Improvement Doesnt

Have To Mean
Starting Over.

A proposal to the Transportation

Department and the mayor of Albuquerque
to not finalize the ART.

Introduction.
The Albuquerque Rapid transit, otherwise known as the ART, has been
the talk of the town for a couple weeks now. It was an idea that sprang up a
couple years ago, but now that the funding and ideas are becoming concrete, it
is becoming something the city and its residents must give attention to. It is a
proposed idea of a new way of transportation for Albuquerque that will
drastically change many aspects of the areas affected.
What it is, is a transit that runs above ground just as our busses do now. The
difference it that it will have its own dedicated lanes on the roads as shown in
the picture below, from the ART website. It is planned to run from Coors to

Tramway and Louisiana to Central. The project also includes putting in more
traffic lights, and widening the sidewalk in several different regions. Another
part of the ART plan is to install kiosks where people can purchase tickets for
the ride. My proposal is that instead of the ART we should use that detail of the
plan alone, to improve and expand on the transportation system already in use.

Why It Is A Problem.
If the Albuquerque Rapid Transit comes to be there are several different

issues and inconveniences it will create. First, lets take a look at why the state
is even considering this project. The idea is that it will improve Albuquerques
transportation for its residents and enhance the commuting life. If
Albuquerque is in that much need of a fix, why is it that recently the city was
ranked 6th in Best City for Commuters (abq.org) and in the top 20 for Most
Bikeable Cities (visitalbuquerque.org)? Rapid transits are suitable for high-

density cities; Albuquerque only averages about 3,000 people per square mile,
which is not the definition of crowded. To put this in perspective, here are the
densities of not just residents, but active users of the transit, per square mile of
several other cities, which use this system.

As you can see, Albuquerques population is much less than these other cities
that the transit is benefitting. What benefits could this project really bring if it is
not fitted for the population of the city?
What it will bring is traffic.

If the Albuquerque Rapid Transit gets passed, the area is in for high stress
levels and street fights. As demonstrated in the first graphic element of this
proposal, the ART will be making some drastic construction alterations. Not
only will this endeavor be tearing up the middle of the busy streets of
Albuquerque, it will be ripping apart the sidewalks as well: for no less than ten

miles. That is constant construction for an unknown amount of time. I could not
even find an estimate for how long it will take, but based on the amount of
work it is and New Mexicos track record on construction, it is going to be a
long one. And if you think after it is finally here, that the congestion will ease
up, think again. The Albuquerque Rapid Transit will be taking away 2+ lanes of
driving everywhere it goes. It will be narrowing already narrow streets such as

central. That is going to make for an unwanted commute by the drivers of New
Mexico. The idea of the project is more people will ride it, but with Albuquerque
having such low gas prices, and the Transit costing out of pocket for every ride,
it seems very unlikely people will drift away from their cars to ride the transit. I
have talked to some everyday commuters, and I can speak for myself as well
here, that the Albuquerque Rapid Transit is not something I would switch over
to.

What We Can Do Instead. A Plan.

The reason the ART is even coming up for consideration is that people
feel that Albuquerque needs a change in its transportation methods during rush
hours. Although the bus system we have in place now (ABQ Ride), is pretty
efficient, there is room for improvement. What we could do instead is to

improve the current bus system in place. I propose that we add several kiosks
around the city where people can buy their bus tickets and/or passes early.
That way, it sheds off a couple minutes each pick up/drop off since all the
riders have to do is flash their pass. The kiosks can be placed by the bus
stations for convenience. This may even increase the number of day/month
passes sold, since more people will be exposed to the option.
The kiosks will be placed at six different locations:

Juan Tabo

Menaul

Central Avenue

Coors

Montano/Uptown

Fourth Street

To fulfill this, these steps would be carried out.

Step One: Appoint a Project Manager

Step Two: Set up and prepare locations for the kiosks

Step Three: Order needed equipment and support staff
Step Four: Install the kiosks
Step Five: Advertise new and improved way of purchasing tickets

Qualifications.
I have lived in Albuquerque for almost 3 years now. Actively commuting
and living along the streets that will be affected by this project. I drive my car
down central at least twice every day and ride my bike to campus several times
a month. I am very familiar with the traffic flow and transportation patterns that
happen around the area. I have asked many different people who live and work
along the areas to be disturbed by the project on how they feel about the ART
and how they believe it will affect them. I have also read up on several articles
both supporting and opposing this project.
Cost / Benefits.

For a completely fully loaded kiosk the average price is around $6,000,

however, for this solution our kiosks would just need touchscreen, a printer, a
card reader, bill validator, and the basic software, which comes out to an
average of about $4,500 dollars. The rest of the budgeting is shown below.

