The Secretariat of National Defense (Sedena) must complete this year the maintenance of Quintana Roo’s roads, which suffered considerable deterioration due to the intense traffic of heavy vehicles during the construction of the Mayan Train. Guido Mendiburu, director of the center of the Secretariat of Infrastructure, Communications and Transportation (SICT) in the state, reported that these works are already underway and that Sedena has the responsibility of restoring the damaged roads before the end of 2024.
This initiative responds to the instructions issued by former president Andrés Manuel López Obrador at the beginning of the year, when he entrusted Sedena with the repair of the federal highways affected in the southeast of the country.
The Mayan Train, one of the flagship projects of López Obrador’s six-year term, has been both an engine of development and a source of controversy in terms of environmental, social and economic impact. One of the most obvious challenges has been damage to road infrastructure, due to the nature of the materials needed to construct the train tracks. The special stone used in the project was transported from Los Tuxtlas, Veracruz, which caused constant traffic of heavy trucks on the main routes of Quintana Roo, accelerating its wear.
The most affected roads include highway 186, which connects Escárcega, Campeche, with Chetumal, highway 307 that goes from Chetumal to Cancún, highway 184 that connects Felipe Carrillo Puerto with Polyuc and Ticul, and the short highway to Mérida, highway 293. These routes have been key for the transportation of materials, and are currently the focus of maintenance work that includes patching and restoration of damaged sections. Sedena, which assumed responsibility for these tasks by order of the federal government, has a transferred budget to manage the repair work, which is essential to guarantee the safety and fluidity of traffic in the region.
The Mayan Train has promoted significant economic development in the south-southeast of the country, attracting investments and energizing sectors such as tourism and construction. However, this growth has not been without costs. The wear and tear of communication routes is one of the clearest examples of how a megaproject of this magnitude can have collateral effects that must be addressed urgently. Road maintenance is critical not only to the success of the Mayan Train, but also to tourism activity in the region, especially in high-flow destinations such as Cancun, Playa del Carmen and Tulum.
The repair of roads is also seen as a necessary measure to strengthen the state’s infrastructure in the face of the high tourism season, where Quintana Roo receives millions of visitors who depend on these routes to travel between the main tourist destinations. Tourism continues to be one of the state’s main sources of income, and the government seeks to ensure that the road network is in optimal conditions to avoid impacts to the sector.
The impact of the Mayan Train on the region’s tourism and economy has been mixed. On the one hand, it is expected that, once in operation, the train will facilitate connectivity between different points in southern Mexico, which could further enhance the region’s attractiveness for national and international tourists.
However, construction work and road repairs have caused temporary inconvenience, affecting both residents and tourists. Despite this, authorities are confident that the long-term benefits will outweigh the initial difficulties, and that road maintenance will be a key step in achieving that goal.
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