Albuquerque, New Mexico

Albuquerque has one of the highest elevations of any major city in the United States, though the effects of this are greatly tempered by its southwesterly continental position. The elevation of the city ranges from 4,900 feet (1,490 m) above sea level near the Rio Grande (in the Valley) to over 6,700 feet (1,950 m) in the foothill areas of Sandia Heights and Glenwood Hills. At the airport, the elevation is 5,352 feet (1,631 m) above sea level.

The Rio Grande is classified, like the Nile, as an "exotic" river. The New Mexico portion of the Rio Grande lies within the Rio Grande Rift Valley, bordered by a system of faults, including those that lifted up the adjacent Sandia and Manzano Mountains, while lowering the area where the life-sustaining Rio Grande now flows.

Albuquerque lies in the Albuquerque Basin, a portion of the Rio Grande rift.[36] The Sandia Mountains are the predominant geographic feature visible in Albuquerque. Sandía is Spanish for "watermelon", and is popularly believed to be a reference to the brilliant coloration of the mountains at sunset: bright pink (melon meat) and green (melon rind). The pink is due to large exposures of granodiorite cliffs, and the green is due to large swaths of conifer forests. However, Robert Julyan notes in The Place Names of New Mexico, "the most likely explanation is the one believed by the Sandia Pueblo Indians: the Spaniards, when they encountered the Pueblo in 1540, called it Sandia, because they thought the squash growing there were watermelons, and the name Sandia soon was transferred to the mountains east of the pueblo."[37] He also notes that the Sandia Pueblo Indians call the mountain Bien Mur, "big mountain."[37]

The Sandia foothills, on the west side of the mountains, have soils derived from that same rock material with varying sizes of decomposed granite, mixed with areas of clay and caliche (a calcium carbonate deposit common in the arid southwestern USA), along with some exposed granite bedrock.

Below the foothills, the area usually called the "Northeast Heights" consists of a mix of clay and caliche soils, overlaying a layer of decomposed granite, resulting from long-term outwash of that material from the adjacent mountains. This bajada is quite noticeable when driving into Albuquerque from the north or south, due to its fairly uniform slope from the mountains' edge downhill to the valley. Sand hills are scattered along the I-25 corridor and directly above the Rio Grande Valley, forming the lower end of the Heights.

The Rio Grande Valley, due to long-term shifting of the actual river channel, contains layers and areas of soils varying between caliche, clay, loam, and even some sand. It is the only part of Albuquerque where the water table often lies close to the surface, sometimes less than 10 feet (3.0 m).

The last significant area of Albuquerque geologically is the West Mesa: this is the elevated land west of the Rio Grande, including "West Bluff", the sandy terrace immediately west and above the river, and the rather sharply defined volcanic escarpment above and west of most of the developed city. The west mesa commonly has soils often referred to as "blow sand", along with occasional clay and caliche and even basalt, nearing the escarpment.

Scrub and mesa vegetation such as sand sagebrush (Artemisia filifolia), fourwing saltbush (Atriplex canescens), Indian ricegrass (Oryzopsis hymenoides), sand dropseed (Sporobolus cryptandrus), and mesa dropseed (Sporobolus flexuosus) is often found in sandy soils. Arroyos contain desert willow (Chilopsis linearis) while breaks and the prominent volcanic escarpment include threeleaf sumac with less frequent stands of oneseed juniper (Juniperus monosperma), netleaf hackberry (Celtis reticulata), mariola (Parthenium incanum), and beebrush or oreganillo (Aloysia wrightii). Isolated littleleaf sumac (Rhus microphylla) occurs on the hillsides above Taylor Ranch and at the Petroglyph National Monument Visitor's Center.

In the bosque are the eponymous Rio Grande cottonwood (Populus deltoides var. wislizeni), coyote willow (Salix exigua), mesquite or tornillo (Prosopis pubescens), Gooding's willow (Salix goodingii), and saint sacaton (Sporobulus wrightii). Other trees native to the bosque include, New Mexico olive (Forestiera pubescens var. neomexicana), New Mexico walnut (Juglans major), and New Mexico ash (Fraxinus velutina). Non-native plants such as Siberian elm, Russian olive, saltcedar, mulberries, Ailanthus, and ravenna grass also exist in large quantities.

The mountainous parts of the city feature piñon pine, desert live oak (Quercus turbinella), gray oak (Quercus grisea), hairy mountain mahogany (Cercocarpus breviflorus), oneseed juniper (Juniperus monosperma), piñon (Pinus edulis), threeleaf sumac (Rhus trilobata), Engelmann prickly pear (Opuntia engelmannii), juniper prickly pear (Opuntia hystricina var. juniperiana), and beargrass (Nolina greenei, formerly considered Nolina texana).

Native birds such as the greater roadrunner thrive in the city. Other birds include the common raven, American crow, great-tailed grackle, Gambel's and scaled quail, several species of hummingbirds, house finch, pigeon, mourning dove, white wing and European collared doves (both recent appearances), curve-billed thrasher, pinyon jay, and Cooper's, Swainson's, and red-tail hawks. The valley hosts sandhill cranes each winter.

