The Mayan Train turns two years old this Monday amid accusations of an investment much higher than expected and a financial performance that, until now, depends on public support, while debates persist over its environmental impacts and operational safety.
The project, promoted by the then president Andrés Manuel López Obrador, was partially inaugurated on December 15, 2023, and the opening of the complete circuit concluded a year later, on December 15, 2024, with the entry into operation of sections 6 and 7.
Here are some keys to the railway system that runs 1,554 kilometers throughout five southeastern states: Chiapas, Tabasco, Campeche, Yucatán and Quintana Roo, with 20 stations and 14 stops.
1.- Cost: from the initial estimate to the accumulated amount
The Superior Audit of the Federation (ASF) documented that, in the first Cost Benefit Analysis of January 2020, the project was proposed with an investment of 139,072.4 million pesos.
However, with the progress of the works, route modifications, cost overruns and the inclusion of complementary works, different analyzes—including the Mexican Institute for Competitiveness (IMCO)—have estimated that the accumulated investment exceeds 500,000 million pesos.
More context: Two years of the Mayan Train: doubts, controversies and hopes
2.- Route and operation
The service has focused mainly on passenger transportation, with tourist routes that connect destinations such as Cancún, Tulum, Mérida, Campeche and Palenque, although the federal government has insisted that long-term viability depends on the development of cargo transportation, work on which formally began in April 2025.
The official objective of the Mayan Train is to diversify tourism from the Mexican Caribbean to the interior of the southeast, improve regional connectivity and detonate poles of economic development around the stations, with the promise of generating employment and promoting local productive activities.
To boost demand, the Mayan Train promotes tourist packages and passenger attraction campaigns, with trains that reach 160 kilometers per hour, with greater comfort and space and atmosphere inspired by the Mayan culture, as well as with restaurant service.
3.- Financial profitability
In financial terms, the project does not yet show self-sufficiency.
Reports based on official information indicate that, between January and September, the Mayan Train generated 387 million pesos in own income, compared to operating expenses of more than 3,000 million pesos.
In that period, the losses of the Mayan Train, according to its most recent quarterly report, amounted to 2,681 million pesos, which still does not make it profitable.
4.- Environmental alarm and operational problems
Civil and environmental organizations have reported deforestation, damage to cenotes and aquifers, as well as the lack of comprehensive environmental studies in some sections. Dozens of protections and questions have also been presented for changes in the layout and for the participation of the Armed Forces in the construction and operation.
Added to this are operational incidents, such as derailments and technical failures recorded in 2024 and 2025, which revived the debate on safety and supervision of the work.
With information from EFE.
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