Railway expansion in Claudia Sheinbaum’s administration
Andrés Lajous, head of the Rail Transportation Regulatory Agency, reported that during Claudia Sheinbaum’s administration, more than 3,000 kilometers of passenger railway lines will be built. In addition, he explained that preparatory work is advancing to begin construction on the first routes: Lechería-Felipe Angeles International Airport (AIFA), AIFA-Pachuca, Mexico City-Querétaro, Saltillo-Nuevo Laredo, and Querétaro-Irapuato.
The Ministry of National Defense (SEDENA) will have a 60% share of the direct management in the development of technical studies for the construction of the railway lines, while the remaining 40% will be carried out in collaboration with specialized companies.
The President explained that the Mexico-AIFA line will be built by military engineers and said that its inauguration is scheduled for July 2025, with the start of construction of the extension of the line to Pachuca in March.
General Gustavo Vallejo, commander of the Felipe Ángeles engineering group, noted that Mexico has become a railroad power, ranking 11th in the world in railroad infrastructure per square kilometer of territory and 15th in passenger traffic.
It was also reported that an additional 250 kilometers of railroad tracks will be built to strengthen the Mayan Train’s cargo infrastructure. During the construction of this project, 170,000 direct jobs and 340,000 indirect jobs were generated, and it is expected that the construction of the 3,000 kilometers of railroad tracks during the Sheinbaum administration will generate more than 1.5 million direct jobs.
International relations and territorial sovereignty
The President recalled that, during a conversation with President Donald Trump, she said that drug trafficking is a shared problem involving the two countries and that it is necessary to strengthen collaboration and coordination to reduce crime rates.
She also referred to the decree signed by the U.S. president to change the name of the Gulf of Mexico, located in the country’s continental shelf. She clarified that Mexico maintains sovereignty over its own continental shelf and revealed that her administration could promote a lawsuit against Google for referring to this area as “Gulf of America” within Mexican territory.
Security and elections in Veracruz
The President reported that there is coordination with Governor Rocío Nahle and the Electoral Institute to guarantee security during the municipal elections in Veracruz.
Attention to repatriated migrants
Sheinbaum reported that the 10 attention centers in the country’s northern border region have received 2,016 repatriated migrants.
Payroll credit reform
The President reiterated that, in case the Senate were to approves the bill modifying the law that allows for the automatic deduction of payroll credits, she will veto it. She also mentioned that Morena is a party that promotes a policy of forming alliances, although she questioned whether this defines its political principles.