Other fauna include reptilia and amphibia such as the southwestern fence lizard and New Mexico whiptail (Aspidoscelis neomexicanus), the New Mexico garter snake, the bullsnake, Woodhouse toads, New Mexico spadefoot toads, and tadpole shrimp ("Triops"). As well as arthropods like the plains cicada, vinegaroon, desert centipede, white-lined sphynx (hummingbird moth), two-tailed swallowtail, fig beetle, New Mexico mantis, and harvester ant.

Albuquerque is geographically divided into four quadrants that are officially part of mailing addresses. They are NE (northeast), NW (northwest), SE (southeast), and SW (southwest). The north–south dividing line is Central Avenue (the path that Route 66 took through the city), and the east–west dividing line is the Rail Runner tracks.

This quadrant has been experiencing a housing expansion since the late 1950s. It abuts the base of the Sandia Mountains and contains portions of the foothills neighborhoods, which are significantly higher, in elevation and price range, than the rest of the city. Running from Central Avenue and the railroad tracks to the Sandia Peak Aerial Tram, this is the largest quadrant both geographically and by population. Martineztown, the University of New Mexico, the Maxwell Museum of Anthropology, Nob Hill, the Uptown area which includes three shopping malls (Coronado Center, ABQ Uptown, and Winrock Town Center), Hoffmantown, Journal Center, Cliff's Amusement Park, and Balloon Fiesta Park are all in this quadrant.

Some of the most affluent neighborhoods in the city are here, including: High Desert, Tanoan, Sandia Heights, and North Albuquerque Acres. Parts of Sandia Heights and North Albuquerque Acres are outside the city limits proper. A few houses in the farthest reach of this quadrant lie in the Cibola National Forest, just over the line into Sandoval County.

KiMo Theatre in Downtown

This quadrant contains historic Old Town Albuquerque, which dates to the 18th century, as well as the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center. The area has a mixture of commercial districts and low to high-income neighborhoods. Northwest Albuquerque includes the largest section of Downtown, Rio Grande Nature Center State Park and the Bosque ("woodlands"), Petroglyph National Monument, Double Eagle II Airport, the Paradise Hills neighborhood, Taylor Ranch, and Cottonwood Mall.

This quadrant also contains the North Valley settlement, outside the city limits, which has some expensive homes and small ranches along the Rio Grande. The city of Albuquerque engulfs the village of Los Ranchos de Albuquerque. A small portion of the rapidly developing area on the west side of the river south of the Petroglyphs, known as the "West Mesa" or "Westside", consisting primarily of traditional residential subdivisions, also extends into this quadrant. The city proper is bordered on the north by the North Valley, the village of Corrales, and the city of Rio Rancho.

Lobo Theater in Nob Hill

Kirtland Air Force Base, Sandia National Laboratories, Sandia Science & Technology Park, Albuquerque International Sunport, Eclipse Aerospace, American Society of Radiologic Technologists, Central New Mexico Community College, Albuquerque Veloport, University Stadium, Rio Grande Credit Union Field at Isotopes Park, The Pit, Mesa del Sol, The Pavilion, Albuquerque Studios, Isleta Resort & Casino, the National Museum of Nuclear Science & History, New Mexico Veterans' Memorial, and Talin Market are all in the Southeast quadrant. A portion of this section of Albuquerque is known as The International District, due to the large number of immigrant communities who have settled and thrive in the Southeast quadrant. Albuquerque’s Vietnamese American community is partly business-centered in this area, as well as Juan Tabo and Central area, and other areas of Albuquerque.

The upscale neighborhood of Four Hills is in the foothills of Southeast Albuquerque. Other neighborhoods include Nob Hill, Ridgecrest, Willow Wood, and Volterra.

Traditionally consisting of agricultural and rural areas and suburban neighborhoods, the Southwest quadrant comprises the south-end of Downtown Albuquerque, the Barelas neighborhood, the rapidly growing west side, and the community of South Valley, New Mexico, often called "The South Valley". Although the South Valley is not within Albuquerque's city limits, the quadrant extends through it all the way to the Isleta Indian Reservation. Newer suburban subdivisions on the West Mesa near the southwestern city limits join homes of older construction, some dating as far back as the 1940s. This quadrant includes the old communities of Atrisco, Los Padillas, Huning Castle, Kinney, Westgate, Westside, Alamosa, Mountainview, and Pajarito. The Bosque ("woodlands"), the National Hispanic Cultural Center, the Rio Grande Zoo, and Tingley Beach are also here.

