City of Albuquerque makes changes to several ABQ Ride bus routes

The city of Albuquerque will be updating nine of its bus routes this month as part of a 16-phase plan — increasing or decreasing frequency and adding or removing routes, among other changes.

The changes to ABQ Ride services will begin Dec. 13 and are “designed to make riding easier, with benefits such as increasing frequency and weekend service, reducing overlap for better coverage, and equitably increasing access for more community members,” according to the city’s Transit Department website.

“We ask for patience and open-mindedness as we roll out these improvements,” Transit Deputy Director Mike Davis said in a news release Wednesday. “Some beloved routes will change, and in turn new routes will be transformational. Every decision has been carefully analyzed and contributes to a better system for Albuquerque.”

Some Albuquerque bus riders say upcoming changes to its routes and schedules are a good thing, while others think they won’t make a big difference. But those who spoke with the Journal agreed on one thing: The bus service is a necessity in the city.

“I don’t have a vehicle and I have no way to get around,” resident Ann Johnson said as she rode the Route 66 bus, which traverses Central Avenue. “This is my only source of transportation.”

Other phases of the plan will take place over the next few years “to ensure ABQ Ride can meet staffing and fleet needs,” Transit Department spokesperson Madeline Skrak said.

A few of the changes that will take effect in the coming days include:

• Route 66 buses will arrive every 30 minutes instead of 25 minutes. Johnson said while the decrease won’t be a big deal, the bus route offers the quickest service, “especially for people who are sitting and waiting there when it’s cold.”
• Route 53 (Isleta Boulevard to Downtown) will run on Sundays. Riders taking the bus on the other days, will have to wait an hour instead of 45 minutes. Rider Steve Whittenberg said adding the Sunday route is good because there are many people in the area with no transportation who need the service.
• Route 36, which runs from 12th Street to the Rio Grande by Griegos Road, will be discontinued. It will be replaced by ABQ Ride Connect’s Rio Grande Service Zone, which will now feature Saturday service from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
• Route 8 (Menaul Boulevard) will provide service on Indian School Road, west of 12th Street and Rio Grande. Riders can expect the bus to arrive every half-hour instead of 40 minutes. The route, however, will no longer go north on Fifth Street and south on Sixth Street.

The changes are part of the ABQ Ride Forward Network Plan, an initiative that began in 2022 to review the performance of the city’s bus network.

“ABQ Ride Forward refreshes Albuquerque’s antiquated bus system, which hasn’t been updated in over 25 years, to a plan that makes sense for how people live, work, and connect today,” Skrak said.

Whittenberg said while he appreciates being able to take the bus to run errands, the service has “gotten worse” since the City Council voted to adopt a pilot zero-fares program, which it voted to keep permanently in November 2023.

The free rides, he said, have resulted in buses becoming jam-packed with unhoused people. Along with an increase in riders, he sees many people who carry weapons on the bus, Whittenberg said.

In fiscal year 2024-25, there were about 7.48 million bus riders, an 11.5% increase from 2023-24, when there were 6.71 million riders.

In 2025-26, as of Sept. 30, there have been 1.98 million riders, Skrak said.

When asked for the number of criminal incidents reported on the buses, Skrak sent a link to the quarterly ABQ Ride security reports. The reports show incidents at bus stops and transit facilities but the data does not reflect incidents that happen on the bus and are responded to by Albuquerque Community Safety or the Albuquerque Police Department.

“Please note... that ACS and APD do not gather ‘on-the-bus’ or ‘by route’ data because they gather data based on geographic location instead,” she said.

Despite the imperfections with buses, resident John Hollingsworth said they are “not bad.”

“It’s the only way to get around,” he said.