Maya Train celebrates its one-millionth passenger

Mexico’s Maya Train reached 1 cardinal passengers since its motorboat successful December 2023, the wide manager of the state-owned railroad, Óscar David Lozano Águila, announced connected Wednesday. 

“Thanks to the spot Mexicans person placed successful us, I americium assured that the Maya Train volition presumption itself arsenic a determination proscription strategy that unites the communities of the Maya satellite successful the southeast of the country,” Lozano said during President Claudia Sheinbaum’s Wednesday greeting property conference. 

While the Maya Train serves immoderate of Mexico’s astir fashionable tourer destinations, the bulk of its riders are Mexican citizens. (Elizabeth Ruiz/Cuartoscuro)

The millionth rider was a 70-year-old antheral who purchased his summons connected Monday, according to Lozano. He volition beryllium recognized astatine a ceremonial successful the metropolis of Mérida successful Yucatán connected Thursday. 

The Maya Train, oregon Tren Maya successful Spanish, is simply a flagship task of the ruling Morena party’s alleged “Fourth Transformation” of Mexico. 

The last conception of the Maya Train enactment was inaugurated by President Sheinbaum connected Dec. 15, 2024, completing the 1,554-kilometer way that connects the southeastern states of Tabasco, Chiapas, Campeche, Yucatán and Quintana Roo.

The railroad has stations successful oregon adjacent the cities of Palenque, Campeche, Mérida, Valladolid, Cancún, Playa del Carmen and Chetumal, among others, improving entree to tourer attractions specified arsenic archaeological sites, cenotes (natural swimmable sinkholes) and beaches for foreigners.

Locals person besides adopted the bid arsenic a proscription alternative: successful 2024, over 281,000 passengers were nationals — 167,901 were section residents and 120,141 were elder citizens, students, teachers and radical with disabilities.

During the property conference, Lozano said that rider occupancy had been “steady and consistent,” with rider numbers expanding by 181% successful the archetypal 4th of 2025 compared to the aforesaid play successful 2024. 

Maya Train Director Óscar Lozano walks on the bid level successful April. (@trenmayamx/X)

The Maya Train is expected to transport 1.2 cardinal passengers this year, according to Lozano. More than 1,500 tickets person already been sold for the Easter period, bringing successful gross of 9.4 cardinal pesos (US $462,000).

Most tickets for the Maya Train person been sold astatine the bid stations and different in-person income sites. By Jan. 21, 791,730 tickets had been sold successful total, of which 500,427 were sold successful idiosyncratic and 291,303 online. 

The busiest stations are Mérida, with 189,536 tickets sold, Cancún Airport, with 180,079, and Playa del Carmen, with 70,976.

What is the Maya Train?

The Maya Train task was launched by erstwhile president Andrés Manuel López Obrador successful June 2020, and faced absorption from biology groups owed to the deforestation and situation demolition it caused to Mexico’s largest rainforest.

The operation of the railroad created much than 600,000 jobs, and outgo astir 500 cardinal pesos (US $24.8 billion). 

Environment Minister Alicia Bárcena announced connected April 2 that the authorities is preparing a restoration program to code the ecological harm done by the train.

With reports from Ovaciones and Excelsior