Maya Train station added to provide Isla Holbox connection

June 5, 2020

A pyramid at Cobá, which is expected to benefit from the addition of a Maya Train station at El Tintal.

A new station on the government’s US $8-billion Maya Train railway project has been added at El Tintal, Quintana Roo, which will allow tourists access to Isla Holbox, a small, car-free island with pristine beaches and a laid-back lifestyle.

The planned El Tintal station is also near the Cobá archaeological zone, home to ancient Mayan ruins dating back to 600-900 A.D., and government officials say a light rail connection could be added between the two.

Both Agepro, Quintana Roo’s foreign investment promotion agency, and the National Tourism Promotion Fund (Fonatur) have assessed the project and determined that the terminal’s location will help generate economic development by bringing both tourists and cargo from Cancún to the region.

El Tintal, located in the municipality of Lázaro Cárdenas, has a population of around 1,000 and is 78 kilometers by road from the port of Chiquilá, from which ferries to Isla Holbox depart.

President López Obrador inaugurated the train project and construction of a section of railway between Yucatán and Quintana Roo on June 1 at a ceremony in Lázaro Cárdenas, hailing the project as historic and momentous for southeastern Mexico.

Quintana Roo Governor Carlos Joaquín called the Maya Train, which has drawn fire from environmentalists and indigenous collectives, “a new paradigm of economic integration, regional development and social equity.”

Quintana Roo is now the state with the most Maya Train stations, with a total of eight planned stops in Cancún, Puerto Morelos, Playa del Carmen, Tulum, Felipe Carrillo Puerto, Bacalar, Chetumal and El Tintal.