Highway Progress Report: States Make Infrastructure Strides

Jorge Nuño, Minister of Infrastructure, Communications and Transportation (SICT), toured Oaxaca, Veracruz and Durango to supervise the advances of several road works. 

The southeast tour included the detailed supervision of the progress of three important road works in Oaxaca: the Mitla-Tehuantepec II highway, the Acayucan-La Ventosa highway and the Sayula Beltway on the border with Veracruz. While in the north, Nuño made a flyover to supervise the modernization works of the Interstate Axis Durango-Culiacan highway, specifically the Los Herrera-Tamazula section. 

Finally, Nuño oversaw the Mitla-Tehuantepec II in the southeast. This highway has an extension of 169km and received an investment of over MX$32.1 billion (US$1.8 billion) to build two lanes for traffic (one in each direction), 20 junctions, 69 bridges, 14 viaducts, 10 tunnels and two toll booths. It stands at 87.57% completion. The highway is set to connect the state capital with the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, which will benefit close to 454,000 inhabitants of 14 neighboring municipalities and more than 1.3 million long-distance users, reducing travel time from 4.5 hours to 2.5 hours. This will also imply lower logistics costs in the transportation of people and goods, and is expected to boost tourism and trade in the region and bring health and education services closer.

The Acayucan-La Ventosa section stands at 92.8% completion, with a total investment of MX$5.4 billion (US$318.5 million). This project involves the construction of 96.7km of road, including three junctions and a bridge that will enhance the connectivity between the Ports of Salina Cruz, Oaxaca, and Coatzacoalcos, Veracruz. The road will reduce travel time from four to two hours, benefiting more than 1 million inhabitants of 12 neighboring municipalities.

The Sayula Beltway, Veracruz, will receive an investment of MX$537 million (US$31.4 million) to build a 5.2km road with two lanes for traffic, one in each direction; this will benefit 32,400 inhabitants of the Sayulense municipality. The beltway will decrease cargo transit in the urban zone and facilitate traffic across federal and state highways. It stands at 67.5% completion. 

Meanwhile, Nuño oversaw the modernization works at the Interstate Axis Durango-Culiacan highway, located in the northern region of the country. This project represented an investment of MX$2.4 billion (US$140.9 million), benefiting about 37,800 inhabitants from the municipalities of Santiago Papasquiaro, Tepehuanes, Topia, Canelas and Tamazula. The road will establish more seamless connections to the state capital, bringing essential services such as healthcare, education and business opportunities closer to these municipalities.