The completion of the Suburban Train branch to the Felipe Ángeles International Airport (AIFA) is facing a delay in starting tests and being opened in the third quarter of 2024. This is the final stretch of the administration of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, who has vowed not to leave any work unfinished.
In an interview, Max Noria, director of Marketing of Suburban Railways, stated that the right of way has been the main issue and as of September, the authority reported that they were 80 percent clear of the road. The exact number of sections that remain to be released in the 15 kilometers where the company works is unknown, but it is expected that the project will be ready for testing sometime in the last quarter of this administration’s term, allowing for potential operation to begin in the third quarter of next year.
The new deadline implies an extension of the previously mentioned June 2023 date for the train to be in operation. The construction of this branch from Lechería station to AIFA covers 23 kilometers, with eight located within Santa Lucía air base polygon and 15 kilometers in Tultitlán and Tultepec municipalities. In this latter section, Suburban Railways are carrying out civil engineering work to equip this branch line with catenary electrical substation and signaling systems while Secretariat de Infraestructura Comunicaciones y Transporte (SIT) is responsible for acquiring trains and other infrastructure required.
As September approached, only 46% had been completed on this project with around-the-clock work by over 77 machines and more than two thousand workers trying desperately to fulfill President López Obrador’s pledge not to leave any unfinished works behind.