abqdave
Train Attendant
The New Mexico Rail Runner extension to Santa Fe opened in December 2008 to enormous success. Since then more trips have been added on Saturday, more cars added to trains on popular runs, and starting in a few weeks Sunday service will start. In the last couple of months I have taken 3 trips…1 during the week and 2 on Saturdays.
My Monday trip started at the bus stop at the end of my street, as I wanted this to be an entirely carless trip. Taking the bus isn't usually thought of as scenic, but this bus stop is in a really beautiful setting. Looking straight across you get a great view of Open Space and the Cibola National Forest in the Sandia Mountains. Behind you, you look at downtown (1,500 feet down and about 15 miles to the west). Our New Flyer DE40LFR http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Abqride_729.jpg gets us downtown in 50 minutes.
The Saturday trips were to drive to the Uptown Transit Center and take the Red Line Rapid Ride to downtown http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rapid_Ride. We could go from our bus stop, but the Red Line runs until 2:30am in the summer, in case we stay late in Santa Fe and take a later train back.
Downtown we arrive at the Alvarado Transit Center. It has a coffee shop in it, 3rd Alarm, that has good coffee and really good burritos (made by local institution Sadie's). We arrived about 20 minutes before the train so had just enough time to eat.
There is a good sized crowd waiting for the train all 3 times. The Monday train starts from downtown so getting a seat is not a problem. The Saturday train starts in Belen, so already has people on it…you have to hustle on to make sure you get a seat.
Rail runner uses MPI MP36PH-3C locomotives http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MPI_MP36PH-3C and Bombardier BiLevel coaches http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bombardier_BiLevel_Coach and cab cars (the locomotives always face south, so the train is driven from the cab cars half the time). They are comfy enough for commutes, but I wouldn't want to take one on a long journey. The seats sit very upright, don't recline, and have only adequate leg room for 2 6-foot men to sit across from each other. They do not compare at all comfort-wise to the Amtrak Pacific Surfliners from LA-San Diego.
Once north of downtown, the train quickly picks up speed. This section of the city is industrial/warehouse. The ride is a little rough in a few places with a very small amount of bouncing and bobbing. The train has to sound its horn at most crossings, but since I last rode it quiet zones have been established in most of the metro area.
The next stop is Journal Center/Los Ranchos, which has almost as many passengers boarding as downtown ABQ does. Once past Los Ranchos, the city ends and the green of the Rio Grande valley takes over. It is a thin slice of agriculture from the river to just past the railroad tracks, where it turns to desert. There are trees, cattle, horses, and some farming. Then 2 quick stops in the small town of Bernalillo followed by the long stretch to Santa Fe.
There are 3 Indian pueblos along this stretch. The residents request you take no pictures as you go through their land. Of note are a few hornos (outdoor mud ovens) and some large spaces for ceremonial dances, usually next to a church.
About half-way to Santa Fe, the railroad branches off the former BNSF track to the Santa Fe extension. First, it goes through Waldo Canyon to climb the east side of La Bajada hill. This is a 3% grade, and the train slows from about 80mph to about 30mph. The first time I took it was the first day they were running it with 5 double-decker coaches, and the conductor said this was almost 10 mph slower than with 4 coaches. If they add any more coaches, they will have to have 2 locomotives push it.
Last section before Santa Fe is running down the I-25 median. This is fun, especially watching the faces of out-of-state drivers who don't expect to see a train pacing them. The speed limit here is 75 mph, so the train sometimes passes the traffic. I suspect the engineer tries to pass traffic for fun when he can (I would).
The train goes into Santa Fe on the newly rehabbed Santa Fe Southern Railroad track. It is not a fast section, as it has curves and goes through a few intersections, but you do get to enjoy seeing adobe architecture on the houses…most homes in Santa Fe look similar. Last stop is the Santa Fe depot, which has a fair amount of new businesses in it (transit oriented development). It is an easy 10-15 minute walk to the plaza from here, and there are shuttle buses if you don't feel like walking. Santa Fe is very compact, you can see a lot of it by foot, and it has lots of museums, shopping, historic buildings, and is generally just very beautiful.
It is a really nice trip, and only $6 round-trip on Saturday. A word of warning; the train is usually full, and especially on the 4:30 trip back, it is standing room only.
