Just as city leaders in Albuquerque, New Mexico anticipated work to begin this week on a new Rapid Transit system, business owners went to court and the Denver federal appeals court halted the project.
Business owners cried foul over what the Albuquerque Rapid Transit or ART would do to the character of Route 66, the historic highway that stretches from Chicago down through Missouri, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Arizona and California.
The Monday ruling by the U.S. 10th circuit Court of Appeals came after a federal judge refused to stop the project, denying opponents’ request for a preliminary injunction to prevent construction, according to the Albuquerque Journal.
One member of the coalition fighting ART contends they have a strong case that the city of Albuquerque under the leadership of Mayor Richard Berry and the Federal Transit Administration did not properly consider what the project would do to historic neighborhoods and “the character of old Route 66.”
The city’s plan calls for nine miles of bus-only lanes and bus stations in the middle of Central Avenue. The $119 million project is to be funded mostly by the federal government.