Less "For Fun" Railrunner Riders

I've been a supporter of the NM Railrunner. A little-known secret is that I'm actually featured on the front page of the Rail Runner website.



Yes the one in the yellow shirt, with the headphones is me. I'm actually wearing that same shirt right now, as I post this. And no, I wasn't cutting in line.

That day when I rode it, there were a grand total of ten people actually riding it to get somewhere. Everyone else on the train was just riding it from downtown up to Bernalillo and back to see what it was like. I was the only one to get off in Bernalillo.

The Albuquerque Tribune reports that while the traffic on the train is down since then, it has steadied.

"The drop we're seeing is because the people who wanted to ride the train for fun have done that," said Lawrence Rael, executive director of the Mid-Region Council of Governments, which oversees the system.

"The vast majority of riders we're seeing now are commuters, and that's what the system was intended for," he said.

That's more or less what Rael said in August, when he said ridership was "leveling out" at about 2,500 to 3,000 riders per day, down from 4,000 to 4,500 a day in July.

Ridership now averages about 2,100 to 2,500 riders per day, Rael said.

Albuquerque Tribune

If you're saying, "2100 riders isn't enough!", don't worry. In December, when the track is supposed to be extended to Belen and Los Lunas, expect a dramatic uptick in train traffic. Even when they start charging, it will still be cheaper - and quicker - than driving to work for many.

Some quick math using my commute, which is admittedly longer than most. To drive from my house to downtown Albuquerque (to school) is about 22 miles. That's 44 miles roundtrip, assuming I don't get sidetracked. It takes about 55 minutes in the morning (I leave at 8:00 am) , and 40 minutes on the drive home (I leave at 1:20).

My car gets an average of 26 mpg. So I use about 1.7 gallons a day, back and forth. Multiply that by the current cost of gas (I put in some gas at $2.35 the other day), and it costs me about $4 to drive each day -- assuming I drive straight to class and back, no side trips. Timewise, it is similar.

The times that I have rode the Railrunner, it has been on time or, at most, a minute late. So it takes 25 or 26 minutes to go from Bernalillo to Downtown.

The best part is that you don't have to drive. You don't have to worry about the guy in the right lane cutting you off. You just have to ride, you can read a book or the newspaper. And relax. Once downtown, you can hop on your bike and ride to where you need to go. Or take the Rapid Ride (but riding your bike is free!)

As I said, I'm a huge proponent of the Railrunner. Ride it a few times, find otu how easy it is to get to work, and you will be also.