Mexican Public Transport Ridership Climbs 5.1% in April

The ongoing expansion of Mexican urban transit networks, highlighted by a 5.1% year-on-year ridership increase in April 2026, is driving a parallel modernizing push in municipal fleet infrastructure. This structural demand allows Chinese automotive and rail manufacturers like CRRC and Yutong Bus to secure critical public tenders for electric vehicle fleets, Bus Rapid Transit units, and light rail vehicles. Consequently, this shift shapes the regulatory and investment landscape for industrial electromobility, urban infrastructure developers, and municipal transport authorities working toward localized climate change mitigation goals.

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Public transportation users in Mexico’s main cities increased by 5.1% year-on-year in April 2026, according to the National Institute of Statistics and Geography (INEGI). As major urban centers scale up their transit infrastructure, Chinese firms have increasingly secured tenders to supply both rail and surface units.

Data from the Urban Passenger Transport Statistics (ETUP) shows that across the measured urban areas, transport systems carried a total of 244.1 million passengers during the month, while covering a total distance of 46.5 million kilometers, representing a 3.4% increase in distance traveled. 

Within the Mexico City Metropolitan Area (ZMVM), urban transportation systems served 179.2 million passengers, reflecting a 6% expansion compared to April 2025. Mexico City’s Metro remained the largest transit component in the region, transporting 100.4 million passengers, which marks a 2.9% increase and accounts for 56% of the metropolitan area's total ridership. Following the Metro, the Metrobús network moved 34.9 million users despite a 2.3% contraction, while the Trolebús system served 13.2 million passengers, recording a 7.9% growth rate. Additionally, the State of Mexico’s Mexibús system transported 10.7 million passengers, representing an 8.8% annual increase. 

Guadalajara’s public transport infrastructure catered to 26.8 million passengers, yielding a 6.6% annual expansion. The Tren Eléctrico served as the primary transit choice in the city by transporting 13.6 million passengers, a 6.6% growth that represented over half of the local transit volume. Within the same network, the Mi Macro Periférico Troncal bus-rapid transit (BRT) service registered 7.3 million passengers, up 6.5%, while the Macrobús Servicio Troncal recorded 2.7 million passengers, demonstrating a 3.4% rise. 

Monterrey recorded a modest turnaround in public transport utilization, registering 12.1 million passengers in April 2026, which represents a 1% increase compared to the same period in 2025. The city’s largest system, Metrorrey, transported 7.7 million users, an annual increase of 0.2%, while the integrated Transmetro system catered to 4.4 million passengers, growing by 2.5%. 

In other monitored cities, transport ridership dynamics varied significantly. Puebla experienced the highest growth rate among the individual municipalities with an 11.1% increase, while Querétaro and Pachuca posted expansions of 3% and 1.4%, respectively. Conversely, ridership fell in León by 5.9% to 13.7 million passengers, while Chihuahua registered a 1.5% decrease and Acapulco experienced a contraction of 17.5% over the same annual period. 

Chinese Technology Present in Mexico's Transport Systems

The evolving ridership metrics across Mexico's major metropolitan areas coincide with targeted rolling stock modernization and fleet expansion programs driven by Chinese rail technology. China-based CRRC has deployed a total of 115 light rail vehicles across Mexico City, Monterrey, and Guadalajara to manage rising passenger demands and prepare local networks for anticipated transit surges during the 2026 FIFA World Cup. These sustainable mobility solutions are structurally adapted to specific local operating parameters, featuring low-noise ventilation, universal accessibility, and regenerative braking configurations to capture municipal energy efficiencies, as reported by MBN.

In the ZMVM, where the Metro and Trolebús systems continue to capture dominant transit volumes, CRRC rolling stock has been engineered to withstand high-altitude environments and severe rainy-season conditions. Meanwhile, tech upgrades deployed to Monterrey's fleet focus on improving intelligent system performance and optimizing energy use. In Guadalajara, the technology deployment is centered around the expansion of Line 4, which is intended to scale up mass rail connectivity to heavily populated suburban zones and major regional transport hubs. To build local alignment alongside infrastructure delivery, the firm launched interactive "Green Energy Hubs" at highly trafficked hubs like Mexico City’s Taxqueña station and Guadalajara’s Tlajomulco Centro, blending educational tech exhibits with local cultural engagement to bolster public support for transport modernization. 

Complementing these rail infrastructure upgrades, Chinese automotive technology has established a parallel foothold in Mexico's road and surface transport sectors. At EXPO FORO 2026, manufacturer Yutong Bus introduced its full lineup of highway passenger vehicles to the Mexican market, under the theme “Think Eco, Move Green.” The presentation included conventional Euro VI-compliant diesel buses, the hybrid H9 and H10 models capable of reducing fuel consumption by more than 30%, and the fully electric C11E coach, which boasts a long-distance range of up to 530 km.

Yutong has delivered close to 2,000 vehicles in Mexico since 2018, becoming more relevant in the electrification of the ZMVM surface networks mentioned in the baseline ridership data. Between 2019 and 2022, the company secured contracts worth US$161 million to supply 300 electric trolleybuses and 171 vehicles for the Passenger Transport Network (RTP) system. Furthermore, the complete electrification of Metrobús Line 3, utilizing 60 Yutong electric units, eliminated 7,500t CO2 emissions annually, creating the world's first BRT line to run 18m electric buses. This footprint was expanded further through the introduction of a 27m bi-articulated electric bus on Metrobús Line 1 and a MX$408 million (US$24.6 million) contract in 2024 to supply an additional 50 electric units to the RTP fleet.