Maya Train starts electrified track in section 3; example of environmental responsibility: Javier May

Statement from the National Fund for the Promotion of Tourism (Fonatur)

This is a machine translation of the original statement issued in Spanish

• The governor of Yucatán and the heads of Sedena, CFE and INAH, as well as the Alstom and Azvindi consortiums, participate in the comprehensive report

With a route between Calkiní and Izamal that covers 15 municipalities and 32 towns in Campeche and Yucatán, section 3 marks the beginning of the electrified double track of the Mayan Train of almost 700 km from Mérida to Chetumal, and shows the responsibility of the project with the environment, affirmed the general director of the National Fund for the Promotion of Tourism (Fonatur), Javier May Rodríguez.

Section 3, which runs from Calkiní, Campeche to Izamal, Yucatán, will have 159 km, 60 of them electrified double track; two stations: Mérida-Teya and Izamal, and four bus stops: Calkiní, Maxcanú, Umán and Tixkokob; a garage that will protect the trains and a Maintenance Base in the vicinity of Teya, he said when presenting the comprehensive report at the conference of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador.

He explained that the electrified double track of the Mayan Train begins in Mérida and extends through sections 3, 4, 5 and 6, up to Chetumal and for this, 55 major infrastructure projects are carried out: two are electricity generation plants and 53 are works related to the construction of seven Tractor Electrical Substations.

“With all these works, the electrical operation of the Mayan Train will be resolved and the electrical supply in the Yucatan Peninsula will be guaranteed, so that the population does not suffer from blackouts again. In addition, as part of the responsibility with the environment, the electrical functionality of the Mayan Train will allow reducing polluting emissions”, he highlighted.

In accordance with the presidential instruction to present comprehensive reports for each section in conjunction with state governments, agencies and companies, in the case of section 3, Fonatur, the Secretary of National Defense (Sedena), the Federal Electricity Commission (CFE) attended ) and the National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH), as well as the government of Yucatán and the companies Alstom and Azvindi.

May Rodríguez explained that section 3 will require a total of 492 thousand cubic meters of ballast, 404 thousand pieces of sleepers and 30 thousand tons of rail. He stressed that for further progress in the supply of inputs, in this section there is a Sleeper Factory in Poxilá, municipality of Umán, Yucatán.

In addition, he added, in Puerto Progreso, Yucatán, the construction of four Docking Duchess is advancing to expedite the unloading of ballast and rail and 372 complementary works are being built, including vehicular, pedestrian and wildlife crossings; cross drainage works, viaducts and induced works.

"In section 3, the Mayan Train generates 11,000 jobs and in the towns through which it will pass, 107 social works and almost 4,000 housing actions are carried out, in addition to the benefits of the Well-being Programs," he stressed.

He also specified that the Program for the Improvement of Archaeological Zones intervenes in the sites of Dzibilchaltún and the six archaeological zones of the Puuc Route, including Uxmal, where one of the Mayan Train Hotels and a natural park are also scheduled to confirm the Mayan Train's commitment to environment.

As another peculiarity of section 3, he highlighted that the Mayan Train rescues the area of the "La Plancha" Park, in Mérida, which for years was in disuse and now will provide environmental and recreational benefits.

This, he said, while the manufacture of trains in Hidalgo continues, with 11,000 jobs created. "In general, in section 3 the work is progressing at a good pace and without rest, to fulfill the commitment to inaugurate the Mayan Train in December 2023."

The governor of Yucatan, Mauricio Vila Dosal, stressed that the Mayan Train offers his state the opportunity to have a fast and efficient means of transportation that will attract tourism that arrives in Cancun and the Riviera Maya "and that, without a doubt, will to generate employment and economic development.

Dependencies and consortia

The Secretary of National Defense, Luis Cresencio Sandoval González, reported that for the security of section 3, the National Guard will deploy an operation with 489 elements from the Maxcanú whereabouts to the "Nuevo Uxmal" Park in all the facilities of the Mayan Train, as well as as patrol on the right of way.

The general director of the CFE, Manuel Bartlett Díaz, reported that with an investment of more than 151 billion pesos, a comprehensive strategy is being followed to bring more and better electrical energy to the Yucatan Peninsula and that, in the specific case of the Mayan Train Along with other actions, the generation capacity of the Kanasín, Tulum and Insurgentes electrical substations is increased.

The general director of the INAH, Diego Prieto Hernández, highlighted the findings of the Dual Sculpture, in Oxkintok; Stela 18, in Uxmal, and an Offering at the Teya Station during the salvage work, adding that the Archaeological Zones Improvement Program recovers Dzibilchaltún, Uxmal and the other sites on the Puuc Route: Kabah, Xlapak, Sayil, Oxkintok , Chalmultun and Labná.

The head of the Mayan Train Coordination Center of the General Directorate of Engineers, Blas Andrés Núñez Jordán, presented the progress in the works in charge of the Sedena and confirmed that they will be delivered on time: on November 30 the "La Plancha" Park and the “Nuevo Uxmal” Park, together with the Tren Maya Hotel, and on December 31 the facilities of the Tren Maya Company, in Mérida, Yucatán.

The director of Alstom Mexico, Maite Ramos Gómez, said that the depot in Mérida is the largest in the project with 24 tracks and the capacity to grow, while the general director of Azvindi Ferroviario, Manuel Muñozcano Castro, highlighted that the Mayan Train the company will create more than 25 thousand jobs.