How's the mass transit in ABQ? (Albuquerque, Santa Fe: renting, buying, living)

[Hubcap_halo]

Hello,

I'm considering a relocation to ABQ from NYC and want to go without buying a car as long as possible.

I suppose that means renting across the street from a supermarket.

Other than that, does ABQ have a decent mass transit system to get to the major downtown offices and such? I'm an ad writer and wondering how I'd make it work.

Thank you!

[rybert]

Where there's a will there's a way.

ABQ has a very average (if not below average) mass transit system.

My mother Lives in the NE Heights and buses everyday to the VA (South East)... it's doable... if you care enough to try.

[yukon]

Obviously it won't be as good as what you're used to in NYC, but the transit system here isn't bad for this size city. Here's the website:

ABQ Ride - City of Albuquerque

Click on "destinations" in the left side box for a quick reference of major destinations and the routes serving them.

[ABQConvict]

If you live and work along Rapid Route (which certainly serves downtown), you will find going carless quite easy. If you live in the Heart of Darkness (just kidding, folks!) that is the far NE Heights, North Valley or the Westside you will need a car not necessarilly because of lack of routes, but the terrible hours.

ABQConvict

[Buzz123]

No city in the west, with the possible exception of San Francisco, is anything like any city in the east. First of all, most of us, except Albuquerque, haven't had 300 years to build subways. And with all the wide open spaces we tend to build our cites out instead of up. We like to have elbow room and don't like living on top of each other. So get a car. You'll need it, or else you'll be a pain in the butt to your friends. This isn't New York...it's a completely different paradigm. (I've just been dying to use that word.) Forget public transportation anywhere in the west. For all practical purposes, it just doesn't exist.

[ABQConvict]

Originally Posted by Buzz123

No city in the west, with the possible exception of San Francisco, is anything like any city in the east. First of all, most of us, except Albuquerque, haven't had 300 years to build subways.

Just to play devil's advocate,

Portland, OR and possibly Seattle, WA (Seattlites, correct me if I'm wrong) also have adequate or better public transportation.

NYC's subway is not 300 hundred years old though some of the stations appear that way

Nota Bene: I wholeheartedly agree with the basic premise of your post. Generally speaking the cities of the western U.S., for all of their other charms are, on the whole, atrociously laid out for public transport. The boulevards look like they were designed for columns of goose-stepping armies.

ABQConvict

[Buzz123]

Originally Posted by ABQConvict

Just to play devil's advocate,

Portland, OR and possibly Seattle, WA (Seattlites, correct me if I'm wrong) also have adequate or better public transportation.

NYC's subway is not 300 hundred years old though some of the stations appear that way

Nota Bene: I wholeheartedly agree with the basic premise of your post. Generally speaking the cities of the western U.S., for all of their other charms are, on the whole, atrociously laid out for public transport. The boulevards look like they were designed for columns of goose-stepping armies.

ABQConvict

I didn't really mean to imply that the subways are 300 years old, but most of those cities have been adding to the infrastructure for at least that long and longer. I think the Pilgrims landed in the 1600's? Santa Feans were saying where y'all been? We've been waiting for you. But, many of the subways, if I'm not mistaken are over 100 years old though. Can you imagine them tearing up the streets of Albuquerque, Las Vegas, or Phoenix today to dig tunnels for subways? They did finally get a few in LA but I don't think they have great mass transit there from what I've seen. Of course it's hard to get me out of my car in LA. Portland is the one city I've never been to, but I know that to get from the airport to the docks in Seattle, I seem to recall a bus, a train or streetcar, and maybe a cab. It wasn't any fum. In Boston last spring we were amazed that we could go anywhere in the city in 15 or 20 minutes on a subway. Those cities aren't very big and they put in that mass transportation when there were no cars.

Most major streets in the west are a lot wider than the horse and buggy designed streets back east, that's for sure. But even with seven lanes, busses take up too much space, smell bad, are slow, and cause traffic back ups at bus stops. There are a lot of turn outs for busses in Albuq., but other cities don't have many of those, and they put the bus stops right at the end of the block instead of in the middle where they would block traffic the least. At the end of the block they hold up cars trying to make a right turn, so that street is blocked too, as well as the cars in the bus' travel lane. In Las Vegas we've had a rash of cars killing people by running into bus stop benches that are inches from the curb.

[yukon]

Originally Posted by Buzz123

No city in the west, with the possible exception of San Francisco, is anything like any city in the east. .... Forget public transportation anywhere in the west. For all practical purposes, it just doesn't exist.

Thank goodness on the first point As for the second point, I lived in Dallas for many years without a car and managed fine on DART - and that was BEFORE the light rail was operational. It's much easier now. Salt Lake City's transit is improving rapidly as well. I was there last month for a convention and it was pretty easy to get around the city on public transit. Although they really do need to have Trax go out to the airport, IMHO.

[Southwesternguy]

I'd say the Duke City's Public transportation system is fairly good enough for a city its size in the region of the country it's in. And it's also improving as it gets more buses and routes,along sides .

[seedy]

NYC has done a lot of digging and rebuilding. The 3rd Ave line was originally elevated, see Billy Wilder's Lost Weekend for scenes of it in action.

And it may not be commonly known, but the longest bridge in in NYC is upper Park Ave, which was torn up and rebuilt over the New York Central railroad lines to Grand Central.

I think the difference is the density of capital available more than the civic impetus. ABQ also doesn't have a monster like Robert Moses trying to assuage his OCD by connecting every possible dot on the map.