Stoplight will be installed at Pasilla-Riverside; NM 528 to be widened

New Mexico Department of Transportation Secretary Ricky Serna told Rio Rancho residents that a traffic signal will be installed at the Pasilla Road and Riverside Drive intersection on NM 528 and that the corridor will be widened to improve safety and capacity. The announcement came at a town hall called by Rep. Alan Martinez and Governing Body member Nicole List, responding to long-running local concern after a 2024 crash that killed a local couple.

Serna outlined a two-track approach: immediate, short-term fixes and a longer design and construction phase. Short-term measures include placing speed cameras along NM 528 and installing candlestick devices to restrict left turns and crossings at Pasilla and Riverside. Serna said crews will begin design work for a permanent traffic signal, a process he estimated could take up to 16 months. The external traffic study that informed the plan recommends the new signal operate only on weekends at first; Serna added that the signal "will function every day when traffic levels warrant it" and that the timetable "might change, and it might be sooner."

The town hall followed a December governing body meeting where NMDOT officials presented an external traffic study, and a letter from Martinez that demanded "the swift completion and public release" of the study. Martinez urged respectful public discourse at the meeting and said he was "happy the secretary has moved this fast" on the plan. List thanked Martinez for "being a champion for us" and cautioned residents that implementation "is not going to happen tomorrow."

NMDOT also plans to acquire property around the intersection to allow crews to widen NM 528. Serna said the agency will monitor adjacent streets to avoid shifting traffic problems to other neighborhoods and acknowledged residents' frustrations, recounting in general terms the personal impact of crashes. "We have to be mindful that accidents are going to happen," Serna said. "Everything we do is a gamble." He described community members as willing to be "nimble" with the agency as short-term measures roll out.

Residents at the Church of the Incarnation town hall voiced mixed reactions. Some who reported crashes at the intersection supported a traffic signal but expressed disappointment with the design timeline. Concerns included potential difficulties turning right from Pasilla onto NM 528 and suggestions such as building a roundabout, which drew nervous laughter.

For Sandoval County drivers, the announced steps mean enforcement and physical changes to the corridor in the near term and a multi-stage construction process ahead. Expect speed cameras and turn restrictions to appear first, property acquisitions and road-widening design to proceed, and ongoing public meetings as NMDOT refines timing and monitors traffic impacts on surrounding streets.