Bus Stations Helping Albuquerque Police Fight Crime

New Program puts 88 more cameras on Albuquerque’s streets.

• By Jordan Lutke
• Aug 31, 2018

Albuquerque’s Rapid Transit bus stations are becoming another tool in the local police arsenal for identifying and catching criminals, as of this week, as a respectable 88 new surveillance cameras have been installed at ART stations running along Central Avenue.

The cameras are being integrated into Albuquerque’s Real Time Crime Center, which allows analysts at the center to access live feeds from integrated cameras, including those on traffic lights. Officials hope that merely the presence of these cameras will act as a crime deterrent.

The move is part of a push to bring life back into the Central Avenue corridor, the effort attempting to make people feel safer on the streets. “Hopefully, will make a big difference up and down the Central corridor,” Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller said.

Besides as a crime deterrent, the cameras can also be used to keep track of vehicle accidents and alert responders in these cases.

Albuquerque has 27 ART stations ranging all over the city, all of which feature security cameras and a 911 call button on their kiosk. APD Chief Michael Geier described the Real Time Crime Center as a “critical crime-fighting tool,” and said his department is always looking for ways to increase the benefits of the center.

The cost of the cameras’ installation was around $200,000, which comprised a small part of the ART project at large, which will cost an estimated $135 million. Because of federal grants, the system’s integration into the Real Time Crime Center cost the city’s public safety budget about $39,000.