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[DJStephens]

New Mexico DOT is asking for almost 900 million in additional funding. Hopefully they get it and fund much needed projects.

https://www.krqe.com/news/new-mexico/department-of-transportation-asks-for-additional-889-million-on-budget/

Two projects at the top of my list that should be prioritized: the I-25/Montgomery interchange reconstruction, and straightening out the dreaded S-curve on I-25 through downtown Albuquerque.

Is that APS warehouse building still in the SE quadrant of that "S" curve?  The one they put that "mural" on?  Cannot for the life of me understand why it is so hard to comprehend that that facility has to be moved.   

[abqtraveler]

New Mexico DOT is asking for almost 900 million in additional funding. Hopefully they get it and fund much needed projects.

https://www.krqe.com/news/new-mexico/department-of-transportation-asks-for-additional-889-million-on-budget/

Two projects at the top of my list that should be prioritized: the I-25/Montgomery interchange reconstruction, and straightening out the dreaded S-curve on I-25 through downtown Albuquerque.

Is that APS warehouse building still in the SE quadrant of that "S" curve?  The one they put that "mural" on?  Cannot for the life of me understand why it is so hard to comprehend that that facility has to be moved.

It's still there, and most (if not all) of the land to the east of I-25 between the APS Warehouse and Gibson is owned by UNM. There's also the South Diversion Channel that runs adjacent and to the east of the freeway through that area. Finally, at the I-25/Gibson interchange, there are two cemeteries that butt up against the ramps in the northeast and southwest quadrants, that would make expansion of that interchange very difficult.

[DJStephens]

Believe those are indigent or what used to be known a "pauper" cemeteries.  There is precedent for exhumation and relocation.   Both could be combined into a single location E of the roadway.   Obviously respect for the dead, has be considered here, in any relocation.   

[jtespi]

There have now been three "cheapie" flush median jobs done statewide.  US 550/NM 44, with it's horrific safety record, US 70/380 Hondo Valley, and US 82 E of Artesia.  All are less than optimum, some (US 550/NM 44) are significantly worse.  But yes, a divided four lane, with a minimum sixty foot median, would be the best long term outcome, for US 54.  Personally don't believe it will ever happen.     

I was driving US-550 between San Ysidro and Bernalillo on Easter weekend and man that stretch of roadway is scary. You are only 1.5 meters (5 feet) from a head-on collision with just two sets of rumble strips and double yellow lines "protecting" you. It feels almost as dangerous as passing on a two-lane road to be in the left (inner) lane with traffic whizzing by at ~75 MPH.

They need to install a concrete barrier along most of that stretch, especially in areas where there's no need to maintain access to intersecting roads. Unfortunately, I don't think the state will do anything to put a barrier unless/until there's a major (fatal) crash along that stretch of highway.

Also, this intersection with NW Loop Rd in the north part of Rio Rancho is very scary, especially at night or during times of high traffic volume. There's a major accident waiting to happen since left turns from NW Loop to NB 550 are allowed and the speed limit is still 70 MPH at that part (at least for SB 550).

We know New Mexico tends to ignore long distance concurrencies on interstates.  I find it interesting when I find references to the concurrencies on the intersecting highways.

What's even more bizarre about that signage at that interchange is that it only mentions US-70 west NOT I-10 west. Even Google Maps is confused and labels I-10 as "US-70" in the Street View name. But near that previous Street View location, you can see they replaced the earlier US-70 shield (that was mistakenly on a 3-digit sized US-highway shield) to a green sign with only the US-70 shield, completely omitting I-10.

NMDOT's new website just went live. The URL is https://www.dot.nm.gov/

NMDOT still hasn't updated at least its main posted route log since 2010. I just use NMDOT's online Roadway Functional Class map to get the latest, though the "latest" may be a few years old.

You should see the trouble I'm having trying to get Google Maps to get rid of the NM-342 designation along Lohman and Amador Avenues in Las Cruces. I sent them links to the state's latest route log PDF document and Google still refuses to remove the 342 designation. That road hasn't been designated or signed as NM-342 in Las Cruces in over 20 years and yet Google still thinks NM-342 exists. It's absolutely maddening that the old Google Map Maker program no longer exists, because I'd probably have more luck trying to correct it when GMM existed.

