Corrales is known for its rural lifestyle and its slower pace of life. But some locals are concerned that things — namely vehicles — are moving too fast.
Mayor James Fahey Jr. told the Corrales Comment that he and others from the village met with New Mexico Department of Transportation representatives and expressed their concerns about speeding traffic on Corrales Road (State Route 448), the village’s main drag.
“We would like to decrease the speed limit, put up signage to give motorists an idea of their speed, improve lines of sight, and get more police presence as a start,” Fahey said.
He said he thinks the meeting represents improved communication between the village and state authorities.
The state has jurisdiction over the road. Generally, it will change a speed limit if local officials collect traffic data that justifies the desired change.
Earlier this year, a Village Council meeting had to be postponed after a pickup truck crashed into the administration complex.
Mike Hamman, speaking during the Corraleños Forum at the council’s Aug. 12 meeting, passed out a summation of residents’ concerns about traffic on the north end of town.
“You’ll notice there’s over 90 signatures on this document,” he told councilors.
Hamman said the road has been the scene of numerous accidents, incidents and near-misses in the last six months.
Hamman said the intersection of Corrales Road and Mountain View Lane is particularly difficult to navigate, especially when pulling a trailer.
He said Councilor Rick Miera, Village Administrator Ron Curry and other village leaders deserve recognition for being proactive and visiting areas where the problem is present.
“They’ve all been out on site, taking a look at the situation and hearing the concerns,” Hamman said.
He said traffic on Corrales Road is increasing as more development takes place in Rio Rancho.
Hamman and others are urging state authorities to re-evaluate the speed limit in that area.
Resident Ken DeHoff said there have been two significant accidents on the north end of the village in the last eight months.
“The first one, the guy sheared off a power pole,” DeHoff told councilors. “It’s 80 feet to the north of me, right on the highway, and he missed a double gas hydrant by three feet. That could have been a real disaster.”
DeHoff also criticized the law-enforcement response, saying speeders are only being cited, even if they cause property damage or are intoxicated.
Russell Trujillo said a T-bone collision occurred about 50 yards from his driveway earlier in the day. He said the frequency of traffic collisions harms Corrales’ reputation.
“I’m kind of tired of hearing about Corrales being a safe community,” Trujillo said. “I hear it like every other day somewhere on the radio or in the paper. We’re such a safe community, but I don’t think we ever factor in the car accidents we have … up and down Corrales Road. I’ve seen dead people hanging off my mailbox. I’ve had rollover cars in my driveway.”
He urged councilors to start working on a connection between Loma Larga and Corrales roads.
Theresa Lopez said a police officer was paralyzed in a crash a few years ago and suggested that the speed limit be reduced to 25 mph.
If the driver is drunk, would he care if the speed limit is now 25 MPH? Make it expensive to speed – especially if you are DUI. Make them pay for all property damage. They have no business driving. Let’s not coddle them.
This is an absurd suggestion. The speed limits in Corrales are already low – 35 on Corrales Rd and 30 on Loma Larga. The mayor and council have apparently approved tons of money for fancy speed enforcement vehicles – including a hot-rod Camaro for the Corrales PD to go after speeders. It’s time to hold those who choose to speed accountable, rather than punish the rest of us with a ridiculously slow 25 MPH speed limit. Do people not understand that if you decide to speed, you’re going to speed whether the limit is 5 or 55? Why should we all have to travel at a snail’s pace when we have a well funded and well equipped police department that should simply be enforcing the laws as written?
The mayor, village administrator and many of our councilors should retire to their old folks homes and make way for a younger crowd with more sane ideas and more energy and willingness to deal with issues head on. These sundowners have sundowned.
100% agree! Not to mention, you can grow old waiting to turn onto Corrales road from a business on the mains drag because people are usually already going 30 or under, which causes horrible congestion. I avoid Corrales whenever I can, it is an unpleasant and unwelcoming place because of that and the general hostility of the locals.
I agree punishing the village residents with too slow speed limits for the few offenders that create horrific accidents is a terrible idea. I rarely see drivers exceeding the speed limits. Violators will never honor the law.