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Gary King of TLC Plumbing and Utilities calls in an update this morning on repairs to Paseo del Norte. A water line break closed the road Saturday. Crews had some eastbound lanes open this morning, but westbound lanes were still closed. King said he hoped the road would be open by rush hour this evening.

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Certainly not by this evening. Maybe not even by tomorrow.

That's the latest word on when westbound Paseo del Norte might be open to traffic, officials say.

But local law enforcement officers are prepared to ease traffic on alternate routes as work crews scurry to repair the road over a broken water main that caused a sinkhole Saturday.

Crews were able to open some eastbound lanes to traffic for this morning's commute along the high-volume east-west artery.

To ease the traffic crunch, Albuquerque police officers and Bernalillo County sheriff's deputies are monitoring intersections near the closure and high traffic areas on Central Avenue and Montaño Road for backups.

Officers are also using remote controls to manipulate stoplights on Alameda Boulevard, the busiest of the alternate routes, to keep traffic flowing.

Bernalillo County Sheriff Darren White said this afternoon that crews expect to lay down asphalt on Paseo del Norte this afternoon about 3:30 or 4 p.m. The asphalt must cure for about four hours; meaning if all goes well, traffic lanes could be open by about 8 p.m.

But not all is going well.

When crews attempted to open a water valve after repairing the broken main, the valve broke about 200 yards east of the original break between Jefferson and Second streets, White said.

"But that is about 20 feet below road surface," White said.

Workers are having to dig out another large area to fix that break. It is unclear if this will affect traffic flow.

To dig, workers must have authorization from various companies that have lines or pipes buried in the ground, including TV cable, electric and gas lines, said Terry Doyle, assistant district engineer for the state Department of Transportation.

Doyle said preliminary estimates for repairs are at $400,000 to $500,000.