Tackling Traffic with Transit: How Albuquerque Can Provide Viable Transportation Solutions

Executive Summary

Analysis of the Transit Profiles of the Federal Transit Administration’s National Transit Database  shows that Albuquerque’s transit system ranks in bottom half among 25 cities its size for ridership and cost and service effectiveness. A closer examination reveals that Albuquerque is lagging far behind its western peers: Corpus Christi, TX; Austin, TX; El Paso, TX; and Tucson, AZ.

According to the standard measures of transit system quality Albuquerque ranks: 

•  15th out of 25 in total annual ridership. 

•  15th out of 25 in service effectiveness, the amount of passengers traveling per mile.   

•  24th out of 25 in cost effectiveness, measured as the amount of money spent per mile ridden by  passengers.   

Other cities are implementing practical and effective solutions. Other southwestern cities have used innovative technologies and restructured their public transit  systems to compete with the personal automobile by changing the system to meet residents’ needs and  providing faster, more efficient service.   

•  Tucson contracted a private company to evaluate its bus system and design a comprehensive  restructuring plan that will simplify routes and reduce travel time. 

•  Tucson along with El Paso, Corpus Christi, and San Antonio, are decreasing the amount of time  riders have to wait between buses by better coordinating bus transfers.   

•  Austin has focused on capturing a higher share of the transportation market by restructuring its  transit system and in the future offering more viable choices to commuters such as a light rail,  commuter rail, and HOV, or High Occupancy Vehicle Lanes, for express bus service.   

•  Austin, El Paso, San Antonio, and Ft. Worth have taken on a more community approach by  offering small neighborhood circulator buses that enable riders to travel short distances from  home to grocery stores, schools, or jobs as well as connect to cross town buses at neighborhood  terminals.   

•  San Antonio has also added amenities to increase safety and enjoyment of riding such as  security cameras and climate-controlled passenger waiting areas.