[DJStephens]

I was driving US-550 between San Ysidro and Bernalillo on Easter weekend and man that stretch of roadway is scary. You are only 1.5 meters (5 feet) from a head-on collision with just two sets of rumble strips and double yellow lines "protecting" you. It feels almost as dangerous as passing on a two-lane road to be in the left (inner) lane with traffic whizzing by at ~75 MPH.They need to install a concrete barrier along most of that stretch, especially in areas where there's no need to maintain access to intersecting roads. Unfortunately, I don't think the state will do anything to put a barrier unless/until there's a major (fatal) crash along that stretch of highway.
Also, this intersection with NW Loop Rd in the north part of Rio Rancho is very scary, especially at night or during times of high traffic volume. There's a major accident waiting to happen since left turns from NW Loop to NB 550 are allowed and the speed limit is still 70 MPH at that part (at least for SB 550).

That NM - 44 / US - 550 adbomination was the single worst project of the gary johnson administration, and there were a lot of public works eggs laid during that governor's tenure.   Design - it's at the bottom of the barrel here, and seemingly new ways to go even lower are found.
As for fatalities, suspect there has been at least two dozen, on that stretch of road in twenty years, possibly more.  Nearly all could have been prevented, had there been proper design applied - mainly a depressed grassed median of at least 60 feet, full shoulders, and 85 MPH design speed, with appropriate horizontal and vertical curvature corrections.     

[abqtraveler]

I was driving US-550 between San Ysidro and Bernalillo on Easter weekend and man that stretch of roadway is scary. You are only 1.5 meters (5 feet) from a head-on collision with just two sets of rumble strips and double yellow lines "protecting" you. It feels almost as dangerous as passing on a two-lane road to be in the left (inner) lane with traffic whizzing by at ~75 MPH.They need to install a concrete barrier along most of that stretch, especially in areas where there's no need to maintain access to intersecting roads. Unfortunately, I don't think the state will do anything to put a barrier unless/until there's a major (fatal) crash along that stretch of highway.
Also, this intersection with NW Loop Rd in the north part of Rio Rancho is very scary, especially at night or during times of high traffic volume. There's a major accident waiting to happen since left turns from NW Loop to NB 550 are allowed and the speed limit is still 70 MPH at that part (at least for SB 550).

That NM - 44 / US - 550 adbomination was the single worst project of the gary johnson administration, and there were a lot of public works eggs laid during that governor's tenure.   Design - it's at the bottom of the barrel here, and seemingly new ways to go even lower are found.
As for fatalities, suspect there has been at least two dozen, on that stretch of road in twenty years, possibly more.  Nearly all could have been prevented, had there been proper design applied - mainly a depressed grassed median of at least 60 feet, full shoulders, and 85 MPH design speed, with appropriate horizontal and vertical curvature corrections.   

I suspect they widened NM-44/US-550 the way they did for two reasons: 1) to get it done as cheaply as possible, and 2) to appease the Native Americans whose reservations 550 goes through by keeping the widening within the existing right-of-way. If you look at 550 in its current state, there is very little room within the existing ROW for further widening in most places, although in some places the ROW might be wide enough to add a real median between the opposing lanes. It's also important to remember that the ROW just doesn't account for the roadway itself, but also includes the required clear zones and accommodates proper grading between the roadway and surrounding environment for the drainage of stormwater from the roadway.

[LilianaUwU]

I'm gonna say it: if nothing else, a Jersey barrier in the median is desperately needed on that stretch of highway.

[abqtraveler]

I'm gonna say it: if nothing else, a Jersey barrier in the median is desperately needed on that stretch of highway.

They've long talked about installing some kind of physical divider along 550 between Bernalillo and Bloomington, either a concrete Jersey barrier or cable barriers. No solution has gained traction, since New Mexico is just about flat broke. We barely get enough money to preserve our existing highways, let alone make simple improvements like cable barriers down the middle of 550.

[JKRhodes]

Noticed 404/Ohara in the anthony gap is being 4 laned, mostly with a narrow median and a concrete center divider. Also looks like there are some occasional provisions for future at grade intersections.

Feels like it’s gearing up for more suburban development; curious if there’s any reworking planned for the intersections at 213 and a more direct connection to Lisa Road. Anyone have further 411 on the plans?

