SAFETY: NMDOT adds safety markings to freeway interchange to deter wrong-way drivers

The New Mexico Department of Transportation (NMDOT) has started work on new safety markings at the I-25/U.S. 285 interchange near Eldorado, adding directional arrows and reflectors.

The project is the first step in making the interchange safer. Santa Fe Mayor Javier Gonzales on asked the state a few weeks ago to look into whether a possible design flaw on the I-25 corridor between Santa Fe and Eldorado is contributing to deadly wrong-way crashes. His request came a few days after a head-on collision on the interstate claimed two lives as a result of wrong-way driving.

Bright white directional arrows and recessed reflectors are being applied on the exit ramp from northbound I-25 that leads onto U.S. 285 and on the ramp that leads from U.S. 285 to southbound I-25 heading to Santa Fe. Work began Wednesday and is expected to last a few weeks, according to agency spokeswoman Emilee Cantrell.

Gonzales also is asking the state to fund an independent safety study for the highway corridor between Santa Fe and Eldorado.