NNSA News:
Road improvements to several stretches of highways to and from Los Alamos National Laboratory will begin in about a month, following a $7 million contract award to Albuquerque Asphalt, Inc.
The road project is part of a $34.5 million settlement agreement between the New Mexico Environment Department (NMED) and the U.S. Department of Energy following the February 2014 drum breach at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant.
The Supplemental Environmental Projects agreement requires DOE to perform several safety and environmental improvements to support LANL operations.
“This has been a highly collaborative project between DOE’S National Nuclear Security Administration, NMED, the Army Corps of Engineers, the New Mexico Department of Transportation, LANL and Los Alamos County,” said Steve Goodrum, manager of the National Nuclear Security Administration’s Los Alamos Field Office. “We are pleased to announce this contract award a week ahead of schedule.”
Through an interagency agreement with NNSA, the Army Corps of Engineers awarded the contract to improve several sections of road from the Totavi gas station east of Los Alamos to the Omega Bridge in Los Alamos. That includes NM 502, NM 4 and East Jemez Road. Improvements consist of milling and replacing the top layer of asphalt.
“This project helps to ensure the future safety and success of Los Alamos National Laboratory, the people who work there, and the local community,” NMED Cabinet Secretary Butch Tongate said.
More specifically, the sections to undergo construction are:
- East Jemez; starting East of Omega bridge, East to about 3.4 miles;
- NM 4, starting just North of intersection of NM 4 and E. Jemez to junction with NM 502; and
- NM 502, starting just West of junction with NM 4, then East to the Totavi service station.
To mitigate impact to traffic to and from LANL, the majority of work will be performed in the evenings and on weekends. The scope includes paving an Atomic City Transit bus turnout east of the entrance to the Elk Ridge mobile home park. The Atomic City Transit is the Los Alamos public transportation system.