[abqtraveler]

A couple weeks ago I drove from Albuquerque to Alamogordo. Good news is they're now working on reconstructing the final 11-mile stretch of US-54 between Carrizozo and Corona (MP 152 to MP 163). That, when finished, will complete the reconstruction of US-54 between Tularosa and Vaughn that began around 2010. I think they saved this stretch for last because about a 2-3 mile segment between MP 154 and MP 157 goes through a rather steep canyon. There will likely be a significant amount of blasting required to reconstruct the stretch through the canyon to the modern roadway profile seen elsewhere between Tularosa and Vaughn.   

[brad2971]

I'm gonna say it: if nothing else, a Jersey barrier in the median is desperately needed on that stretch of highway.

They've long talked about installing some kind of physical divider along 550 between Bernalillo and Bloomington, either a concrete Jersey barrier or cable barriers. No solution has gained traction, since New Mexico is just about flat broke. We barely get enough money to preserve our existing highways, let alone make simple improvements like cable barriers down the middle of 550.

I'm sorry, but NM is nowhere close to being broke. NM produces 1.8 million barrels of oil per day, with all the associated tax revenue that comes with that. If NM can afford to do this: https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/new-mexico/articles/2023-04-14/new-mexico-taxpayers-getting-rebates-due-to-budget-surplus#:~:text=April%2014%2C%202023%2C%20at%205%3A56%20p.m.&text=SANTA%20FE%2C%20N.M.%20(AP),Michelle%20Lujan%20Grisham%20announced%20Friday

It can easily afford safety solutions on US 550, whether they be Jersey barriers or triple-cable barrier.

[abqtraveler]

I'm gonna say it: if nothing else, a Jersey barrier in the median is desperately needed on that stretch of highway.

They've long talked about installing some kind of physical divider along 550 between Bernalillo and Bloomington, either a concrete Jersey barrier or cable barriers. No solution has gained traction, since New Mexico is just about flat broke. We barely get enough money to preserve our existing highways, let alone make simple improvements like cable barriers down the middle of 550.

I'm sorry, but NM is nowhere close to being broke. NM produces 1.8 million barrels of oil per day, with all the associated tax revenue that comes with that. If NM can afford to do this: https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/new-mexico/articles/2023-04-14/new-mexico-taxpayers-getting-rebates-due-to-budget-surplus#:~:text=April%2014%2C%202023%2C%20at%205%3A56%20p.m.&text=SANTA%20FE%2C%20N.M.%20(AP),Michelle%20Lujan%20Grisham%20announced%20Friday

It can easily afford safety solutions on US 550, whether they be Jersey barriers or triple-cable barrier.

Yes, but in the context of highway funding, NM is broke. The NM government's priority for spending is on handouts...always has been. Moreover, the political will does not exist to raise revenue to invest in our roads. New Mexico's motor fuel tax sits at 19 cents, among the lowest in the nation. It hasn't been raised since 1993. Attempts to raise the fuel tax over the past decade at both the state and local level have been squashed. Tolls are a non-starter. New Mexico is a pay-as-you-go state for highway financing, meaning the state doesn't borrow money to pay for road projects, although local governments may take out bonds (upon approval by the voters) to expedite the financing of road projects.

But you're right in the sense that New Mexico has the money, but it's more of a matter of priorities for the Legislature and the Governor. This last legislative session, NMDOT requested a $1 billion increase in funding for road projects this fiscal year, and lawmakers laughed at them. Again, out here, politicians heavily rely on handouts to buy votes come election time.

The other thing that concerns me is that throughout this year's legislative session is how lawmakers and talking heads were crowing about how New Mexico was flush with cash, with a budget surplus of over $1 billion. What they're not telling us is how much of that "surplus" is from one-time infusions of cash from federal spending (i.e., COVID bailouts, IIJA, etc.) and how much of that is from perpetual revenue streams. So while it all sounds good right now, I'm not convinced the state's financial health in future fiscal years will remain this way, especially when the money from the COVID bailouts and IIJA run out.

[brad2971]

I'm gonna say it: if nothing else, a Jersey barrier in the median is desperately needed on that stretch of highway.

They've long talked about installing some kind of physical divider along 550 between Bernalillo and Bloomington, either a concrete Jersey barrier or cable barriers. No solution has gained traction, since New Mexico is just about flat broke. We barely get enough money to preserve our existing highways, let alone make simple improvements like cable barriers down the middle of 550.

