Local leaders push to halt project hours after groundbreaking ceremony

State and local officials broke out the ceremonial gold shovels Wednesday to celebrate the start of construction on the Santa Fe leg of the Rail Runner Express commuter train service.

But a few hours later, some local leaders launched an effort to halt the project to deliver passengers between Albuquerque and Santa Fe, saying they want to hold the state accountable for what they say is a failure to consider the community’s needs and concerns.

City Councilors Karen Heldmeyer and Matthew Ortiz and County Commissioner Jack Sullivan plan to seek support for resolutions that would rescind previous approval of the train project by the City Council and the joint city/county Metropolitan Transportation Organization.

“The state has been less than forthcoming in the public input, planning, development, construction and funding processes that negative impacts will be ameliorated and/or addressed as the Rail Runner project progresses,” reads the resolution introduced by the city councilors late Wednesday.

Ortiz said unless state planners take steps to satisfy his concerns about traffic, noise and environmental issues, it’s his intention the train won’t make it any further than the La Bajada rest stop south of town, where the groundbreaking festivities kicked off earlier in the day.

“What it would mean is the trains can’t cross any intersection that is a city right of way without addressing and mitigating the impacts,” Ortiz said. “We are not going to wait around for the answers to come after the train has left the station.”

State officials have said their first concern is making the commuter rail service attractive as an alternative to driving between Albuquerque and Santa Fe. So far, it has committed only to two stations inside the city: at the Santa Fe Railyard and at the Department of Transportation headquarters complex on Cerrillos and Cordova roads.

Train planners have hinted they might agree to build a third station, the timing and location of which are yet to be determined.

Staff from the city, county and a joint planning organization are studying a list of about nine potential locations in the city and county. They have said they plan to hold public meetings as soon as November. The city also has hired a private consultant to recommend additional stations.

The potential spots for train platforms and parking lots include the site of a now defunct pumice plant near Zia Road on which demolition began this week. Other locations under consideration are on either side of the Interstate 25 interchange with N.M. 14, at La Cienega, at Richards Avenue, at Rabbit Road/St. Francis Drive, at Siringo Road or in the St. Michael’s Drive/Second Street area.

Each area will be evaluated under dozens of criteria, including land ownership; access for buses, pedestrians and cars; and parking options. It’s possible this additional station would be built in time for the train’s planned local operations by the end of next year, said Lucas Cruse, senior planner for the joint city/county Metropolitan Planning Organization.

Not all local officials agree with the councilors and commissioner who are seeking to slow the project. Three Santa Fe County commissioners — a majority of that board — attended the groundbreaking along with Mayor David Coss.

Former Gov. Toney Anaya also attended the ceremony. Gov. Bill Richardson, who is campaigning for the presidency, did not attend. Although Richardson was the driving force behind implementation of the $400 million train, Anaya’s administration helped get the idea rolling in the 1980s with talk of a “bullet train.”

Anaya said he’s glad Richardson has pushed on despite naysayers. “Yes, it will certainly be criticized for the cost or ... whatever else, but no good idea goes without criticism,” Anaya said.

Construction crews worked nearby to prepare a tunnel the train will use to go underneath the interstate to reach the median. A temporary detour of northbound lanes is being built.

Another tunnel will be built at the edge of Santa Fe where the train will connect with an existing Santa Fe Southern Railway track that goes into the city. A contract for reconstruction of the track and other work on the final segment of the rail project within the city should be awarded in December.

The commuter rail will follow the BNSF Railway line from Albuquerque to the base of La Bajada, where the grade is too steep for the train. A new route will take the train over La Bajada at a point almost three miles east of where the BNSF passes underneath I-25.

The train will cross private land before intersecting with the interstate near the highway rest stop. The state is in the process of acquiring about 160 acres of right of way from three private landowners.

A guardrail will be erected along parts of the interstate median to provide a barrier between the train and motorists on the highway. The tracks will be closer to the northbound lane of I-25, and most of that will have a guardrail. The southbound lane will have a guardrail in areas where the median is narrow, according to Paul Lindberg, a state project manager. Transportation Department spokesman S.U. Mahesh said construction will continue as planned despite the backlash at City Hall. He said the department has “done everything possible” to work with local government and will continue to do so.

“The idea that the commuter train coming into town makes traffic worse is counter intuitive,” he said. “There is a significant amount of traffic ... that is associated with people who live in Albuquerque and work in Santa Fe, and that traffic is one of the reasons we have rush-hour congestion on St. Francis and other city streets.”

The Rail Runner, which began service in the Albuquerque area last year, has made headlines over the last month because of two fatal accidents in which trains hit vehicles south of Albuquerque. Both wrecks took place at spots where the train crosses rural private roads at high speed, and officials announced Tuesday that they would take steps to install better warning devices at those locations and negotiate to close some crossings.

Santa Fe drivers won’t face the same challenges as those on dirt roads in Valencia County, however, said Chris Blewett, project manager for the Mid-Region Council of Governments, on contract with the state to plan the rail project. No such private crossings are planned for the Santa Fe area.

“Our commitment early on was for those places where there are at-grade crossings (in Santa Fe), that we will be running at a maximum of 35 mph, and we are going to quiet-zone all these crossings, which means at a minimum, there will be quad gates and lights,” said Blewett. “That will produce a pretty safe crossing.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Contact Julie Ann Grimm at 986-3017 or jgrimm@sfnewmexican.com.

RAIL WORK TO SLOW I-25 SPEEDS

Work has started on a $250 million project to extend commuter rail service to Santa Fe, and motorists on portions of Interstate 25 near the city will have to slow down because of the construction.

The speed limit on I-25 between Santa Fe and La Bajada, which is south of the city,
will drop from 75 mph to 55mph in construction zones while work is under way on
the rail project, Secretary of Transportation Rhonda Faught said Wednesday.

The speed limit will be 65mph in sections of the highway when construction isn’t
going on in the median.

Existing tracks between downtown Santa Fe and the edge of the city will be rebuilt,
and new tracks will occupy the I-25median for about 12 miles between the edge
of the city and La Bajada.