Council Delays Traffic Measures (NM-Richardson's Railroad)

The Albuquerque Journal ^ | May 1, 2008 | Dan Boyd

[CedarDave]

The Santa Fe City Council's decision to withhold approval of proposed traffic control measures for construction of the Rail Runner Express commuter train could have serious financial implications to the state, a project official said Wednesday.

Councilors voted 6-2 Wednesday evening to postpone taking action on three measures dealing with infrastructure improvements needed to bring the Rail Runner to Santa Fe.

Citing concerns over the scope of the state's responsibility for existing infrastructure deficiencies, several councilors said they want more information before taking up the issue again May 14.

But state officials expressed frustration, pointing out after Wednesday's vote that $250 million of the $400 million Rail Runner extension project is already being spent in Santa Fe.

Lawrence Rael, executive director of the Mid-Region Council of Governments, the agency overseeing the Rail Runner project, said the state already has a contract in place to begin the traffic control measures needed to lay the train tracks across nine busy Santa Fe roads.

Now, Rael said, that contract will have to be re-examined.

~~snip~~

Though officials presented a five-page letter from Transportation Secretary Rhonda Faught in which she pledged that the Department of Transportation will provide 75 percent of the funding for the first year of Rail Runner operations, councilors apparently weren't swayed.

~~snip~~

Local officials have approved four area train stations, with more stations to potentially be added later. By working with state counterparts, they also came up with a schedule to stagger how the track is built in order to minimize impact to local drivers.

However, that schedule will likely have to be changed now. And with state officials hoping to begin train service between Santa Fe and Albuquerque by the end of the year, state officials have little appetite for delay.

[CedarDave]

GovZilla Richardson has repeatedly promised that his railroad would be finished by the end of the year. His appointees and subordinates are undoubtedly a little nervous when local governments, even one as liberal as Santa Fe, question the master plan for the rush to completion. However they have a point. Santa Fe's summer tourist season starts in a couple of weeks and having the city's already crowded streets torn up will make traffic frustration even more heated.