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DOT describes millings donation program, pothole reporting via NM ROADS and claims process
Summary
NMDOT staff described a federal cooperative agreement that allows the agency to release pavement millings to local governments and said the department relaunched the NM ROADS app to let users report potholes and litter; claims for vehicle damage go through the state risk process.
At the committee hearing, NMDOT staff described two operational programs that affect local maintenance: a millings donation program and a public reporting tool for potholes and litter.
Millings donation program: NMDOT staff said the department has a cooperative agreement with the Federal Highway Administration that recognizes FHWA’s ownership of millings from federally funded projects and allows NMDOT to obtain FHWA approval and release millings to local entities. As the presenter put it, “we come in and we created an agreement between us and them, which basically allows anybody, any entity, city, county, tribe, Pueblo, school district to come and request mailings. We'll go through the federal process. It's a very simple process. We'll get those approved and then we'll cut them loose to the counties.” The presenter said the program has been substantial: “We've done over, you know, 615,000 lane miles with the locals. We've it's equated to about $7,000,000 of donated millions.”
Pothole reporting and claims: staff described two avenues for addressing vehicle damage and reporting road problems. Vehicle damage caused by state road conditions outside active construction is handled through the state’s risk/claims process. For reporting potholes and litter, staff said NMDOT relaunched the NM ROADS application with a function that allows users to pin‑drop a pothole or litter location; those reports go directly to districts and to assistant district engineers for maintenance response. “We've added a place on NM Roads that allows drivers to report 2 things to us in real time, and it'll allow you to use your, your location to pin drop the location of a pothole and litter,” staff said.
Why it matters: committee members asked how to get the word out about millings and questioned whether federal matching funds had been used to leverage local road work; staff confirmed that the legislative match fund was used for one award at about $2,000,000 and said the department is cautious to preserve match capacity for local applicants. The department said it would provide contact information and help local entities use the programs.
Ending: staff stood for follow‑up questions and committee members asked for contact information for district offices to report potholes and pursue millings requests.
