Four months after plans were presented to build a Mexico City-Querétaro passenger train line, the project appears to be heading for completion ahead of schedule, but at nearly double the original cost estimate.
Andrés Lajous, director of Mexico’s Rail Transport Regulatory Agency (ARTF), on Monday confirmed reports published last week that construction of the line would cost 144 billion pesos (US $7 billion), considerably more than the 75 billion pesos ($3.7 billion) estimated when President Claudia Sheinbaum launched the project on Oct. 13, 2024.
During Sheinbaum’s Monday press conference, Lajous and the Infrastructure, Communications and Transportation Ministry (SICT) offered a status report of the preliminary studies and ongoing technical reviews. An update on a related project — the Querétaro-to-Irapuato trunk line — was also provided.
Construction is set to get underway in July, Lajous said, with a targeted completion date of December 2027. The scheduled launch of service in early 2028 is a full year ahead of the government’s pre-investment stage estimate, which foresaw operational testing in late 2028 and service launch in 1Q 2029.
Millions will benefit from train connecting CDMX and QRO
The Sheinbaum administration has said the Mexico City-Querétaro train — with stops in Tula, Hidalgo, and San Juan del Río, Querétaro — will enhance urban and interurban mobility. The station in Tula was not included in the original plan.
Lajous said more than 30,000 people from 22 municipalities who commute daily between Mexico City and Querétaro will benefit immediately from the new train line, with a total population of 5.6 million also expected to benefit, directly or indirectly.
Sheinbaum to start term with 3 passenger train projects; railway sector responds
Two dedicated passenger lines utilizing the existing right of way will extend for 225 kilometers (140 miles) with trains able to reach speeds of 200 km/h (124 mph).
“The trains will provide rapid and efficient service with [end-to-end] travel time of one hour and 50 minutes,” Lajous said.
The Mexican military and its Felipe Ángeles Engineer Corps will build, repair or lengthen 49 bridges, six tunnels, 14 viaducts and two bypasses, with orders to minimize disruptions to existing infrastructure. Two railway interchanges will also be designed, according to a SICT document cited by Forbes México.
Another 3 million people will benefit from the proposed 110-kilometer Querétaro-to-Irapuato line which will link Querétaro to several major cities in the state of Guanajuato. The preliminary estimate for the cost of this second line is 73 billion pesos ($3.5 billion).
Additionally, the SICT said the two projects will create 99,000 permanent jobs and indirectly contribute to the creation of a further 170,000 positions.
The SICT also shared the project’s environmental advantages.
“Although the [train] will not be completely electric, its hybrid technology [using diesel-electric fuel pumps] will allow greater fuel efficiency and a significant reduction in greenhouse gas emissions,” the SICT document said, especially as the convenience of the train will serve to make it an alternative to vehicular traffic.
Additionally, the train stations will connect directly to public transportation services in each city.
With reports from Infobae, Forbes México and Excelsior
