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LAS CRUCES - Construction continues slowly but steadily along a portion of Main Street, from Las Cruces Avenue north to Mountain Avenue.
But the pace still frustrates Las Crucen Leo Cardenas and other city motorists as they keep on winding their way through road construction that will last in that neighborhood for at least another eight months.
"It ticks me off," Cardenas said of the detours he's had to endure every weekday since the road construction began in July. "It (traffic movement) is not really smooth, especially around 5 (p.m.) and between 7 and 8 every morning. Man, I wish these guys would get the road finished."
Part of Cardenas' wish is about to be answered, particularly if he's traveling southbound on Main Street in front of City Hall. The western side of half of a roundabout that will be at the intersection of Main Street and Mountain Avenue is about to reopen. That means that traffic going south on Main will be able to use the west side of the roundabout to get onto Water Street and other points south of the road work.
The west side
"It's probably best to say that's going to happen sometime during the second week of February," said David Maestas, contracts administrator for the city's Public Works Department. "It could happen sooner, but that would depend on a variety of factors."
Once the west side of the roundabout opens, work will immediately start on the east side. The detour of traffic would shift to the east, with vehicles traveling north on Church Street merging onto Mountain, coming to a stop at the temporary "T" intersection at Main and Mountain, and then turn right to get onto Main.
"It would be just the reverse of what's there now," Maestas said. "Instead of traffic going south using that detour, it will instead be used for vehicles going north."
Construction of the east side of the roundabout is anticipated to be finished in September, along with the rest of the improvements being made to reopen Main Street, from Las Cruces Avenue north to Mountain.
Public Works Director Mike Johnson said the project to reopen the northern portion of Main Street, from Las Cruces to Mountain, still remains on schedule to be finished in September. Work to install or relocate underground utilities along the affected portion of Main is essentially finished, and the focus of construction will shift to building the road along Main.
"Really, there haven't been any significant problems or issues that have been encountered so far," Johnson said. "The project is still on time, and people should start noticing substantial improvements along Main Street over the next few months. Of course, the road will still be closed, but progress will begin to be much more noticeable."
Johnson added that in the coming weeks, work to rebuild the intersection of Las Cruces and Main, at the southern end of the project, should also begin. Work on underground utilities at the intersection was finished in December, and new curbs and gutters have been installed.
The Las Cruces and Main intersection will be concrete, to match the roadway along Main Street Plaza. When that work begins, the entire intersection will be closed to traffic.
Steve Ramirez can be reached at (575) 541-5452
Half round
•The west side of a roundabout being built at Main Street and Mountain Avenue could be opened as soon as this week to traffic, but more likely next week.
•Since July, southbound traffic along that portion of Main Street has been detoured by a temporary stop sign at Main and Mountain.
•When traffic is allowed on the completed portion of the roundabout, work on the east side of the roundabout will begin.
•Traffic traveling northbound on Church Street will have to detour onto Mountain and make a right turn at the temporary stop sign before getting back onto Main Street.
•When completed, probably sometime in September, the roundabout will be 90 feet in diameter.
