Downtown roads are congested, and state highways and county roads are seeing heavier traffic than they were built to handle. That's a basic headache—Hooper says that during his drive home, the highway backs up for a mile and a half, and a commute that once took 10 or 12 minutes now takes about 25. But it's also a safety concern. Highway 285 from Carlsbad to the oil field is two lanes and lacks a shoulder. That highway often packs bumper-to-bumper with white trucks for oilfield workers, water trucks, dirt trucks, oil-hauling trucks and service trucks, Hooper says. In the last couple months, it has seen a number of fatal crashes. State proposals to add turning lanes are years out, he adds, and the county needs them now.