A new adopted development plan, the Santolina Master Plan, will extend development on the west side past 118th Street SW to the edge of the Rio Puerco Valley and house 100,000 by 2050. It is unclear at this time whether the Santolina development will be annexed by the City of Albuquerque or incorporated as its own city.[38]

Albuquerque's climate is classified as a cold semi-arid climate (BSk) according to one application of the Köppen climate classification system. Its climate is classified as semi-desert warm temperate as defined by The Biota of North America Program[39] and the U.S. Geological Survey's Terrestrial Ecosystems—Isobioclimates of the Conterminous United States,[40] using datasets and mapping technology such as those from the PRISM Climate Group.[41]

Albuquerque is located at the crossroads of several ecoregions, depending on the system applied. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency,[48] the city is located in the southeastern edge of the Arizona/New Mexico Plateau, with the Arizona/New Mexico Mountains ecoregion defining the adjacent Sandia-Manzano mountains, including the foothills in the eastern edges of the city proper east of about Juan Tabo Boulevard. Though the city lies at the northern edge of the Chihuahuan Desert transitioning into the Colorado Plateau, much of Albuquerque area west of the Sandia Mountains shares a similar aridity, temperature regime, and natural vegetation more with that of the Chihuahuan Desert, namely the desert grassland and sand scrub plant communities.[49]

The eastern areas of the Greater Albuquerque Area, known as the East Mountain Area, lie the Southwestern Tablelands, sometimes considered a southern extension of the central high plains and northeast New Mexico highlands. To the north is the Southern Rockies ecoregion in the Jemez Mountains.

The average annual precipitation is less than half of evaporation supporting an arid climate, and no month's daily temperature mean is below freezing. The climate is rather mild compared to parts of the country further north or further south. However, due to the city's high elevation, low temperatures in winter often dip below freezing. Varied terrain and elevations within the city and outlying areas cause daily temperature differentials to vary. The daily average temperatures in December and January, the coldest months, are above freezing at 36.9 °F (2.7 °C) and 37.4 °F (3.0 °C), respectively.

Albuquerque's climate is usually sunny and dry, with an average of 3,415 sunshine hours per year.[44][50] Brilliant sunshine defines the region, averaging 278 days a year; periods of variably mid and high-level cloudiness temper the sun, mostly during the cooler months. Extended cloudiness lasting longer than two or three days is rare.

Winter typically consists of cool days and cold nights, except following passage of the strongest cold fronts and arctic airmasses when daytime temperatures remain colder than average; overnight temperatures tend to fall below freezing between about 10 pm and 8 am in the city, except during colder airmasses, plus colder spots of the valley and most of the East Mountain areas. December, the coolest month, averages 36.9 °F (2.7 °C); the median or normal coolest temperature of the year is 12 °F (−11 °C), while the average or mean is about 11 °F (−12 °C). It is typical for daily low temperatures in much of late December, and January, and February to be below freezing, with a long-term average of 93 days per year falling to or below freezing, and two days failing to rise above freezing. In March, winds dominate as the temperatures began to warm late in the winter.[42]

Spring is windy, sometimes unsettled with rain, though spring is usually the driest part of the year in Albuquerque. Late March and April tend to experience many days with the wind blowing at 20 to 30 mph (32 to 48 km/h), and afternoon gusts can produce periods of blowing sand and dust. In May, the winds tend to subside as a summer-like airmass and temperatures begin to occur into with regularity. The warming and drying trend continues into June. By mid-June, temperatures can exceed 100 °F (38 °C).

Summer is lengthy and very warm to hot, relatively tolerable for most people because of low humidity and air movement. The exception is some days during the New Mexico monsoon, when daily humidity remains relatively high, especially in July and August. 2.6 days of 100 °F (38 °C) or warmer highs occur annually on average, mostly in June and July and rarely in August due in part to the monsoon; an average of 64 days experience 90 °F (32 °C) or warmer highs.[42] Despite the rarity of such heat, 28 days with highs at or above 100 °F (38 °C) occurred in the summer of 1980 at Albuquerque's Sunport. In September, the monsoon begins to weaken.[51] Portions of the valley and West Mesa locations experience more high temperatures above 90 °F (32 °C) and 100 °F (38 °C) as part of normal or extreme weather each summer.

Autumn is generally cool in the mornings and nights but sees less rain than summer, though the weather can be more unsettled closer to winter, as colder airmasses and weather patterns build in from the north and northwest with more frequency. Occasionally, snow will fall in late autumn in December; rarely in late November.

Precipitation averages 8.84 inches (225 mm) per year. On average, January is the driest month, while July and August are the wettest months, as a result of shower and thunderstorm activity produced by the monsoon prevalent over the Southwestern United States. Most rain occurs during the late summer monsoon season, typically starting in early June and ending in mid-September.

Albuquerque averages 7.9 inches (20 cm) of snow per winter, and experiences several accumulating snow events each season. Locations in the Northeast Heights and Eastern Foothills tend to receive more snowfall due to each region's higher elevation and proximity to the mountains. The city was one of several in the region experiencing a severe winter storm on December 28–30, 2006, with locations in Albuquerque receiving between 10.5 and 26 inches (27 and 66 cm) of snow.[52] More recently, a major winter storm in late February 2015 dropped up to a foot (30 cm) of snow on most of the city. Such large snowfalls are rare occurrences during the period of record, and they greatly impact traffic movement and the workforce due to their rarity.

