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Rail Runner starts service to Belen Opening of Belen commuter rail station completes Phase One of Rail Runner route (1-25-07) – Service for the New Mexico Rail Runner Express will extend all the way south to the City of Belen Friday, Feb.2. The opening of this leg of service completes the entire 50-mile Phase One commuter line. View the new Rail Runner schedule. “The Rail Runner is on track and already becoming an integral part of the daily commute for many New Mexicans,” said Governor Bill Richardson. “Clean, fast mass transportation options are a key part of moving New Mexico forward.” Commuters on the Belen-to-Albuquerque line will receive free fares until April 1st. “With the addition of service to Belen, the Rail Runner brings even more New Mexicans an extremely convenient form of transportation”, said new Mexico Transportation Secretary Rhonda Faught. “The New Mexico Department of Transportation is very proud to be the providers of a transportation system that serves so many who live and work in the heart of the Rio Grande valley”, adds Faught. The extension of Rail Runner service to Belen means that there will soon be a third train in the rotation of those serving the Albuquerque-to-Belen corridor. Included in the additional service will be a train that departs a little later in the morning coming into Albuquerque, and one that leaves Albuquerque going south a bit earlier in the afternoon. (See schedule). “This extension represents much more than simply adding Belen to regular Rail Runner service”, says Lawrence Rael, Executive Director for the Mid-Region Council of Governments. “With the addition of this southern-most rail connection, commuters will also see a revised Rail Runner schedule which includes a lot more service south of Albuquerque. This will especially help serve those we call “reverse commuters” – people traveling from Albuquerque to Los Lunas and Belen in the morning, and returning in the afternoon”. The Belen Rail Runner station is located at Reinken Avenue and Wisconsin Street, on the east side of the railroad tracks. It is across the tracks from the historical Harvey House Museum, an area that brings passenger rail service full circle to where it all started back in 1901. Parking at the station is free, and provides space for more than 200 vehicles. “The Belen area boasts a long history with train travel”, says Belen Mayor Ronnie Torres. “The people of Belen have really gotten behind the Rail Runner. This is going to bring a great transportation alternative to our city, as well as provide us with a long-awaited economic boost”, adds Mayor Torres. The New Mexico Rail Runner Express began
serving commuters between Albuquerque and
Bernalillo July 14 last year. Four stations in
Bernalillo, the Los Ranchos/Journal Center,
the Downtown Albuquerque Station, and Los
Lunas have been open since. Contacts:
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