I'm sorry, but NM is nowhere close to being broke. NM produces 1.8 million barrels of oil per day, with all the associated tax revenue that comes with that. If NM can afford to do this: https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/new-mexico/articles/2023-04-14/new-mexico-taxpayers-getting-rebates-due-to-budget-surplus#:~:text=April%2014%2C%202023%2C%20at%205%3A56%20p.m.&text=SANTA%20FE%2C%20N.M.%20(AP),Michelle%20Lujan%20Grisham%20announced%20Friday

It can easily afford safety solutions on US 550, whether they be Jersey barriers or triple-cable barrier.

Yes, but in the context of highway funding, NM is broke. The NM government's priority for spending is on handouts...always has been. Moreover, the political will does not exist to raise revenue to invest in our roads. New Mexico's motor fuel tax sits at 19 cents, among the lowest in the nation. It hasn't been raised since 1993. Attempts to raise the fuel tax over the past decade at both the state and local level have been squashed. Tolls are a non-starter. New Mexico is a pay-as-you-go state for highway financing, meaning the state doesn't borrow money to pay for road projects, although local governments may take out bonds (upon approval by the voters) to expedite the financing of road projects.

But you're right in the sense that New Mexico has the money, but it's more of a matter of priorities for the Legislature and the Governor. This last legislative session, NMDOT requested a $1 billion increase in funding for road projects this fiscal year, and lawmakers laughed at them. Again, out here, politicians heavily rely on handouts to buy votes come election time.

The other thing that concerns me is that throughout this year's legislative session is how lawmakers and talking heads were crowing about how New Mexico was flush with cash, with a budget surplus of over $1 billion. What they're not telling us is how much of that "surplus" is from one-time infusions of cash from federal spending (i.e., COVID bailouts, IIJA, etc.) and how much of that is from perpetual revenue streams. So while it all sounds good right now, I'm not convinced the state's financial health in future fiscal years will remain this way, especially when the money from the COVID bailouts and IIJA run out.

Not to get too political about this, but I'm willing to venture a guess that a future governing party in New Mexico that is aligned with the people/industry producing 1.8 million barrels of oil per day would have little to no trouble passing funding to make the likes of four-lane US 550 safer. The behavior that you've described shows a certain amount of tone-deafness to NM's current economic situation, especially in the Permian Basin part of the state. That tone-deafness is not long for this world.

[DJStephens]

     The problem is, the average working class person in this state does not vote.  The west coast transplants and those with far-left "pie in the sky" viewpoints are the ones that do.   That is why the last R congressional representative, Herrell, who was the superior candidate, was defeated by single issue voters.
     Have seen the las Cruces area pretty much "flip" over to a complete "progressive" city council.  Terrible.  Crime is on the upswing, police have their hands tied, a lot of roaming vagrants, there is a complete lack of planning, large new subdivsions are rubber stamped, with no traffic projections.   There are now crazy "initiatives" such as traffic "calming" and "road diets".  Diets where a five lane cross section is needed, and necessary, the room meaning ROW is often there.  Skewing and shifting.  Regressive design on all fronts.   Extreme over-densification of land use in many areas leading to congestion and blight.  And in a state, that relies heavily on public sector employment, the trough is bigger than ever.   

[Rothman]

     The problem is, the average working class person in this state does not vote.  The west coast transplants and those with far-left "pie in the sky" viewpoints are the ones that do.   That is why the last R congressional representative, Herrell, who was the superior candidate, was defeated by single issue voters.
     Have seen the las Cruces area pretty much "flip" over to a complete "progressive" city council.  Terrible.  Crime is on the upswing, police have their hands tied, a lot of roaming vagrants, there is a complete lack of planning, large new subdivsions are rubber stamped, with no traffic projections.   There are now crazy "initiatives" such as traffic "calming" and "road diets".  Diets where a five lane cross section is needed, and necessary, the room meaning ROW is often there.  Skewing and shifting.  Regressive design on all fronts.   Extreme over-densification of land use in many areas leading to congestion and blight.  And in a state, that relies heavily on public sector employment, the trough is bigger than ever.

A stupefying political rant.

[ethanhopkin14]

     The problem is, the average working class person in this state does not vote.  The west coast transplants and those with far-left "pie in the sky" viewpoints are the ones that do.   That is why the last R congressional representative, Herrell, who was the superior candidate, was defeated by single issue voters.
     Have seen the las Cruces area pretty much "flip" over to a complete "progressive" city council.  Terrible.  Crime is on the upswing, police have their hands tied, a lot of roaming vagrants, there is a complete lack of planning, large new subdivsions are rubber stamped, with no traffic projections.   There are now crazy "initiatives" such as traffic "calming" and "road diets".  Diets where a five lane cross section is needed, and necessary, the room meaning ROW is often there.  Skewing and shifting.  Regressive design on all fronts.   Extreme over-densification of land use in many areas leading to congestion and blight.  And in a state, that relies heavily on public sector employment, the trough is bigger than ever.