The mountains and highlands east of the city create a rain shadow effect, due to the drying of air descending the mountains; the Sandia Mountain foothills tend to lift any available moisture, enhancing precipitation to about 10–17 inches (254–432 mm) annually. Traveling west, north, and east of Albuquerque, one quickly rises in elevation and leaves the sheltering effect of the valley to enter a noticeably cooler and slightly wetter environment. One such area is considered part of Albuquerque Metropolitan Area, commonly called the East Mountain area; it is covered in woodlands of juniper and piñon trees, a common trait of southwestern uplands and the southernmost Rocky Mountains.

Albuquerque's drinking water comes from a combination of Rio Grande water (river water diverted from the Colorado River basin through the San Juan-Chama Project[53]) and a delicate aquifer that has been described as an "underground Lake Superior". The Albuquerque Bernalillo County Water Utility Authority (ABCWUA) has developed a water resources management strategy that pursues conservation and the direct extraction of water from the Rio Grande for the development of a stable underground aquifer in the future.[54][55]

Tingley Beach in Old Town, Albuquerque, a pond in a former watercourse by the Rio Grande

The aquifer of the Rio Puerco is too saline to be cost-effectively used for drinking. Much of the rainwater Albuquerque receives does not recharge its aquifer. It is diverted through a network of paved channels and arroyos and empties into the Rio Grande.

Of the 62,780 acre-feet (77,440,000 m³) per year of the water in the upper Colorado River basin entitled to municipalities in New Mexico by the Upper Colorado River Basin Compact, Albuquerque owns 48,200. The water is delivered to the Rio Grande by the San Juan–Chama Project. The project's construction was initiated by legislation signed by President John F. Kennedy in 1962, and was completed in 1971. This diversion project transports water under the continental divide from Navajo Lake to Lake Heron on the Rio Chama, a tributary of the Rio Grande. In the past much of this water was resold to downstream owners in Texas. These arrangements ended in 2008 with the completion of the ABCWUA's Drinking Water Supply Project.[56]

The ABCWUA's Drinking Water Supply Project uses a system of adjustable-height dams to skim water from the Rio Grande into sluices that lead to water treatment facilities for direct conversion to potable water. Some water is allowed to flow through central Albuquerque, mostly to protect the endangered Rio Grande Silvery Minnow. Treated effluent water is recycled into the Rio Grande south of the city. The ABCWUA expects river water to comprise up to seventy percent of its water budget in 2060. Groundwater will constitute the remainder. One of the policies of the ABCWUA's strategy is the acquisition of additional river water.[55][57] ^{: Policy G, 14}

The majority of the religious population in Albuquerque are Christian,[62] being a historical Spanish and Mexican city, the Catholic Church is the largest Christian church in Albuquerque. The Catholic population of Albuquerque is served by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Santa Fe, whose administrative center is located in Albuquerque.[63] Collectively, other Christian churches and organizations such as the Eastern Orthodox Church, Oriental Orthodoxy, and others make up the second largest group in the city. Baptists form the third largest Christian group, followed by the Latter Day Saints, Pentecostals, Methodists, Presbyterians, Lutherans and Episcopalians.

The second largest religious population in the city are eastern religions such as Buddhism, Sikhism, and Hinduism.[62] The Albuquerque Sikh Gurudwara and Guru Nanak Gurdwara Albuquerque serve the city's Sikh populace; the Hindu Temple Society of New Mexico serves the Hindu population; several Buddhist temples and centers are located in the city limits.

Judaism is the second-largest non-Christian religious group in Albuquerque, followed by Islam.[62] Congregation Albert is a Reform synagogue established in 1897[23] and is the oldest continuing Jewish organization in the city, while the Islamic Center of New Mexico is the largest mosque in Albuquerque and hosts daily prayers, as well as activities for both Muslims and non-Muslims.[64]

Albuquerque is a hub for production studios, including Albuquerque Studios which is one of the primary productions hubs for Netflix. Several major motion pictures and television shows have been filmed and produced in Albuquerque, including scenes from Walt Disney Presents Elfego Baca,[66][67][68][69] The Muppet Movie, Breaking Bad,[70][71][72][73][74] The Avengers,[75] Better Call Saul, A Million Ways to Die in the West,[76] In Plain Sight, Speechless, Daybreak, El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie,[77] Just Getting Started, and Stranger Things season 4. NBCUniversal also has a sizable presence in the city, as do independent multimedia franchise studios including Blackout Theatre,[78] Cliffdweller Studios,[79] and Heaven Sent Gaming.[80]

