Unser widening project begins

ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) - Some Albuquerque west side drivers who use Unser Boulevard north of Interstate 40 as part of their commute will see a minor inconvenience for the next six months as crews widen the roadway.

The main purpose of the project is to add an extra lane in each direction between I-40 and Ouray. In addition, the city says bicycle and pedestrian lanes will be added as well.

For the meantime, Mark Motsko from the City of Albuquerque's Municipal Development Department says the north and southbound lanes will be squeezed from two to one lane in each direction from north of I-40 to Ouray.

"As the city continues to grow and people continue to come in from Sandoval County and everything, we want to make sure that those times for people's commutes are manageable," says Motsko.

To help ease the problems of construction, Motsko says crews plan to do the majority of the work opposite of rush hour times. That means north bound lanes will be worked on in the morning, then switch to the southbound lanes when the afternoon rush hits.