As you can see in the data above, the total cost of this project would come out
to only 36,900 dollars. That is less than 1% of the funds it would take to create
the ART (ABQ Ride). Not to mention none of the construction hassle. It creates a
more efficient transport system in less money and less time.
Conclusion.

The Albuquerque Rapid Transit may seem like a good idea at first, but if

you look more in depth and think about the outcomes you can start to see the
holes in the plan. It is a project that will bring Albuquerque to a halt.
Storeowners along the roads have very publically expressed their concerns. I
know your department has received many cards and complaints about this
project. This proposal is giving you a way to satisfy both the issue of peak

hours for the current bus system, and to keep the community happy. It does
this by reducing the major issue of traffic that the ART would bring, does not
go against what most of the business owners affected want, and creates a
quicker way to obtain passes. I thank you greatly for your time in hearing this
out, and I appreciate your response and attention on the matter. If you have any
questions or comments, please email me at msmith33@unm.edu or call me at
505-301-5555. Thank you again.

Works Cited.
"ART FAQ." Albuquerque Rapid Transit. ABQ Ride, 2016. Web. 30 Mar. 2016.
<http://www.brtabq.com/FAQ>.
"Budgeting for an Interactive Kiosk." WireSpring. WireSpring Technologies, 2016. Web. 4 Apr.
2016.
<https://www.wirespring.com/dynamic_digital_signage_and_interactive_kiosks_journal/articles/
Budgeting_for_an_Interactive_Kiosk_Project-200.html>.
"Bus Routes and Schedules." City of Albuquerque. The City of Albuquerque, 2016. Web. 5 Apr.
2016. <https://www.cabq.gov/transit/bus-routes-and-schedules>.
"Facts About The Albuquerque Rapid Transit." Albuquerque Rapid Transit. ABQ Ride, 2016.
Web. 1 Apr. 2016. <http://abqbrt.blob.core.windows.net/resources/ARTFactSheet_Final_03-2116.pdf>.
"Fact Checking A Recent Newspaper Article." City of Albuquerque. The City of Albuquerque,
2016. Web. 2 Apr. 2016. <https://www.cabq.gov/transit/news/fact-checking-a-recent-newspaperarticle-about-albuquerque-rapid-transit>.
"Fares and Pass Prices." City of Albuquerque. The City of Albuquerque, 2016. Web. 5 Apr.
2016. <https://www.cabq.gov/transit/fares-bus-passes>.
"List of United States Rapid Transit Systems by Ridership." Wikipedia. 4 Apr. 2016. Web. 5
Apr. 2016.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_United_States_rapid_transit_systems_by_ridership>.

Date: May 13th, 2016

To: Elizabeth Benedict
From: Mikaela Smith
Subject: Reflecting on the Proposal
For our MWA2, we wrote a proposal focused around an issue in the Albuquerque area. We had
to address the problem and come up with our own solution to it, including why we are qualified
to propose an idea and a cost and benefits section for our plan. I chose the topic of the
Albuquerque Rapid Transit. I decided to take the side of it being a bad idea, and wrote my
proposal on the stopping of the project and included an alternative idea.
Starting out, I was confused on whom I should address the proposal to, for it seemed several
different people and organizations were involved in the project. Thanks to your suggestions and
future research, I settled on both the department of transportation and the mayor. They seemed
best fit because they are the ones who came up with it and who seem to be in control of its
funding. Another good thing about using this audience is that they are pretty informed on the
topic, and now that it is already a controversy topic.
More into my personal additions to the piece, such as the graphic elements, I found them to be
super easy to think of. This kind of came to a surprise to me because when first presented with
this prompt those were one of the main things I was worried about, but while writing my
proposal they came so naturally. The research just gave me exactly the ideas I needed for them,
and I did not even have to think about where I would put them, the charts just fit right in! It was
even sort of fun to make them. I did not have to think of what to look up or how I would lay
them out, the ideas were already right there on the tip of my tongue. It was rather exciting to be
honest. It kept me going as well, instead of getting bored or tired of writing I wanted to keep
finding and inputting information. I know that the first picture, the outline of the ART on the
streets, does not count as one, but that one still added to the excitement because I knew I wanted
to include it and how to do it.
Since the main focus was of course the ART, I found it both convenient and helpful to use most
of my information from the site of ART itself. It provided me with the project plan, the budget,
and some issue related questions that frequently get asked about it. I believe its best to use its
own site because you know it is fact, and if its not, well then the project backed itself into a
corner. It also provided me with a perspective of being in support of the project which I think is
very important because when writing on a side its vital to see both arguments and understand
points made on both stands.
I thank you for this assignment, because now I know more about issues going on in my city.
Before this paper, I honestly did not even know what the Albuquerque Rapid Transit was. Now I
feel like I can inform others on the matter, and I plan to. Please feel free to email and grade me at
msmith33@unm.edu.