Railroads in New Mexico

Railroads in New Mexico today

The New Mexico Rail Runner Express
offers passenger service along the Rio Grande Valley
 between Santa Fe and Belen.
 The Belen stop is located near the old Harvey House.

Rail Runner website

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The Santa Fe Southern Railway
runs trips over the historic rail spur
between Lamy and Santa Fe, using
historic equipment. Available for day excursions, night train,
holiday or special event trips.

NOTE: The SFSR suspended operations in late 2014.

Reorganized and dubbed the "Sky Railway",

the railway re-commenced operations in Fall 2021.

Sky Railway website

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Amtrak offers passenger service through
New Mexico on two routes,
the Southwest Chief and the Texas Eagle.
The Southwest Chief
runs daily with stops in Albuquerque,
and serves Santa Fe with
a shuttle from Lamy.

Amtrak West Train Routes website

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The Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad
offers day trips May through October
over historic narrow-gauge lines
through northern New Mexico.
Advertised as "America's longest and highest
steam-operated railroad", the Cumbres & Toltec
offers visitors a taste of the past as they
ride this line originally built in 1880.

Cumbres & Toltec Scenic RR website

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 The New Mexico Steam Locomotive and Railroad Historical Society (NMSL&RHS) is a non-profit organization generally dedicated to maintaining awareness of the role of the railroads in our history, preserving historical materials, and educating the public. Specifically, the mission of the Society is to restore the Baldwin 4-8-4 Steam Locomotive, AT&SF 2926, an ongoing project at their headquarters in downtown Albuquerque. The Society periodically hosts Open Houses to give the public an opportunity to learn about and admire the locomotive, and generally experience the atmosphere of the glory days of the railroads.

NMSL&RHS website

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The Albuquerque BioPark maintains two
narrow gauge railways, the
Thunderbird Express which loops around the Zoo,
and the Rio Line which travels between the
Zoo and the Aquarium & Botanic Garden.
Model train layouts are also featured seasonally.

ABQ BioPark website

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The Wheels Transportation Museum will be located on the site of the historic Santa Fe Railroad Shops in downtown Albuquerque, New Mexico. Built in 1914, the Albuquerque shops serviced steam locomotives operating on the Santa Fe Railroad. The Wheels Museum will encompass aspects of transportation within New Mexico, with a strong focus on the railroads.

Wheels Transportation Museum website

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The Las Cruces Railroad Museum,
located in a historic Santa Fe Railroad depot,
 interprets the railroad history of Las Cruces
and the impact of the railroad on Southern New Mexico.

Las Cruces Railroad Museum website

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Set in the historic train depot, The Clovis Train Museum celebrates the railroad that caused the town to be created, and recreates some of the area history with scale model train layouts. The model trains offer hands-on experience, and the Gift Shop features train memorabilia and scale model equipment. Clovis is still a very active rail hub, with up to 100 trains passing daily.

NOTE: The Clovis Train Museum closed permanently in 2016.

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The Very Large Array radio astronomy system in central New Mexico utilizes almost 38 miles of rails to position its 27 huge antennae. The tracks are in a Y configuration, each arm of which is 13 miles along, allowing the dishes to be arranged in a variety of targeting positions.

Very Large Array website

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Abandoned Railroads of New Mexico lists the locations of former rail lines.

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New Mexico Dept. of Transportation Transit & Rail website