MEXICO CITY (AP) 鈥 Mexico鈥檚 president on Friday inaugurated the first part of the pet project of his administration, a tourist train that runs in a rough loop around the Yucatan peninsula.
The $20 billion, 950-mile line, is meant to connect beach resorts and archaeological sites. However, it is not finished yet. Officials pledged the rest of the line would be ready by the end of February. But it was clear from the unfinished earthworks and the existence of just a single lane of a planned double-lane track, even the first section has not been completed yet.
President opened a 290-mile (473-kilometer) stretch Friday between the colonial Gulf coast city of Campeche and the Caribbean coast resort of Cancun. That is about one-third of the entire project, and covers the least controversial stretch.
It will take about 5 1/2 hours to travel from Campeche to Cancun at an average speed of about 50 miles per hour (80 kph), though officials have promised the train will be capable of speeds of up to 75 mph (120 kph).
There will be two trains per day each way, with stops in the colonial city of Merida, the Mayan ruins at Chichen Itza and about ten other towns. Originally, officials had planned on charging separate, lower fares for Mexicans on the line, and foreign tourists would pay a higher fare.
But the only prices listed for the first runs were differentiated only by first-class and 鈥渢ourist class鈥 tickets, on sale starting Saturday, though most are sold out.
A first-class ticket on one of the two trains from Cancun to Merida each day will cost the equivalent of $68. A first-class bus ticket on the same route costs about $58, with buses leaving about every half hour.
The first train cars to set out Friday were reserved for officials, dignitaries and the press. L贸pez Obrador called it a record-setting project that will eventually link Cancun with beach towns like Playa del Carmen and Tulum, and Mayan ruins at Calakmul and Palenque.
鈥淭here are no public works projects like this in the world,鈥 L贸pez Obrador said. 鈥淚t was also done in record time.鈥
Layda Sansores, the governor of Campeche state, claimed 鈥渢he entire peninsula is breaking out in cries of 鈥楬allelujah!鈥欌
Unlike the remaining two-thirds of the Maya Train, the part of the line inaugurated Friday already had an old train line running over much of the route. Many of the still-unfinished parts were cut through the jungle and built over sensitive, relic-filled cave systems, drawing objections from environmentalists.
L贸pez Obrador has raced to finish the Maya Train project before he leaves office in September, rolling over the objections of ecologists, cave divers and archaeologists.
The train runs along the Caribbean coast and where some of the oldest human remains in North America have been discovered. Because of the region's limestone geology, it is riddled with caves that carry most of its water.
While officials have touted the train as utilitarian transport for freight and local residents, its only real source of significant income would be tourists. However, given its frequent stops, unwieldy route and lack of feasibility studies, it is unclear how many tourists will actually want to buy tickets.
鈥淭he train won't help residents get to work or school, and besides, it's very expensive,鈥 SELVAME, a coalition of groups opposing the project, said in a statement Friday. 鈥淭he train runs through the jungle, filling cenotes (sinkhole lakes) and underground rivers with concrete, without any studies.鈥
L贸pez Obrador has tried to rush through the by exempting it from normal permitting, public reporting and environmental impact statements, claiming it is vital to national security.
In November 2021, L贸pez Obrador鈥檚 government issued a broad decree requiring all federal agencies to give automatic approval for any public works project the government deems to be 鈥渋n the national interest鈥 or to 鈥渋nvolve national security.鈥
The train was partly built by the Mexican army and will be run by the armed forces, to whom L贸pez Obrador has entrusted more projects than any other president in at least a century.
L贸pez Obrador is known for his fascination with trains, the armed forces and state-owned companies in general. In November, he announced he will require private rail companies that mostly carry freight or else have the government schedule its own trains on their tracks.
Almost no regular passenger rail service remains in Mexico following a 1995 reform that gave concessions to two private railway companies: Mexico鈥檚 Ferromex and a subsidiary of U.S. railway Kansas City Southern.
A few tourist trains run on relatively short, unconnected routes to tourist attractions like northern Mexico鈥檚 Copper Canyon and the western tequila-producing region around Jalisco.
____
Follow AP鈥檚 coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at
