EL PASO, Texas -- Like many of her neighbors, Central El Paso resident Denise Munoz worries that a portion of Trowbridge Drive cutting through Western Refining could soon close down permanently -- affecting traffic in a big way.

"Such a proposal would cause a lot of problems to the people in that area," Munoz said.

Right now, the street bisects the massive refinery between Geronimo and Delta -- but the city's looking at possibly changing that -- which has some concerned for their safety.

"I think it would add to the time that the first responders would have to get to such emergencies," Munoz said.

But ironically, safety may be one of the reasons why closing off Trowbridge would be a good idea -- since Western Refining is just feet away from the busy street, making it vulnerable to terrorist attacks.

A spokesman for the company said it's still too early to comment on the potential closure of Trowbridge, but issued a statement, which included: "In the interest of national security and our concerns in protecting the safety of our neighbors and our employees, we believe that closing a portion of Trowbridge that runs through the middle of our refinery would enable us to better secure the perimeter of our plant."

KFOX took the concerns of residents to City Hall to try to get some answers. They said no concrete decision has been made at this point, since they're still waiting for the results of a traffic study, and to see who ends up getting elected for that district.

"Before any routes or any options are explained, we are going to have a process in which the community will have the information presented and we'll get input through that process as well," spokeswoman Julie Baldwin said.

Here is Western Refining's full statement:

"Until the results of the traffic study are made public and the community has had the opportunity to hear the proposed recommendations from the study in a public hearing, it is premature to comment on the Airway Boulevard extension and the potential closing of a portion of Trowbridge Drive. In the interest of national security and our concerns in protecting the safety of our neighbors and our employees, we believe that closing a portion of Trowbridge that runs through the middle of our refinery would enable us to better secure the perimeter of our plant. The primary concern is to minimize the impact on the local community while increasing the safety of our neighbors and the refinery. We also want to do whatever we can to assist the city and the state in improving the transportation infrastructure of this region. We are hoping that there is a plan that will enable each of these to be accomplished at the same time." -- Gary W. Hanson, Corporate Communications, Western Refining