Rail Runner to begin abbreviated route By: Reed Upton

The Middle Rio Grande’s commuter rail line is within weeks of beginning service, but it will have fewer stops than it will when full service begins.

On July 14th the Rail Runner will begin offering service from downtown Albuquerque to Bernalillo with stops at Alvarado Station, Paseo del Norte and US 550 in Bernalillo. Missing will be stops in downtown Bernalillo, Los Lunas and Belen.

“I would have preferred to have the whole corridor in place,” said executive director Lawrence Rael, “but construction schedules being what they are, negotiations with the Burlington Northern (railway) did not occur as quickly as we would have liked.”

Officials estimate the train will make the run from downtown Albuquerque to northern Bernalillo in 18 minutes.

When the trains initially begin running there will be no charge. Come October, a one-way trip aboard the Rail Runner will cost $2.

The News-Bulletin: Rail Runner should run in county in Septemberby Jackie Schlotfeldt News-Bulletin Staff Writer; jschlotfeldt@news-bulletin.com

Los Lunas Seeing is believing.

When the New Mexico Rail Runner visited Los Lunas two weeks ago it brought home the realization that, yes, the commuter train is definitely on its way.

Lawrence Rael of the Mid-Region Council of Governments (MRCOG) addressed Mayor Louis Huning and the Los Lunas Village Council Thursday updating them on the progress of the stations throughout the corridor and how soon the residents can expect to utilize it.

“They are planning a soft start on July 14, from Albuquerque to Bernalillo,” Rael said. “For Belen and Los Lunas, it looks like early September.”

Before the commuter rail can head south, a signaling system has to be installed from Isleta to Belen, and Rael said the system should be fully functioning by late August.

“It will yield a great deal of benefit to the area,” Rael said. “At this point, if the enthusiasm is like it is now, the train will be utilized a lot.”

While most of the stations are currently under construction, many of them are near completion Rael said. He gave this rundown:

# US 550 is 98 percent complete.
# Los Lunas will be 90 percent complete by mid-July.
# Belen is approximately 75 percent done.
# Journal Station is 98 percent there.
# Downtown Albuquerque is operational now, however, a few modifications will be made to make it comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
# Rio Bravo and Second Street will be brought on-line later because of some issues with land ownership, drainage and infrastructure.
# Isleta and Sandia Pueblos are in the approval process and will probably be the last two stations to come on-line.
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