Officials say repairs urgently needed on key roadways (New Mexico oil field roads)

The Albuquerque Journal ^ | March 4, 2019 | Ollie Reed Jr.

[CedarDave]

“The traffic has increased so greatly,” said Steve McCroskey, Eddy County planner, 48, a 1989 graduate of Carlsbad High. “If we had this much traffic when we were cruising (in high school), I don’t think any kid would have gotten home without a wreck.”

John Waters, executive director of the Carlsbad Department of Development, said about 43,000 vehicles pass through this intersection each day and that the population in a 20-mile radius of Carlsbad has gone from 42,000 in 2010 to an estimated 75,000 today.

Those numbers are attributable to a boom in oil and gas business that started in late 2016 and isn’t expected to let up soon.

“There is universal agreement that the Permian (Basin in New Mexico and Texas) will continue to grow in production,” said Robert McEntyre, spokesman for the New Mexico Oil and Gas Association. “There are vast amounts of untapped (resources.) We are going to be busy for a long time.”

Since roads in Eddy and Lea counties are the ones taking a pounding from big rigs hauling oil, water, dirt and fracking sand and towns such as Carlsbad and Jal in southern Lea County are the places choked up with oil and gas industry traffic, many feel most of that road-improvement money should be spent in those counties.

Tax revenue from the accelerated oil and gas business has resulted in a state budget surplus, and New Mexico is looking at putting $300 million to $400 million of that windfall into statewide road projects.

“We’ve got an unprecedented amount of money to spend,” said State Rep. Larry Scott, R-Hobbs, himself a long-time oil man. “I think this state Legislature should recognize that we should provide money to this area which is providing all the milk and honey up here.”

[CedarDave]

Part two follow-up to yesterday's story:

Surviving 285: Oil and gas boom wreaks havoc on southeast NM highways

[CedarDave]

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[Steely Tom]

Officials say repairs urgently needed on key roadways (New Mexico oil field roads)

Do roadways vote for Democrats in elections? No?

Don't hold your breath bro.

[sparklite2]

An ongoing oil boom and the state doesn’t have money to fix the roads? I can only guess where the money is being diverted to.

[blueplum]

why isn’t the state fixing roads? or hiring deputies to protect the border? Is the govt as corrupt as California or just incompetent?

https://www.kob.com/albuquerque-news/new-mexico-ranchers-frustrated-with-situation-along-us-mexico-border/5220568/

[laplata]

The Left in the NM State House wants to shut down energy in NM. They will not allocate money for those roads. IMO

[unixfox]

I thought the governor decided she wanted to halt fracking for 3 years.

Typical socialist. Kill the economy.

[laplata]

I think you’re right. And at the end of 3 years she would halt it for another 3 years....on and on.

[EQAndyBuzz]

Sorry but I have no sympathy for the citizens of New Mexico. This is what they voted for, this is what they deserve.

[laplata]

Sorry but I have no sympathy for the citizens of New Mexico. This is what they voted for, this is what they deserve.

><><

Not all the citizens of NM voted for it.

In that case, you need to be quiet about laws in Texas that you don’t like. You deserve it.

You even deserved POSObama.

[Lean-Right]

I’ll stand with laplata. Your
generalizations are ridiculous.

[Lean-Right]

There’s a double edged sword to this
problem. From south of Carlsbad, all
the way to Ft. Stockton, hwy 285 is
two lanes, and it’s bad almost the
entire length. (yes, even in Texas).
I’ve driven that highway traveling
between Houston and Roswell and in
the past 15 years, it progressively gets
worse. If, and when, something is put
into process to fix it, traffic is going
to get backed up due to single lanes
being blocked. It needs to be a 4 lane
highway, but our wonderful governor
Isn’t going to appease her more
conservative constituents, and will
instead, focus on roads running thru
her more liberal counties.

[laplata]

If what Leftists and their Useful Idiot Liberals vote for and get only affected them, it would be fine. But we have to suffer for it and we certainly don’t deserve it.

Thank you.

[<1/1,000,000th%]

Shovel ready jobs?

[laplata]

Good points.

I can’t remember the details on how and why it was improved, but Hwy 550 from Farmington to Bernalillo (I-25) used to be terrible like you describe Hwy 285. San Juan County is basically a conservative oasis in northern NM and I’ve been told that it took a Republican Governor to get it widened into a 4 lane.

I grew up in Rio Arriba County and the Democrat dominated politics has only gotten worse.

[Lean-Right]

When 550 was renovated, the feds
we’re mining uranium in the Farmington
area. The road was widened for the
same reason as 285 was widened between
Clines Corners to Carlsbad. They were
transporting uranium materials.

[Lean-Right]

You’re more than welcome. I lived
in Texas for a bit. They’re proud,
and have a fight to be. Comments
made are those without consideration,
and I understand the generalizations
were made to those leaning left, but
to lump us all together is not a fair
analysis.

[EQAndyBuzz]

I heard way too many times about how NY’ers deserve DeBlasio and Cuomo and how other blue states deserve what they get by voting in Democrats. I been through this twice before picking up, leaving the Democratic Republic of New Jersey and moving to Texas.

As far as the laws in Texas and what I deserve from them, I would say, no state tax, low property tax, a robust economy with unlimited growth, an abundance of jobs to choose from aren’t such bad things.

[EQAndyBuzz]

By the way, you are both right. I made a comment based on generalizations and I was wrong. I walked in your shoes and I didn’t like it when I was told I got what I deserved by voting in a Democrat, even though I didn’t vote for the rat.

So, my apologies.

[laplata]

No problem. Thank you.