Please enjoy the photojournal. http://www.flickr.com/photos/78552528@N00/...926595624/show/
My Monday trip started at the bus stop at the end of my street, as I wanted this to be an entirely carless trip. Taking the bus isn't usually thought of as scenic, but this bus stop is in a really beautiful setting. Looking straight across you get a great view of Open Space and the Cibola National Forest in the Sandia Mountains. Behind you, you look at downtown (1,500 feet down and about 15 miles to the west). Our New Flyer DE40LFR http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Abqride_729.jpg gets us downtown in 50 minutes.
The Saturday trips were to drive to the Uptown Transit Center and take the Red Line Rapid Ride to downtown http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rapid_Ride. We could go from our bus stop, but the Red Line runs until 2:30am in the summer, in case we stay late in Santa Fe and take a later train back.
Downtown we arrive at the Alvarado Transit Center. It has a coffee shop in it, 3rd Alarm, that has good coffee and really good burritos (made by local institution Sadie's). We arrived about 20 minutes before the train so had just enough time to eat.
There is a good sized crowd waiting for the train all 3 times. The Monday train starts from downtown so getting a seat is not a problem. The Saturday train starts in Belen, so already has people on it…you have to hustle on to make sure you get a seat.
Rail runner uses MPI MP36PH-3C locomotives http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MPI_MP36PH-3C and Bombardier BiLevel coaches http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bombardier_BiLevel_Coach and cab cars (the locomotives always face south, so the train is driven from the cab cars half the time). They are comfy enough for commutes, but I wouldn't want to take one on a long journey. The seats sit very upright, don't recline, and have only adequate leg room for 2 6-foot men to sit across from each other. They do not compare at all comfort-wise to the Amtrak Pacific Surfliners from LA-San Diego.
Once north of downtown, the train quickly picks up speed. This section of the city is industrial/warehouse. The ride is a little rough in a few places with a very small amount of bouncing and bobbing. The train has to sound its horn at most crossings, but since I last rode it quiet zones have been established in most of the metro area.
The next stop is Journal Center/Los Ranchos, which has almost as many passengers boarding as downtown ABQ does. Once past Los Ranchos, the city ends and the green of the Rio Grande valley takes over. It is a thin slice of agriculture from the river to just past the railroad tracks, where it turns to desert. There are trees, cattle, horses, and some farming. Then 2 quick stops in the small town of Bernalillo followed by the long stretch to Santa Fe.
There are 3 Indian pueblos along this stretch. The residents request you take no pictures as you go through their land. Of note are a few hornos (outdoor mud ovens) and some large spaces for ceremonial dances, usually next to a church.
About half-way to Santa Fe, the railroad branches off the former BNSF track to the Santa Fe extension. First, it goes through Waldo Canyon to climb the east side of La Bajada hill. This is a 3% grade, and the train slows from about 80mph to about 30mph. The first time I took it was the first day they were running it with 5 double-decker coaches, and the conductor said this was almost 10 mph slower than with 4 coaches. If they add any more coaches, they will have to have 2 locomotives push it.
Last section before Santa Fe is running down the I-25 median. This is fun, especially watching the faces of out-of-state drivers who don't expect to see a train pacing them. The speed limit here is 75 mph, so the train sometimes passes the traffic. I suspect the engineer tries to pass traffic for fun when he can (I would).
The train goes into Santa Fe on the newly rehabbed Santa Fe Southern Railroad track. It is not a fast section, as it has curves and goes through a few intersections, but you do get to enjoy seeing adobe architecture on the houses…most homes in Santa Fe look similar. Last stop is the Santa Fe depot, which has a fair amount of new businesses in it (transit oriented development). It is an easy 10-15 minute walk to the plaza from here, and there are shuttle buses if you don't feel like walking. Santa Fe is very compact, you can see a lot of it by foot, and it has lots of museums, shopping, historic buildings, and is generally just very beautiful.
It is a really nice trip, and only $6 round-trip on Saturday. A word of warning; the train is usually full, and especially on the 4:30 trip back, it is standing room only.
Please enjoy the photojournal. http://www.flickr.com/photos/78552528@N00/...926595624/show/
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