Mexico Starts Second Phase of Passenger Rail Expansion

Mexico is advancing the second phase of its passenger rail program with new routes toward Leon, Guadalajara, San Luis Potosi, and Saltillo.

Mexico has begun the second stage of its national passenger rail construction program, advancing new lines through the Bajio and toward western and northern Mexico as the federal government seeks to establish an integrated intercity rail network.

The new phase includes sections connecting Queretaro, San Miguel de Allende, San Luis Potosi, Saltillo, Irapuato, Leon, and Guadalajara. The Ministry of National Defense, through the Felipe Angeles Engineering Group, and the Agency for Trains and Integrated Public Transport (ATTRAPI) will divide responsibility for the construction and tendering processes.

Efrain Deschamps Gutierrez, Director of Works, ATTRAPI, says the agency has completed the technical studies, basic engineering, and demand assessments required to move forward with the projects. The details were presented during the XXV National Meeting on Land Transport Infrastructure, organized by the Mexican Association of Land Transport Engineering (AMIVTAC) in Morelia, Michoacan.

Construction Expands Toward Leon and Guadalajara

The Felipe Angeles Engineering Group will be responsible for constructing the Irapuato-Leon and Leon-Guadalajara sections, Deschamps said. These routes will extend the passenger rail network westward from the Mexico City-Queretaro and Queretaro-Irapuato corridors currently under development.

President Claudia Sheinbaum previously announced that construction on the Irapuato-Leon and Leon-Guadalajara sections would begin in 2026, describing the projects as part of the federal strategy to restore passenger rail service and improve regional connectivity in central Mexico.

ATTRAPI has also launched an international public tender for the first section of the Queretaro-San Luis Potosi corridor, covering the route between Queretaro and San Miguel de Allende. The agency opted for an international process to encourage greater participation and attract more competitive proposals.

The first tendered section will cover about 68km and will include the design and construction of tracks, viaducts, stations, tunnels, railway bridges, road overpasses, and pedestrian bridges. Proposals are scheduled to be received on Aug. 24, 2026, according to the federal Proyectos Mexico platform.

The entire Queretaro-San Luis Potosi project is expected to require an estimated investment of MX$77 billion (US$3.99 billion) and involves the development of approximately 274km of railway infrastructure.

ATTRAPI had previously announced preparations for tenders extending the network from Queretaro toward San Luis Potosi and Saltillo. The latest presentation confirms that the program has moved from planning and preliminary studies into procurement and construction.

San Luis Potosi-Saltillo Tender Moves Forward

ATTRAPI is also preparing the tender for the San Luis Potosi-Saltillo section, which Deschamps said would be published following the Morelia presentation. The corridor forms part of a broader northbound passenger rail axis that will eventually connect central Mexico with Saltillo, Monterrey, and Nuevo Laredo. The network is intended to link industrial centers across the Bajio and northern Mexico while providing an alternative to highway and air travel.

The federal government is already building the Saltillo-Nuevo Laredo passenger corridor, the longest section currently under construction under the program. The route covers 396.34km from the Derramadero industrial area in Coahuila to Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas.

Earlier projects in the first stage included the Mexico City-AIFA, AIFA-Pachuca, Mexico City-Queretaro, Queretaro-Irapuato and Saltillo-Nuevo Laredo lines. Responsibility has been divided between military engineers and public procurement processes managed first by the Regulatory Agency for Railway Transport and later by ATTRAPI.

Authorities previously reported that rights of way had been secured for the Mexico City-Queretaro, Queretaro-Irapuato, Saltillo-Nuevo Laredo and AIFA-Pachuca corridors, reducing one of the main risks associated with major transport projects.

ATTRAPI formally replaced the Regulatory Agency for Railway Transport in January 2026. The new agency has authority to plan, build, regulate and, where applicable, operate passenger rail infrastructure and integrated public transportation systems.

Pacific Corridor Planned for Later Phases

Beyond the second stage, ATTRAPI is developing plans for approximately 1,100km of passenger rail along the Pacific corridor.

The proposed third stage would include the Guadalajara-Tepic, Mazatlan-Los Mochis, Los Mochis-Guaymas, and Guaymas-Hermosillo sections. Studies covering demand, preinvestment requirements and basic engineering are underway for the Mazatlan-Los Mochis route, although the project does not yet have an authorized construction date.

A potential fourth stage could close the remaining gaps through the Tepic-Mazatlan and Hermosillo-Nogales sections. Together, the projects would create a continuous passenger rail axis extending from central Mexico through Jalisco, Nayarit, Sinaloa, and Sonora to the US border.

The Pacific route has been included in the administration’s passenger rail plans since the beginning of Sheinbaum’s term. The broader strategy originally proposed more than 3,000km of new passenger lines, including a western corridor running through Guadalajara, Tepic, Mazatlan, Culiacan, Hermosillo, and Nogales.

The government now aims to build at least 2,377km of public passenger rail during the current administration, positioning railway infrastructure as a tool for mobility, regional development, and territorial integration.

Unlike corridors where passenger and freight trains share infrastructure, the new lines will use dedicated passenger tracks. Deschamps said the routes will not interact directly with freight railways and will avoid level crossings. Trains are expected to operate at maximum speeds between 160km/h and 200km/h.

Stations are also being designed as multimodal hubs with space for connections to urban public transportation. ATTRAPI says this model is intended to create a national railway network that is integrated with local mobility systems rather than operating as an isolated mode of transport.