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The lobby is well lit and clean, and there are comfortable benches, flat-screen TVs and a small cafeteria.

It looks like a train station, and for Amtrak, that's a big improvement.

"The other building was totally unworkable," said station agent Marvin Pendergrass, who spent 15 years at Amtrak's previous ticket office in Downtown Albuquerque. "This is brighter, happier, more convenient, more civilized."

The ticket station moved down the street early last week from 214 First St. S.W. to the Alvarado Transportation Center at 100 First St. S.W.

The center also houses Greyhound and ABQRide, which will make it more convenient for travelers to switch between trains and buses, Amtrak spokeswoman Karina Romero said.

The old station, called the Curio Building, will be used as a base for train and engine crews.

The city had $160,000 to help with renovations of the old building, Ed Adams, the city's chief operations officer, said in November.

Amtrak officials in November said they had $500,000 for use in renovating both the old and new stations. They could not be reached Monday.

Romero said the company paid to install its ticket counter, but she did not know how much it cost.

Albuquerque is an important stop for the Southwest Chief, a train that runs daily from Los Angeles to Chicago, Romero said.

Almost 67,000 people took the train in and out of Albuquerque last year, she said.

Pendergrass, a 34-year Amtrak employee, said those passengers deserved a better station than the one he spent the past 15 years in.

That building would be better suited for offices than a train station, he said. As a lobby, it was cramped and uncomfortable, and slowed the flow of passengers and luggage, he said.

So far, he said, the passengers seem happier at the new station.

"It's easier for people to feel like they're moving forward," Pendergrass said.