Its locomotives started amid promises of generating wealth, employment and progress, but almost two years after its first inauguration, the Mayan Train (one of the most ambitious projects of former Mexican president Andrés Manuel López Obrador) is far from the expectations of its promoters. It does not seem to be arousing special interest among tourists. Nor among the locals. In fact The Country has just revealed a figure that gives an idea of the extent to which it has started with modest results: it moves 5% of the expected demand.
The big question is… Why?
What is the Mayan Train? One of López Obrador’s star projects and probably one of the most ambitious infrastructures developed in recent years in Mexico. The Mayan Train is a railway circuit of more than 1,500 km that crosses Chiapas, Tabasco, Campeche, Yucatán and Quintana Roo, states located in the southeast, where some of the poorest regions of the country are located.
Is it operational? Yes. After a construction marked by controversy, changes and a multimillion-dollar investment that multiplied the initial budget, the trains began to circulate almost two years ago, although they were launched in stages. In December 2023, a smiling López Obrador participated in the inaugural route on the Campeche-Cancún section. A year later, with Sheinbaum at the head of the Government, the launch of the rest of the routes was completed, including the last one, between Campeche and the Chetumal airport.
To celebrate and give an extra push to the structure, the Executive launched a special tourist package to attract users for Christmas.
Why is it news now? Because things don’t seem to be going especially well for the Mayan Train. This is suggested by the data revealed by The Countrywhich claims to have accessed a report from the National Tourism Promotion Fund (Fonatur) which confirms that the start of the service has not aroused the expected interest. During its first year of operations, it transported an average of 3,200 passengers daily. The initial forecasts were for this figure to be around 74,000, which did not even reach 5% of what was expected.
The reporters who write the report from Mexico assure that in the middle of high season it is not unusual to find trains that run almost empty in some sections and that at the stations it is common to come across more guards and cleaning employees than visitors. When talking to tourists who visit the region, some admit that they had not heard of the Mayan Train.
What is the cause of this puncture? The million dollar question. And it is not easy to answer it. The testimonies collected by The Country They suggest that the train has not yet managed to catch on in either of the two markets in which it should attract passengers: domestic and international. It does not convince locals to travel through the southeast of Mexico, but neither does it convince foreign tourists who want to get to know the region. The reason is a combination of economic, logistical, cultural factors and habits that are difficult to change.
If we talk about locals, the Mayan Train loses appeal for a simple reason: the location of the stations. The military company that operates it offers them discounts, but they must add the transportation Price to get to the terminal to the ticket price. “The train to my town is far away. If I wanted to travel by train, I would basically have to spend twice as much. To go to Mérida I take the bus, which is more direct and cheaper,” explains a tour guide. Added to this is the deep-rooted use of other means of transport, such as the bus itself, motorcycles or taxis.
And what about tourists? Despite efforts to establish the service among foreign tourists, the Mayan Train does not seem to be succeeding in that market niche either. Visitors continue to arrive to the Yucatan Peninsula, but their travel depends largely on travel companies and their itineraries, often agreed with bus companies and hoteliers.
Although users highlight that the trains are generally comfortable and safe and investment has already been made in promoting the service, there are still tourists who arrive in the Yucatan without having even heard of the Mayan Train. Others do not quite see its advantages over traditional alternatives, such as renting a car to move freely or paying for tours in advance.
Why is it important? For several reasons. To begin with, because the Mayan Train has not been just an ambitious project. It has also been marked by controversy. Recently National Geographic published a report in which it explains how its implementation has polarized part of Mexican society, with positions divided between those who believe it will help energize the region and those who focus on the impact it has had on the environment.
Beyond this debate about the pros and cons of the train, what is undeniable is that the project has cost much more than initially expected. In 2023, the BBC network claimed that the initially talked about between 120,000 and 150,000 million Mexican pesos increased to around 500,000 million. This great investment effort was accompanied by promises of its economic return.
What is expected from the train? “It is a magnum opus, we are not exaggerating if we say that there is no one like it in the world today,” López Obrador highlighted two years ago, during its inauguration. And at the time it was even proposed that the train would help encourage tourism and employment in some of the most impoverished regions of Mexico, with a project that, in addition to the railway, includes museums, hotels, archaeological zones and hotels. In 2020, a UN-Habitat study even reported that it would help lift 1.1 million people out of poverty.
What does the Government say? He claims that the start-up of the train has not been bad. In summer the Government assured that the service “is going very well” and had exceeded one million people. “As of August 11, the number of passengers on the Mayan Train, since it began operating, is 1,504,319, and it is increasing,” celebrated Sheinbaum, who highlights that demand is growing among Mexicans and visitors.
“Some sections are more used than others, remember that more trains are about to arrive, which will give greater capacity to operate with even a greater number of passengers throughout the peninsula,” he stressed. Months before, the local press claimed that the footprint of foreign travelers was minimal, with just 6% of the passengers.
Just a few weeks ago, those responsible for the Mayan Train assured that they are “getting closer” to their annual goal, which they set at 1.2 million passengers. On November 17 there were already around 1.12 million travelers, 94.1% of the “annual projection.” On the busiest day its cars moved 7,875 people.
Images | Wikipedia, Mayan Train and Government of Mexico
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