I have always wondered this about New Mexico.  Driving across the state, many residents love to show their political affiliations in the line of flags and placards.  Reading all of the political viewpoints, you would swear you were driving through one of the reddest states, but they vote primarily the other way. 

[JKRhodes]

     The problem is, the average working class person in this state does not vote.  The west coast transplants and those with far-left "pie in the sky" viewpoints are the ones that do.   That is why the last R congressional representative, Herrell, who was the superior candidate, was defeated by single issue voters.
     Have seen the las Cruces area pretty much "flip" over to a complete "progressive" city council.  Terrible.  Crime is on the upswing, police have their hands tied, a lot of roaming vagrants, there is a complete lack of planning, large new subdivsions are rubber stamped, with no traffic projections.   There are now crazy "initiatives" such as traffic "calming" and "road diets".  Diets where a five lane cross section is needed, and necessary, the room meaning ROW is often there.  Skewing and shifting.  Regressive design on all fronts.   Extreme over-densification of land use in many areas leading to congestion and blight.  And in a state, that relies heavily on public sector employment, the trough is bigger than ever.

I have always wondered this about New Mexico.  Driving across the state, many residents love to show their political affiliations in the line of flags and placards.  Reading all of the political viewpoints, you would swear you were driving through one of the reddest states, but they vote primarily the other way.

I work with a handful of folks from rural, southern, NM. Talking to them get reference to, and a sense of disdain for, "the north" pulling strings of the state. Santa Fe to some degree, yes, but also seems large voting base in Albuquerque has large scale poverty / social issues, and gets bought off with democratic handouts.

Las Cruces, a liberal college town by some accounts, had an amazing turnout at George Strait/Martina McBride Pan America Center concert 10 years ago when I went.

Agreed. Poll data really doesn't line up with what I see when I visit, which I'll admit also involves staying out of Albuquerque at all costs.

[Alex]

there is a complete lack of planning, large new subdivisions are rubber stamped, with no traffic projections.

IMO this is a nationwide problem, and one that is shared equally among both political parties.

[Bobby5280]

We have plenty of bone-headed examples of "urban planning" here in deep-red Oklahoma. Real estate developers are only concerned about pushing through their latest deals ASAP. It doesn't matter if those deals conflict with any long term street/highway plans that might be on the books. They'll plop their development right in the way of it. Hell, it doesn't even matter if there is adequate water supply or utilities for the new development. That's where their connections to local city councils, county commissioners and state reps come into play. Dip into the trough and let the taxpayers fund the extension of infrastructure to the new douchebag-priced subdivision. Meanwhile streets and highways get neglected. The highways that everyone uses is socialism-funded -so that's bad and we can't do it. Yet the same people keep bitching about the toll gates on the turnpikes and how they need to be removed.

[abqtraveler]

there is a complete lack of planning, large new subdivisions are rubber stamped, with no traffic projections.

IMO this is a nationwide problem, and one that is shared equally among both political parties.

That is true. Politicians seem to never hesitate to approve a new development or subdivision or master-planned community because of the "promise" of new tax revenue. In reality, a lot of these politicians are getting their palms greased by the developers, and so the rubber stamp comes out.

Point in fact, the Santolina development alongside I-40 west of Albuquerque was rammed through the Bernalillo County Commission. Santolina is a master-planned community that, when fully built out, would be 22 square miles and have over 30,000 homes that could house up to 90,000 people. Prior to county commission approval, the Santolina development proposal required approval from Albuquerque Public Schools and the Albuquerque Bernalillo County Water Utility Authority (ABCWUA). The main backer of the Santolina development is the mega-bank Barclays.

The scarcity of water has always been a concern in New Mexico, to the point where the threat of rationing water is always present. That did not stop ABCWUA from approving the water management plan that was pencil-whipped by the developers' consultants. No new highways or improvements to existing highways are proposed as part of the Santolina development, as NMDOT stated the proposed development would not only have "no significant impact" to traffic on I-40, but somehow "reduce traffic" on I-40 through Albuquerque. How do you "reduce traffic" when adding another 90,000 residents to your metro area with no highway improvements?  Progressive thinking defies logic.

