Road congestion and the amount of students going to class in the district often prevents Rio Rancho Public Schools' children from getting to school on time.
Four Rio Rancho schools have been disciplining students if they’re late, even though parents were already lining up on the street 20 minutes before the first bell. One parent said she believes traffic and the amount of students all going to school at the same time are the real culprits.
“There’s times I’m in line at like 8:05, and I still can’t drop her off until closer to 8:15-8:16, and she barely makes it to class, if she makes it to class on time."
At the same time, construction, like the major project along King Boulevard, near Cielo Azul Elementary, makes a mess for parents during pick-up.
“The traffic has been an issue even before the construction, so there’s only one way in and one way out here on this main road to pick up the kids," one parent said. "A lot of the parents, we park in the neighborhood behind us, so we can walk, and be on time to get our kids."
Traffic and tardiness heightened safety concerns as well.
“There’s a lot of kids that I’ve seen just off-roading on the side of the road. Kids are in a rush to get there, so they don’t get referred for tardiness," another parent said.
While Rio Rancho Public Schools says it can't direct traffic outside of school property, it also released a statement from a district representative
“There has not been an increase in tardiness throughout the district, and schools work with parents on construction or other unforeseen issues that may cause delays," the statement said.
According to school officials, parents are encouraged to reach out to school administration if they think their student has wrongfully been given a tardy.
“If they can’t control their overcrowding, then they need to be a little more lenient," another parent said.
City officials have responded to this issue.
"The Rio Rancho City Council’s focus has been on road improvement due to the number of voters that said it was Rio Rancho’s main problem," said Mayor Gregg Hull. “Roads are our priority right now. We’re going to try to get it done a little bit at a time.”
King Boulevard is at the start of its reconstruction and is set to finish in September. The City Council is approving more roads as the legislative session gets under way.
The city of Rio Rancho was awarded a Capital Appropriation Project Grant by the New Mexico Legislature for improvements to the intersection of Idalia Road and Loma Colorado Boulevard.
Funding for the project comes from a $300,000 legislature capital outlay in 2022, which will be paired with $600,000 provided from 2021 by the New Mexico Legislature capital outlay. With that $900,000 in place, the city plans to start design and construction.
Deputy city Manager Peter Wells says more funding probably will be necessary, with total costs to be determined in the bidding processes.
The project will include the design and construction of a roundabout that was requested by the city due to new school-related traffic from the Shining Star Preschool.