Numerous works of fiction take place, either fully or in part, in the Albuquerque metropolitan area including Albuquerque (1948 Western), Bless Me, Ultima, The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, Breaking Bad, High School Musical,[81] and Better Call Saul. The city is referenced in Billy Mize's 1967 album Lights of Albuquerque, Jim Glaser's 1986 song "The Lights of Albuquerque", Neil Young's song "Albuquerque", and "Weird" Al Yankovic's song "Albuquerque". The city is referenced in "Hungry, Hungry Homer", the 15th episode of the twelfth season of The Simpsons, features Albuquerque as the location where the owners of the Springfield Isotopes baseball team wish to relocate. The real Albuquerque Isotopes Minor League team's name was inspired by the episode.[82] Many Bugs Bunny cartoon shorts feature Bugs traveling around the world by burrowing underground. Ending up in the wrong place, Bugs consults a map, complaining, "I knew I should have taken that left toin at Albakoykee (left turn at Albuquerque)." Failure to do so can somehow result in Bugs ending up thousands of miles off-course. (Bugs first uses that line in 1945's Herr Meets Hare.)[83]

The city is served by one major newspaper, the Albuquerque Journal, other ongoing periodicals in the city include Albuquerque the Magazine, both of which are distributed throughout the Southwestern United States and are catalogued by the Library of Congress. The Journal is New Mexico's most widely circulated newspaper, and used to compete with The Albuquerque Tribune until 2008, today The Journal competes with The Santa Fe New Mexican and Las Cruces Sun-News. The Albuquerque metropolitan area itself has other local periodicals, Valencia County News-Bulletin, Rio Rancho Observer, Corrales Comment, and the student newspapers of The Lobo at University of New Mexico and CNM Chronicle at Central New Mexico Community College.

Albuquerque is also home to numerous radio and television stations that serve the metropolitan and outlying rural areas. Albuquerque is home to eighteen broadcast television stations, including KOB, KRQE, KOAT-TV, and KLUZ-TV, although most households are served by direct cable network connections. Comcast Cable nearly has a monopoly on terrestrial cable service in the city, but not throughout the entire Albuquerque-Santa Fe media market, which is ranked as the 48th largest television market in the United States, Comcast shares the metropolitan market with Cable One, Unite Private Networks, and various satellite and wireless providers.[84]

Christian media outlets in the city include Trinity Broadcasting Network which owns the KNAT-TV signal, and independent Christian broadcasting exists on KAZQ. Each of the Albuquerque metropolitan area's megachurches have media presence with broadcasts of their sermons, those include Legacy, Calvary, and Sagebrush. Christian radio is found on FM and AM through KLYT, KSVA, KDAZ, KFLQ, and KKIM.

One of the longest running AM broadcasts in the United States is an ABC News Radio station called KKOB (AM).[85] The first officially licensed FM radio broadcast in Albuquerque was KANW which mostly broadcasts the New Mexico music genre and NPR programming.[86][87]

Albuquerque's other NPR station is KUNM-FM, a public radio station owned and operated by the University of New Mexico. It features both syndicated and local news, current events programming, and music, and its main frequency is 89.9 MHz.[88]

The Sanchez family, including brothers Al Hurricane, Tiny Morrie, Baby Gaby, and their children Al Hurricane Jr, Lorenzo Antonio, and Sparx, were known for popularizing New Mexico's Hispano and Native American folk genre by blending it with rockabilly, jazz, Western, Norteño, Latin pop, and rock music.[89][90] The brothers and junior first became popular performing in the city, and garnered international prominence by performing on the syndicated late-night talk show the Val De La O Show. The show was filmed in Albuquerque, which also featured country music and regional Mexican stars from the broader Southwestern United States and Mexico. Several country and regional Mexican stations continue to be prominent on radio throughout the Albuquerque metropolitan area, including the aforementioned KANW – which focuses mainly on the New Mexico music genre – as well as KNMM on Saturdays. Al Hurricane has such a large legacy that then mayor Richard J. Berry named the center stage of Albuquerque Plaza the "Al Hurricane Pavilion".[91][92]

The country music radio stations are KRST "92.1" and KBQI "The Big-I 107.9", along with KBQI's classic country "98.1 The Bull". KLVO "Radio Lobo 97.7" features Regional Mexican radio.

Other forms of American popular music are very represented on FM Radio: contemporary hit radio is featured on KOBQ. During the 1990s, the urban contemporary music radio format had two major stations, on "KISS 97.3" KKSS and "WILD 106" KDLW. Today, KISS 97.3 still exists, though WILD has changed to a variety of formats.

In the 2000s modern rock stations focusing on alternative rock, nu metal, and adult contemporary music became popular in the city, including the FM station KPEK "100.3 The Peak".

Music groups based in Albuquerque include A Hawk and A Hacksaw, Beirut, The Echoing Green, The Eyeliners, Hazeldine, Leiahdorus, Oliver Riot, Scared of Chaka, and The Shins.

Due to the metropolitan size, it is home to a diverse restaurant scene from various global cuisines and the state's distinct New Mexican cuisine. Being the focus of the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District gives an agricultural contrast along acequias to the otherwise heavily urban setting of the city. Crops such as New Mexico chile are grown along the entire Rio Grande; the red or green chile pepper is a staple of the aforementioned New Mexican cuisine. The Albuquerque metro is a major contributor of the Middle Rio Grande Valley AVA with New Mexico wine produced at several vineyards, it is also home to several New Mexican breweries. The river also provides trade access with the Mesilla Valley (containing Las Cruces, New Mexico and El Paso, Texas) region to the south, with its Mesilla Valley AVA and the adjacent Hatch Valley which is well known for its New Mexico chile peppers.

