City approves traffic program projects

The El Paso City Council on Tuesday approved a $1.2 million allocation for the next priority projects in the Neighborhood Management Traffic program. The program’s purpose is to install the proper traffic claming measures in residential areas.

The Council on Tuesday heard a presentation by the City’s Transportation Director Ted Marquez who recommended approving the $1.2 million for traffic calming infrastructure, including speed humps and roundabouts for six projects. The $1.5 million, which will fund the projects until 2019, is the last allocation out of a $5 million fund approved by City Council in 2012.

The program was approved by Council on June 26, 2012 under the Street Infrastructure Capital Plan from fiscal years 2013 to 2019. From 2013 to 2016, the City allocated $3.5 million and the remainder $1.5 million are for fiscal years 2017, 2018 and 2019.

Marquez on council recommended the remaining $1.5 million be used for traffic calming measures on six El Paso streets, including Dear in the Northeast, Paducah in far East El Paso, Mauer, Gene Torres, Henry Shipps and Scott Simpson in City Rep. Lily Limon’s district which includes parts of the eastside.

The projects also included Brisa del and Pino Real on the westside.

Limon took issue with the presentation, saying it was “incomplete” and pointing out work for one of the projects in her district had already begun without city employees notifying her. She said she found out about the work on Mauer Street three weeks ago when neighboring residents contacted her. Marquez said the work on that street had been temporary to alleviate traffic while the project was in the queue.

He said the program had undergone a change in management and perhaps had not notified Limon because of that. “We apologize for that. Our normal operating procedure is we inform the residents, we inform the representatives, we inform media that we are going to have the meetings, we want everyone to be informed on what’s coming.”

The program last year gained attention when city employees appeared to have violated policy when installing speed humps in front of Cathedral High School after City Rep. Larry Romero suggested it and City Manager Tommy Gonzalez ordered it. “I would like to see full and accurate information. This is a very important step. And given the controversy with speed humps, I would hope that we could have a review,” said Limon in an interview.

Under the program, residents who request traffic calming infrastructure in neighborhoods must fill out an application, gather enough signatures from neighbors and the city conducts a study to determine what, if any infrastructure is needed. “We want residents to give us input and give us their feedback because we want this to be a community driven solution not a staff driven solution,” said Marquez.

Limon was not convinced and said she wanted to see a full list of all the requests from constituents the city had received. “Some of these projects have been on there since 2008 – more information that was really needed and important and it’s an issue of transparency. How do some projects get on the list and get done and others don’t.”

The rest of council did not side with Limon and approved $1.2 million for the recommended projects. “You’re never happy,” Mayor Oscar Leeser said to Limon during the discussion. In an interview later, Limon said she didn’t take the comment personally and she and the mayor have a good working relationship. “I think people were just tired.”