Mexico’s Flagship Train Inauguration Masks Delay, Cost Concerns Cassandra Garrison - Reuters
go to original December 15, 2023

Why Mexico’s $29B Train Megaproject Is So Controversial (WSJ Breaking Ground)

Update: Mexico’s Maya Train Is Opening. Here’s What to Know About Taking It (The Washington Post)

Mexico is set to inaugurate a tourist train that is a flagship infrastructure project of President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, though experts say it is still a long way from being fully operational, with the opening rushed.

"It's the most important public work in the world," Lopez Obrador said recently of the 1,554 kilometer-long (965 mile) project.

An official ceremony on Friday will launch the first section of the so-called Tren Maya, a track from the southern state of Campeche to the tourist hotspot of Cancun.

Another section from Palenque to Cancun is expected to be inaugurated by the end of December, and the remaining routes will be up and running in February, the government says.

But experts cast doubt on the timeline. The project is far from complete, according to an aide to Lopez Obrador and a person involved in the construction, who spoke on condition of anonymity. When exactly it will be is unclear, they said.

Originally projected at $7.5 billion, the Tren Maya will cost more than $28 billion, government officials have said. Tickets will range from 1,166 to 1,862 pesos ($67.45 to $107.72).

It is one of several signature Lopez Obrador works battling delays and spiraling costs. A refinery under construction in southern Mexico has yet to produce usable gasoline despite being inaugurated in 2022. A new Mexico City airport he opened over 20 months ago has yet to draw much passenger traffic.

Lopez Obrador had pledged to finish the train by the end of 2023, which he says will create jobs and boost connectivity.

Read the rest at Reuters

Related: Mexico’s President Inaugurates First Part of $20 Billion Tourist Train Project on Yucatan Peninsula (Associated Press)

Related: Mexico’s Maya Train May Bring Economical Hope for Some, but Ecological Disaster for Many (Dailymotion)

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