Editor's Note: Safety should be the concern of every Laboratory employee in the workplace during the commute to and from our homes and in our homes. The stretch of NM 502 where this accident occurred has a posted speed limit of 55 miles per hour. According to law enforcement and eye witness reports, excessive speed and other factors may have contributed to the accident, and a concrete wall separting the east and west bound lanes of NM 502 may or may not have lessened the severity of this accident. Driving safely within posted speed limits and observing all traffic risks should be something we all practice.

Dec. 16, 2004

[On Dec. 9,] I had the extreme displeasure of witnessing the aftermath of another horrific traffic accident on NM 502. The sad part is that we know a median wall would prevent these head-on accidents, yet the state has chosen not build a median wall on this stretch of highway.

How many deaths are considered to be worth the cost of a simple safety measure? The safety of Lab workers commuting to work should be a critical concern to the Laboratory. It is the most dangerous part of a work day. I would like to see the Laboratory assemble (or promote or participate in) a coalition of local governments to press the state to improve the safety of the highway from Los Alamos to Pojoaque by installing a median wall. The U.S. 84-285 project from Pojoaque to Santa Fe proves the state understands the value of walls to keep traffic separated.

--Duncan Hammon