Albuquerque Rapid Transit (ART), the city of Albuquerque, N.M.’s bus rapid transit (BRT) system, reached the 10 million rider milestone on June 24. The city says ART delivers more than two million rides to the community annually and accounts for about 30 percent of ABQ RIDE’s total ridership.
According to the city of Albuquerque, ART primarily runs along historic Central Avenue and is distinct from other ABQ RIDE service due to its high capacity and longer articulated buses, dedicated lanes that make it faster, signal priority and distinctive stations. The buses continue beyond the ART infrastructure to the eastern end of Central Avenue (Green Line route 777) and to Uptown on Louisiana (Red Line route 766). The city notes that with a new service plan nearing completion, ABQ RIDE will make similar extensions in the next several years without any new construction to the Cottonwood Mall area and along 98th St. looping back to the shopping center at Coors and Rio Bravo, which provides an important connection from the Westside to the rest of Albuquerque.
The city of Albuquerque says the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy recognized ART at its completion as a Gold Standard BRT system, the highest international ranking. According to the city, Despite service reductions due to staffing shortages like the rest of ABQ RIDE’s system, ART continues to be the most productive service, with almost twice as many riders as the rest of the system per hour of bus service operated.
“ART has become a permanent part of Central, moving millions of people across our city,” said Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller. “We’ve worked hard to make it a productive system even after early challenges that began before I took office. Today, it connects neighborhoods, supports businesses and jobs and has some of the strongest ridership in the country.”
The city says it has added easy-to-clean epoxy flooring to ART stations, painting ART lanes red for caution and improving safety by adding pinned curbs.
“ART has been a transformative project for the city, carrying people to places throughout the Central corridor and beyond, and it has been exciting to see the development along the corridor that continues to grow,” said Albuquerque Transit Associate Director Chris Payton. “This is a wonderful milestone for Albuquerque and achieving the 10 millionth rider is a great indicator of future success.”
Albuquerque Councilor Joaquin Baca added, “As a longtime ART champion and rider, I’ve seen firsthand the positive effect of this investment. Year after year, ridership has increased, and it is the gold standard for rapid transit in the United States. In my district, which lies in the heart of the ART corridor, we have experienced the beneficial ripple effects throughout the community. With over $800 million in new construction and renovations along the route, ART is more than just a bus service; it's a powerful engine for economic growth and revitalization. It's connecting our community, providing reliable transportation for over two million riders annually and building a more vibrant and accessible city for everyone. This is a significant step forward, but it should not be the last. Our commitment to better serving the people of Albuquerque should include continued expansion of our transit.”
ART data
- Launched in November 2019
- Delivers almost 200,000 rides a month, or over twp million rides annually
- Transported the community on 2,291,358 rides in 2024
- Accounts for over two million rides each year out of a system total of about 7.3 million
- Operated by a fleet of articulated buses that are 60 foot long
“Looking back, ART was a major feat to pull off, and with the ordeal of construction well behind us, we can enjoy the success of the system now,” said Albuquerque Transit Principal Planner Andrew de Garmo. “On the road ahead, aside from routine maintenance and repairs, the only adjustment to ART will be when the ABQ RIDE Forward Plan is launched. This plan includes an extension of the ART line (with no new construction) into the Westside to provide a one-seat ride to the major destinations on Central Avenue like UNM, Old Town, Downtown and Nob Hill and a reduction of route redundancies along Central to improve service on connecting lines.”
The 10 millionth rider, Rhett Sanders-Spencer, has utilized ABQ RIDE services across his academic and professional career. In 2010, he first used public transportation by taking the Rapid Ride from the Alvarado Transportation Center to the University of New Mexico (UNM). Now, 15 years later, he rides ART every day to commute to and from work and graduate school at UNM.
"I've come to rely on ART to facilitate the daily logistics of getting around after losing my car in an accident last year," Sanders-Spencer said. "I've grown to appreciate public transit because it's deepened my sense of connection to the city and with community along my commute. I'm grateful for the accessibility and affordability of public transit in Albuquerque, and I'm looking forward to seeing how it continues to improve!"