Green chile is widely available in restaurants, including national fast-food chains at locations in the city. Albuquerque has an active restaurant scene, and local restaurants receive statewide attention, several of them having become chains. The city is the headquarters of Blake's Lotaburger, Little Anita's, Twisters, Dion's, Boba Tea Company, and Sadie's.

Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta

The Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta takes place at Balloon Fiesta Park the first week of October. Although the global COVID-19 forced the cancellation of the 2020 event, The Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta successfully returned in 2021. It is one of Albuquerque's biggest attractions. Hundreds of hot-air balloons are seen every day, and there is live music, arts and crafts, and food.[93]

Old Town Albuquerque is filled with Territorial Style architecture and design

The original architecture of La Villa de Albuquerque is referred to as the Territorial Style, it was revitalized as the Territorial Revival architecture. Architect John Gaw Meem is often credited with this revival.

John Gaw Meem, is also credited with developing and popularizing the Pueblo Revival style, which was based in Santa Fe but received an important Albuquerque commission in 1933 as the architect of the University of New Mexico. He retained this commission for the next quarter-century and developed the university's distinctive Southwest style.[22] ^: 317 Meem also designed the Cathedral Church of St. John in 1950.[94]

Pueblo Deco architecture was derived from Pueblo and Territorial styles meeting the Art Deco movement, and it is richly featured in downtown Albuquerque. Albuquerque boasts a unique nighttime cityscape, personified in the lights of Albuquerque, a common motif in art and song.[95][96][97] The city lights twinkle and glitter from views on Nine Mile Hill, it was among Elvis Presley's favorite views.[98] Route 66 era neon signs, and LED style versions of the neon-style are common throughout the city. Many building exteriors are illuminated in vibrant colors such as green and blue. The Wells Fargo Building is illuminated green. The DoubleTree Hotel changes colors nightly, and the Compass Bank building is illuminated blue. The rotunda of the county courthouse is illuminated yellow, while the tops of the Bank of Albuquerque and the Bank of the West are illuminated reddish-yellow. Due to the nature of the soil in the Rio Grande Valley, the skyline is lower than might be expected in a city of comparable size elsewhere, and it was used to highlight the low-lying architecture of heritage Pueblo and Hispano architectural styles.

Roosevelt Park is a historic park in central Albuquerque

Albuquerque has expanded greatly in area since the mid-1940s. During those years of expansion, the planning of the newer areas has considered that people drive rather than walk. The pre-1940s parts of Albuquerque are quite different in style and scale from the post-1940s areas. The older areas include the North Valley, the South Valley, various neighborhoods near downtown, and Corrales. The newer areas generally feature four- to six-lane roads in a 1 mile (1.61 km) grid. Each 1 square mile (2.59 km²) is divided into four 160-acre (0.65 km²) neighborhoods by smaller roads set 0.5 miles (0.8 km) between major roads. When driving along major roads in the newer sections of Albuquerque, one sees strip malls, signs, and cinderblock walls. The upside of this planning style is that neighborhoods are shielded from the worst of the noise and lights on the major roads. The downside is that it is virtually impossible to go anywhere without driving.

The Albuquerque Bernalillo County Library system consists of nineteen libraries to serve the city, including the Main Library, Special Collections branch (Old Main Library), and Ernie Pyle branch, which is located in the former home of noted war correspondent Ernie Pyle.[99] The Old Main Library was the first library of Albuquerque and from 1901 until 1948 it was the only public library. The original library was donated to the state by Joshua and Sarah Raynolds. After suffering some fire damage in 1923 the city decided it was time to construct a building for the library to be moved to, however, by 1970 even after additions were made the population and library needs had outgrown the building for its use as a main library and it was turned into Special Collections. The Old Main Library was recognized as a landmark in September 1979. It was not until 1974 with the movement of the South Valley Library into a new building that the Bernalillo built and administered a public library. Not long after, in 1986, the Bernalillo and Albuquerque government decided that joint powers would work best to serve the needs of the community and created the Albuquerque/Bernalillo County Library System.[100]

The Bosque is a major outdoors area in the city, it has to numerous hiking and biking trails. The Sandia–Manzano Mountains and West Mesa also have many hiking trails, such as La Luz Trail and Petroglyph National Monument. According to the Trust for Public Land, Albuquerque has 291 public parks as of 2017, most of which are administered by the city Parks and Recreation Department. The total amount of parkland is 42.9 square miles (111 km2), or about 23% of the city's total area—one of the highest percentages among large cities in the U.S. About 82% of city residents live within walking distance of a park.

