Andrews is a Step Closer to Fixing Their Traffic Congestion Problem

The City of Andrews is one step closer to fixing a major problem.More than 1,600 trucks travel through Andrews on any given day. They make up about 15% of the city’s traffic.

“I think there's a truck problem because when the light turns red and we're trying to get to work and the trucks are here it backs up the whole traffic and it takes forever to get to work," said resident Aurora Contreras.

Most of the congestion happens on the intersection of Main and Broadway. Truckers take those streets to get onto highways and residents use them to get around town.       

"You get these cars right here wanting to make a left -hand turn and trucks trying to make a right- hand turn and it's causing a backup," said another resident.

That’s why the city is planning on constructing a 13 mile truck route. It would be located within a mile of the city limits. All trucks coming through Andrews would be required to take it.

"We are at about 90% either committed or acquired that right away,” said Gene Hackler, Andrews’ City Manager.

Andrews is confident they’ll be able to acquire the rest of the land they need. They also believe there’s an opportunity for growth and development along the route.

The city said they’ve been working on a solution to fix their congestion problem for three years. The studies they’ve conducted in 2007 found that the truck traffic in Andrews had increased from 60% to 80%.

Andrews plans on having an election next May on the issue. Hackler said they don’t know how much the route is going to cost yet.