Central Avenue is a major east–west street in Albuquerque, New Mexico, which historically served as the city's main thoroughfare and principal axis of development.

The route that is now Central Avenue has existed in some form since prehistoric times, linking Tijeras Canyon and points east with a good ford of the Rio Grande near present-day Old Town.

The Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railway reached Albuquerque in 1880, but for logistical reasons the tracks were routed some two miles east of the existing town.

[2] By the turn of the century, Railroad Avenue had been clearly established as Albuquerque's main commercial corridor, and in 1907 the city council decided to rename the street to better reflect this fact.

The early 20th century saw an influx of tuberculosis patients seeking the healthful effects of Albuquerque's dry climate, and a number of sanatoria were established on a stretch of East Central that came to be known as "TB Avenue."

Dozens of new motels, diners, and filling stations sprang up along East and West Central to cater to the steady stream of travelers passing through the city.

Interstate 40 provided travelers with a faster and more convenient east–west route through Albuquerque, while the new Winrock and Coronado shopping centers drew customers away from the older retail districts on Central.

[2] The large downtown Alvarado and Franciscan hotels were demolished in the early 1970s and Albuquerque High School moved to a new location in 1973, leaving its old campus at Central and Broadway boarded up.

[3] Over the next two decades, downtown Central Avenue was gradually transformed into an arts and entertainment district with a variety of bars, restaurants, galleries, and live music venues, as well as new residential space.

The Alvarado Transportation Center, located at First and Central, provides access to many other ABQ RIDE routes as well as Greyhound Lines, the Amtrak Southwest Chief, and the New Mexico Rail Runner Express commuter train.