The Albuquerque Biological Park manages the ABQ BioPark Botanic Garden, ABQ BioPark Aquarium, Tingley Beach, and ABQ BioPark Zoo. Amusement parks in the city include Cliff's Amusement Park and Hinkle Family Fun Center;[101] there was formerly The Beach waterpark, which became a vacant lot on Desert Surf Circle for several years, until Topgolf made a driving range in the lot.[102]

There are numerous golf courses in the city area; Arroyo Del Oso Golf Course, Isleta Eagle Golf Course, Ladera Golf Course, Los Altos Golf Course, Paa-Ko Ridge Golf Club, Paradise Hills Golf Course, Puerto del Sol Golf Course, Sandia Golf Club, Santa Ana Golf Club, Twin Warriors Golf Club, and University of New Mexico's Championship Golf Course.

Albuquerque is home to over 300 other visual arts, music, dance, literary, film, ethnic, and craft organizations, museums, festivals and associations, and the state's capital Santa Fe is known for being a major arts city. One of the major art events in the state is the summertime New Mexico Arts and Crafts Fair, a nonprofit show exclusively for New Mexico artists and held annually in Albuquerque since 1961.[103][104]

Some of the main highways in the metro area include:

• Pan-American Freeway:[135]^: 248 More commonly known as Interstate 25 or "I-25", it is the main north–south highway on the city's eastern side of the Rio Grande. It is also the main north–south highway in the state (by connecting Albuquerque with Santa Fe and Las Cruces) and a plausible route of the eponymous Pan American Highway. Since Route 66 was decommissioned in the 1980s, the only remaining US highway in Albuquerque, unsigned US-85, shares its alignment with I-25. US-550 splits off to the northwest from I-25/US-85 in Bernalillo.
  

  Aerial view of Interstate 40
• Coronado Freeway:[135]^: 248 More commonly known as Interstate 40 or "I-40", it is the city's main east–west traffic artery and an important transcontinental route. The freeway's name in the city is in reference to 16th century conquistador and explorer Francisco Vásquez de Coronado.
• Paseo del Norte: (aka; New Mexico State Highway 423): This 6-lane controlled-access highway is approximately five miles north of Interstate 40. It runs as a surface road with at-grade intersections from Tramway Blvd (at the base of the Sandia Mountains) to Interstate 25, after which it continues as a controlled-access freeway through Los Ranchos de Albuquerque, over the Rio Grande to North Coors Boulevard. Paseo Del Norte then continues west as a surface road through the Petroglyph National Monument until it reaches Atrisco Vista Blvd and the Double Eagle II Airport. The interchange with Interstate 25 was reconstructed in 2014 to improve traffic flow.[136]
• Coors Boulevard: Coors is the main north–south artery to the west of the Rio Grande in Albuquerque. There is one full interchange where it connects with Interstate 40; The rest of the route connects to other roads with at-grade intersections controlled by stoplights. The Interstate 25 underpass has no access to Coors. Parts of the highway have sidewalks, bike lanes, and medians, but most sections have only dirt shoulders and a center turn lane. To the north of Interstate 40, part of the route is numbered as State Highway 448, while to the south, part of the route is numbered as State Highway 45.
• Rio Bravo Boulevard: The main river crossing between Westside Albuquerque and the Sunport, Rio Bravo is a four-lane divided highway that runs from University Boulevard in the east, through the South Valley, to Coors Boulevard in the west where it is contiguous with Dennis Chaves Blvd. It follows NM-500 for its entire route.
• Central Avenue: Central is one of the historical routings of Route 66, it is no longer a main through highway, its usefulness having been supplanted by Interstate 40.[135]^: 248
• Alameda Boulevard: The main road between Rio Rancho and North Albuquerque, Alameda Blvd. stretches from Tramway Rd. to Coors. Blvd. The route is designated as the eastern portion of NM-528.
• Tramway Boulevard: Serves as a bypass around the northeastern quadrant, the route is designated as NM-556. Tramway Boulevard starts at I-25 near Sandia Pueblo, and heads east as a two-lane road. It turns south near the base of the Sandia Peak Tramway and becomes an expressway-type divided highway until its terminus near I-40 and Central Avenue by the western entrance to Tijeras Canyon.

The interchange between I-40 and I-25 is known as the "Big I".[135]^: 248 Originally built in 1966, it was rebuilt in 2002. The Big I is the only five-level stack interchange in the state of New Mexico.

There are six road bridges that cross the Rio Grande and serve the municipality on at least one end if not both. The eastern approaches of the northernmost three all pass through adjacent unincorporated areas, the Village of Los Ranchos de Albuquerque, or the North Valley. In downstream order they are:

• Alameda Bridge
• Paseo del Norte Bridge
• Montaño Bridge
• I-40 Bridge
• Central at Old Town Bridge
• Barelas Bridge

Two more bridges serve urbanized areas contiguous to the city's perforated southern boundary.

• Rio Bravo Bridge (NM-500)
• I-25 Bridge (near Isleta Pueblo)

Rail Runner Express Downtown Albuquerque station train platform

The state owns most of the city's rail infrastructure which is used by a commuter rail system, long-distance passenger trains, and the freight trains of the BNSF Railway.

BNSF Railway operates a small yard operation out of Abajo yard, located just south of the César E. Chávez Ave. overpass and the New Mexico Rail Runner Express yards. Most freight traffic through the Central New Mexico region is processed via a much larger hub in nearby Belen, New Mexico.

