| Alvarado Transportation Center Albuquerque Amtrak station Rail Runner commuter rail station |
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ABQ Ride Bus bay, with Alvarado Building |
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| Station statistics | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Address | 100 First Street Southwest Albuquerque, NM 87102 |
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| Lines | Amtrak: NMRX: | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Connections | Greyhound Lines, ABQRide | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Platforms | 1 side platform, 3 island platforms | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Tracks | 4 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Parking | Yes | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bicycle facilities | Yes | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Other information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Opened | 2002 (Alvarado TC, ABQRide) 2006 (NMRX) 2008 (Amtrak) |
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| Accessible | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Code | ABQ (Amtrak) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Owned by | City of Albuquerque | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Fare zone | Zone B (Rail Runner) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Traffic | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Passengers (2011) | 75,779[1] 5.5% (Amtrak) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Services | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The Alvarado Transportation Center (ATC) is a multimodal transit hub located at 100 1st Street SW in Downtown Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA.
The complex was built as a hub for Albuquerque's regional transit system and as a replacement for Albuquerque's previous bus depot and train station. The ATC serves ABQRide, Amtrak, Greyhound Lines, and the New Mexico Rail Runner Express commuter rail line.
The Mission Revival-style ATC was designed to be reminiscent of the Alvarado Hotel, a railroad hotel which was formerly located on the site. The ATC also features a clock tower, located on the northwest corner of the complex, facing the intersection of Central Avenue and First Street.
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Albuquerque is a stop on Amtrak's daily Southwest Chief line. Two Amtrak Thruway Motorcoach routes connect the station to El Paso, Texas Amtrak Station and Denver, Colorado Union Station. The train platform is located along the eastern side of the transit center.
Amtrak moved its passenger service operations at Albuquerque to the Alvarado Transportation Center on January 17, 2008, sharing space with providers of intercity bus services. Amtrak's previous facility, a small building located adjacent to the current depot, was in use for passenger operations since the historic Santa Fe station burned down in 1993. Today the old facility is used as an Amtrak crew base.
The Rail Runner station went into service on July 14, 2006 as one of the three original stations on the line, along with Los Ranchos/Journal Center and Sandoval County/US 550. Each of the Rail Runner stations contains an icon to express each community's identity. The icon representing this station is the ATC itself. Technically, the station served by the Rail Runner is referred to as the Downtown Albuquerque Rail Runner station.
The ATC's Greyhound depot makes up most of the southern side of the complex, and contains an enclosed waiting area with ticket booths and a small cafeteria. The depot is served by Greyhound and Autobuses Americanos. The New Mexico Park and Ride Turquoise Route, which utilizes the northern part of the complex (along with the ABQ Ride buses), connects to Edgewood and Moriarty.
The ATC serves as the main hub for most of the ABQRide bus routes as well as the Rapid Ride Red Line BRT route. The complex also has offices for the City of Albuquerque Transit Department. In addition, the clock tower of the ATC serves as the logo for ABQ Ride.
Albuquerque's first train station, a small railroad depot, opened on the site of the current ATC in the 1880s. With increasing demand for a larger facility, the Alvarado Hotel, a Mission Revival-style building which served as one of the many Harvey Houses along the train route, was constructed on the site in the 1902. Santa Fe Railroad architect Charles Whittlesey designed the building, and Mary Colter designed the interior of the hotel. The hotel was named for Hernando de Alvarado of the 1540 Francisco Vázquez de Coronado Expedition. Just south of the hotel a train station was constructed, also in the Mission Revival style and with a large, distinctive tower.
The Alvarado Hotel was renowned for its luxury, but by the mid-20th century, with the decline in railroad travel in the United States, the hotel fell on hard times and was demolished in 1970. The site remained a dirt parking lot for many years. In 1993, the Albuquerque train station burned down, and Amtrak used a small facility on the site as the train station.
The current ATC complex was constructed in the 2000s. The first phase of the project was completed in 2002 to serve ABQRide. The second phase, completed in 2006, added facilities for Amtrak, Greyhound Lines, and the New Mexico Rail Runner Express commuter rail line. The ATC was designed to be reminiscent of the old buildings, with many architectural elements borrowed from the Alvarado Hotel and the former train station.