Traffic Monitoring
MRCOG collects traffic counts at all major roads in Bernalillo, Valencia, Torrance, Sandoval and southern Santa Fe counties. The resulting traffic data is used to support various transportation planning activities, and to produce annual Traffic Flow Maps of the Albuquerque- and outlying rural areas.
Most traffic counts are performed using portable traffic monitoring devices with rubber tubes that stretch across the roadway (pneumonic tube counters). Devices are placed at a location for 48 hours. Counters are set out on Mondays or Tuesdays and picked up on Wednesdays or Thursdays. All major roads are counted once every three years. Growth factors applied in the intervening years and seasonal factors are applied based on the time the count was taken.
Traffic Count Maps & Reports
There are three types of traffic flow data available online and three different general ways to access these data. The data available includes:
- Average Daily Traffic (ADT): this is an annual daily average taking into account all seven days of the week
- Average Weekday Traffic (AWDT): this is an annual average for Monday-Friday traffic
- Observed traffic counts: this is the raw counts that have not had seasonal and growth factors applied to create an annual average. These counts include directional and peak hour information
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Nathan Masek
Senior Transportation Planner
Traffic Flow Maps, VMT Trend, and Busiest Intersection Report
MRCOG’s earliest traffic flow map dates back to 1968. These maps show annual average weekday traffic (AWDT) in a pdf format. Additionally, annual Vehicle Miles Travelled (VMT) data for the AMPA dating back to 1970 are shown in tabular and graph formats. The top 25 busiest intersections are summarized for 2016. Below are links to the most current traffic flow maps, AMPA VMT trend, and the latest busiest intersection report.
Please contact Nathan Masek for questions regarding traffic volumes.
Transportation Analysis and Querying Application (TAQA)
NOTICE: TAQA is currently down as a result of a hack on MRCOG servers. We are working with our consultants now to get the application back online. Our apologies for the inconvenience.
Traffic counts data along with travel time is available for download from the Transportation Analysis and Querying Application (TAQA). A TAQA User’s Guide is available to help guide people thorough the data selection and download process. In addition, Data Development Summary Descriptions is also available to help the data users understand how these data are collected and processed.
Data available on TAQA includes:
- AWDT for the years 2000-2014
- Observed traffic counts, which include direction and AM, PM peak hours and peak hour volumes
- Travel time for select roadways
Access TAQA: https://public.mrcog-nm.gov/taqa/
Interactive Map
MRCOG also provides an interactive online traffic flow map that allows you to zoom in and see traffic counts for roadways that may be hard to see on a traditional map.
Data available includes:
- Annual ADT for the years 2007 to 2017. ADT takes into consideration all seven days of the week
- Annual AWDT for the years 2007 to 2017. AWDT is a daily average for Monday-Friday traffic
- View traffic counts by clicking on a roadway
Turning Movements Counts
In light of the recent COVID-19 Stay At Home and related travel restrictions, the regional traffic managers within the AMPA have determined that current data-counting efforts in support of new project proposals would not be representative of actual traffic conditions. This situation is temporary, however, resumption of normal traffic patterns is uncertain at this time, therefore, during this interim timeframe the following turning movement count reports (conducted prior to the travel restrictions, and where geographically representative) may be used for initial analysis, to identify representative conditions of area traffic. It is important to note that ALL analysis MUST be coordinated directly with local agency guidance and consultation. Studies will be handled on a case-by-case basis upon agreement with reviewing agencies, and in the effort to identify representative conditions of area traffic, should include additional data sources for project analysis and impact mitigation efforts.