Amtrak's Southwest Chief, which travels between Chicago and Los Angeles, serves the Albuquerque area daily with one stop in each direction at the Alvarado Transportation Center in downtown.

The New Mexico Rail Runner Express, a commuter rail line, began service between Sandoval County and Albuquerque in July 2006 using an existing BNSF right-of-way which was purchased by New Mexico in 2005. Service expanded to Valencia County in December 2006 and to Santa Fe on December 17, 2008. Rail Runner now connects Santa Fe, Sandoval, Bernalillo, and Valencia Counties with thirteen station stops, including three stops within Albuquerque.[137] The trains connect Albuquerque to downtown Santa Fe with eight roundtrips per weekday. The section of the line running south to Belen is served less frequently.[138]

Alvarado Transportation Center, an intermodal transportation hub in downtown Albuquerque

Albuquerque was one of two cities in New Mexico to have had electric street railways. Albuquerque's horse-drawn streetcar lines were electrified during the first few years of the 20th century. The Albuquerque Traction Company assumed operation of the system in 1905. The system grew to its maximum length of 6 miles (9.7 km) during the next ten years by connecting destinations such as Old Town to the west and the University of New Mexico to the east with the town's urban center near the former Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway depot. The Albuquerque Traction Company failed financially in 1915 and the vaguely named City Electric Company was formed. Despite traffic booms during the first world war, and unaided by lawsuits attempting to force the streetcar company to pay for paving, that system also failed later in 1927, leaving the streetcar's "motorettes" unemployed.[139]^{: 177–181}

Today, Alvarado Station provides convenient access to other parts of the city via the city bus system, ABQ RIDE. ABQ RIDE operates a variety of bus routes, including the Rapid Ride express bus service.

ART logo

In 2006, the City of Albuquerque under the administration of Mayor Martin Chavez had planned and attempted to "fast track" the development of a "Modern Streetcar" project. Funding for the US$270 million system was not resolved as many citizens vocally opposed the project. The city and its transit department maintain a policy commitment to the streetcar project.[140] The project would run mostly in the southeast quadrant on Central Avenue and Yale Boulevard.

As of 2011, the city is working on a study to develop a bus rapid transit system through the Central Ave. corridor. This corridor carried 44% of all bus riders in the ABQ Ride system, making it a natural starting point for enhanced service.[141] In 2017, the city moved forward with the plans, and began construction on Albuquerque Rapid Transit, or ART, including dedicated bus lanes between Coors and Louisiana Boulevards.[142]

Albuquerque has a well-developed bicycle network.[143] In and around the city there are trails, bike routes, and paths that provide the residents and visitors with alternatives to motorized travel. In 2009, the city was reviewed as having a major up and coming bike scene in North America.[144] The same year, the City of Albuquerque opened its first Bicycle Boulevard on Silver Avenue.[145] There are plans for more investment in bikes and bike transit by the city, including bicycle lending programs, in the coming years.[146]

A 2011 study by Walk Score ranked Albuquerque below average at 28th most walkable of the fifty largest U.S. cities.[147]

Albuquerque International Sunport

Albuquerque is served by two airports, the larger of which is Albuquerque International Sunport. It is located 3 mi (4.8 km) southeast of the central business district of Albuquerque. The Albuquerque International Sunport served 5,888,811 passengers in 2009.[148] Double Eagle II Airport is the other airport. It is primarily used as an air ambulance, corporate flight, military flight, training flight, charter flight, and private flight facility.[149]

PNM Resources, New Mexico's largest electricity provider, is based in Albuquerque. They serve about 487,000 electricity customers statewide. In September 2021, PNM entered final merger talks with Avangrid, the U.S. subsidiary of Spanish power giant Iberdrola. New Mexico Gas Company provides natural gas services to more than 500,000 customers in the state, including the Albuquerque metro area.

The Albuquerque Bernalillo County Water Utility Authority is responsible for the delivery of drinking water and the treatment of wastewater. Trash and recycling in the city is managed by the City of Albuquerque Solid Waste Management Department.

South Side Water Reclamation Plant.

Albuquerque is the medical hub of New Mexico, hosting numerous medical centers. The University of New Mexico Hospital is the largest hospital in New Mexico with 628 licensed beds and is the primary teaching hospital for the University of New Mexico School of Medicine, the state's only medical school. It provides the state's only residency training programs, children's hospital, burn center, and level I pediatric and adult trauma centers, as well as a certified advanced primary stroke center and the largest collection of adult and pediatric specialty and subspecialty programs in the state. Albuquerque's other largest hospitals are Presbyterian Hospital (Presbyterian Healthcare Services) with 543 licensed beds, Raymond G. Murphy VA Medical Center (Veterans Health Administration) with 298 beds, and Lovelace Medical Center (Lovelace Health System) with 263 beds.[150] Smaller specialty hospitals include the Heart Hospital of New Mexico and Lovelace Women's Hospital.