
Niclas says, “U.S. 550 is the first priority route.”
WHO’S CHOPPING THE COTTONWOODS? Sondra Diepen asks in a recent email, “Who’s the Chainsaw Massacerer that’s severing huge limbs off beautiful old cottonwoods? This has happened along Second Street and Edith above Alameda Boulevard.”
“Sure,” Sondra continues, “cut out the dead wood, but this is beyond pruning. It’s called dismembering a stately living icon. Aldo Leopold is thrashing in his grave.”
Amor Solano, head of Bernalillo County’s Operations and Maintenance Department, says, “The trees on the west side of the road border the property line between county road right of way and Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District ditch maintenance right of way, so it’s little difficult to identify who is specifically responsible for maintaining the trees.”
However, “there was a weather-related incident that warranted the response for us to have crews do a very thorough trimming of these trees, specifically dead limbs and branches that overhang the road or the road right-of-way — the shoulder area. The road department is responsible for the safety of the traveling public, and we do our due diligence to prevent accidents, damage to property or loss of life.
“I understand that some may feel that tree trimming is a disregard for conservation, but it is necessary maintenance. Bernalillo County promotes an environmentally friendly way of life and has several programs that work towards that effort, including our Open Space properties, cultivating properties, our naturalist program and recycling and solid waste programs. More information on these programs can be found on our website, www. bernco.gov.”