Saturday, September 7, 2013

Pavement edge dropoffs on NM-4 West of Valles Caldera Are Worse Than Ever


Stay Away From the Edge

Took a motorcycle ride up NM4 today just for the heck of it. I was headed to Las Conchas. Just past the turnoff to the Valles Caldera staging area, there starts new pavement at least as far as Las Conchas. The edges have an abrupt 2-3 inch drop in the "La Cueva" direction (South? West?). So now the pavement edge dropoff is worse than ever. Plus, the shoulder, what there was of it, looks pretty trashed.  So you will have to ride your bicycle well into the lane. If you are on a moto, please, please don't overcook a curve and drift to the edge. It could be fatal.

I don't know if the State of New Mexico is planning on remediation of this or if we are supposed to live with this. My suspicion is this is what we get, because it conforms to NMDOT practice elsewhere in the state. Partial paving might save a few bucks, but at risk to your life due to the possible loss of control if you hit the edge lip wrong.

I'll email the district engineer, BCNM, LAB, and our state legislator. You should too.

1 comment:

Jerry said...

Wow! That's some serious drop off edge! This is pretty pathetic for the cyclist.