Free Republic

ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) - The New Mexico Rail Runner has been chugging through the heart of state for four years. However, it may soon face a financial train wreck. Currently the Rail Runner is supported by state and federal money. In just one year, the federal funds are set to disappear. Currently, fares only cover about 14 percent of the operating costs. BNSF Railway and Amtrak take care of another 7 percent. Voters approved a gross receipts tax in 2008 and that money makes up 54 percent of the operating costs. The state chips in 7 percent and remaining 18 percent...

Riders took 45,207 fewer one-way trips on the Rail Runner Express in the second quarter of this year compared to April, May and June of last year, new figures show. At the same time, the fiscal year that ended June 30 was the most successful for the commuter train. The second-quarter numbers are the first true comparison of riders during a time in which free rides were not offered. For much of the first quarter of 2009, Santa Fe residents rode without paying. Between the second quarter of last year and the second quarter of this year, one-way ridership dropped...

ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) - Ridership on the New Mexico Rail Runner Express is down over 10 percent from this time a year ago. But those in charge of the commuter train aren't overly concerned. There were 41,176 fewer riders from July through September of 2010 than there were during the same time a year ago. Rail Runner officials said the decline can be attributed to a drop off in weekend ridership, not weekday commuters.