[DJStephens]

We have plenty of bone-headed examples of "urban planning" here in deep-red Oklahoma. Real estate developers are only concerned about pushing through their latest deals ASAP. It doesn't matter if those deals conflict with any long term street/highway plans that might be on the books. They'll plop their development right in the way of it. Hell, it doesn't even matter if there is adequate water supply or utilities for the new development. That's where their connections to local city councils, county commissioners and state reps come into play. Dip into the trough and let the taxpayers fund the extension of infrastructure to the new douchebag-priced subdivision. Meanwhile streets and highways get neglected. The highways that everyone uses is socialism-funded -so that's bad and we can't do it. Yet the same people keep bitching about the toll gates on the turnpikes and how they need to be removed.

I'd pay double the current state tax (currently 17 cents/gal up to 35 cents/gal) here, if there was a "house cleaning" at the department HQ on Cerrillos Road in Santa Fe.   To play "catch up" and build the surface infrastructure this state didn't build, and still needs.   Design standards restoration would be at the top of the list.   As well as ripping out, and "re-doing" a lot of Gary Johnson stuff, as well, which was almost universally terrible.   Johnson, as some may know, was a "darling" of the Libertarian crowd.  So yes, both parties have been bad for better surface infrastructure in this state.

[abqtraveler]

So, break...break...
I frequently visit the site historicaerials.com, which has aerial photos and topographical maps of places around the country, going back into the early part of the last century.  I was recently looking at aerial photos and old topo maps for Albuquerque and noticed something interesting.  On the 1960 topo map there existed a route co-designated "TR-66" using the US route shield (not sure if TR stood for Truck Route or Temporary Route) and NM-297. TR-US-66/NM-297 appears to have began at the intersection of Menaul Boulevard and Second Street (then Alt US-85, current NM-47). The TR-US-66/NM-297 designation followed Menaul Boulevard east to Wyoming Boulevard. The TR-US-66 designation split off Menaul at Victor Circle, which merges into Wyoming Boulevard. TR-US-66 then followed Wyoming Boulevard south to Central Avenue (former US-66), where it ended.

The NM-297 designation continued on Menaul past Wyoming to Snowheights Circle. It then followed Snowheights, to Eubank Boulevard, and then followed Eubank south to Central Avenue, where it also ended.

As previously mentioned, the TR-US-66/NM-297 designation appeared on the 1960 topo map, but it was gone in the 1969 topo map (the next available in the historicaerials.com database for that area).

Anyone road history buffs have any knowledge of what happened there?

[Bobby5280]

Politicians seem to never hesitate to approve a new development or subdivision or master-planned community because of the "promise" of new tax revenue. In reality, a lot of these politicians are getting their palms greased by the developers, and so the rubber stamp comes out.

Unfortunately a lot of these guys doing the rubber stamping may be in their graves 20 or so years from now when the demographics model to support those kinds of housing developments totally falls apart. No policy makers will be held accountable. There is going to be a shit load of old Americans wanting to sell these big-ass homes and not have any buyers for them.

Japan has been dealing with shrinking population and a serious demographic imbalance of too many older people and not enough young, working age people. One thing that has been happening lately is municipal and prefecture governments are demolishing properties of elderly people who've died. Their heirs often won't claim the homes. They may not be able to afford the renovations needed to make the properties sell-able. They may not be able to afford the property taxes (including back taxes that may be owed). And there isn't enough potential buyers in the market. Abandoned properties out in rural areas are especially prone to get bulldozed. Working age (often single) adults are opting for city life.

The US could be in a similar situation 20 years from now. Here in Lawton we have new subdivisions going up on the far East and West sides of the area. These are big homes with big utility bills and maintenance costs. It's going to be funny when these home buyers want to "down-size" in the future and sell their properties. A single child-less adult is not going to have much use for a big-ass house well outside of town. I can imagine a lot of these currently-nice housing subdivisions becoming ghost towns in the future.

[triplemultiplex]

I'm tempted to make a snarky "modest proposal" type statement about culling the boomers as they age out of usefulness.
Be a lot cheaper than trying to care for all these old people. 
I say it in jest, but I wouldn't put it past a place like China to actually pull that move as their own demographic time bomb starts going off.

[The Ghostbuster]

Don't insult boomers! My mother is a boomer.