In the next few weeks, Albuquerque residents will be seeing a new kind of ABQ Ride bus; a brand new bus sporting an entirely different look from what’s on the street now. Its hallmarks are a new, bright paint scheme with an homage to local landmarks and a new ABQ Ride logo to match.
On Thursday, May 15, Mayor Richard J. Berry and ABQ Ride Director Bruce Rizzieri unveiled that new look and logo on one of ABQ Ride’s new buses at Civic Plaza in Downtown Albuquerque. The new vehicles are New Flyer Xcelsior, 40-foot, heavy duty buses, fueled by compressed natural gas. They are part of a 21 bus purchase in January, 2014 from New Flyer.
"The new look of the ABQ Ride buses represents an evolution in modern public transportation services, while still honoring Albuquerque's history by depicting locales that have made us internationally-famous," said Mayor Richard J. Berry. “We believe the revamped logo will appeal to a new generation of Transit riders."
Eight scenes from around Albuquerque will be featured on the new buses: The Kimo Theater, the Alvarado Transportation Center, the Sandia Peak Tramway, Balloon Fiesta, San Felipe de Neri Church, the Petroglyphs National Monument, Route 66 and a UNM Lobo. The sides of these buses also depict maps lines and points that during nighttime travel become captivating, reflective highlights.
The New Flyers, with all their different components, cost about $485,000 apiece. They were paid for with a split of 83 percent Federal money and 17 percent local funding. Each new bus can seat a total of 39 passengers and can accommodate up to two wheelchairs.
Approximately 85 percent of ABQ Ride’s fleet is comprised of New Flyer buses. Not only is this ABQ Ride’s first Xcelsior model, it’s also ABQ Ride’s first New Flyer buses built with a CNG propulsion system. The new Xcelsior will gradually replace about half of ABQ Ride’s Series 300 buses. The 300’s were originally purchased in 1996-1997 and also burn compressed natural gas.
“This purchase offered the best bus available for the most economical price,” said Rizzieri, director of ABQ Ride. “Not only is it a cost-effective purchase, but passengers will notice a lot of enjoyable features, from the imaginative paint scheme to the smoother ride.”
