Mexico-Toluca train, boost to the metropolitan economy 2023/09/27

By Fadlala Akabani *

Circumscribed to the political formation of the two main entities that make up the Metropolitan Zone of the Valley of Mexico, that is, CDMX and Edomex, it dates back to the first years of the independent life of Mexico, when once the first Mexican Empire ended, the The newly proclaimed Republic began to outline the institutional architecture of the former viceregal municipalities in new demarcations with greater powers and a different logic.

Since then, the relationship between both entities has been extremely complex and intricate, however, in contemporary times, where far from taking advantage of the confluence of the former hegemonic party PRI, at the federal level and at the local level in both entities, the Federal District enjoyed of exceptional conditions as a federative entity for its development, and on the other hand, Edomex was condemned to the abandonment of a large part of its territory and population, generating problems associated with the expansion of the urban area of ​​the country's capital outside its political demarcation. , but without territorial planning and with a disdain for the territory and its governed that makes the uninterrupted dominance that the State party maintained almost inexplicable.

A great example of this series of wasted opportunities can be found in the Mexico-Toluca Interurban Train, a project rescued by the Mexican government from Lopez Obradorwhich was originally one of the many commitments signed before a notary public by the then PRI candidate, Enrique Pena Nieto in the campaign (2012) for the Presidency; which along with many other unfulfilled promises showed the inability of neoliberalism (made in Atlacomulco) for carrying out a project in favor of the national capital and the Mexican capital.

The interurban rail connection project between both cities was taken up by the 4T, and in Mexico City by Claudia Sheinbaum, and renamed El Insurgente; A railway that has seven stations and 57.7 kilometers, more than 230 thousand users will travel per day connecting the metropolitan area of ​​Toluca with the west of CDMX. After almost ten years, on September 15 it was inaugurated by the president Lopez Obrador the first stage, which includes four stations: Zinacantepec (terminal), Toluca Centro, Metepec and Lerma, all in the State of Mexico and for which 62 billion pesos have been invested; In 2024, the second stage will be completed and put into operation: Santa Fe, Vasco de Quiroga and Observatorio (terminal) in Mexico City.

As I have previously stated, capital investment in mobility infrastructure has a positive impact on economic activity, since transportation is part of the last gear in the industrial chain and the first in the commercial chain. El Insurgente will be a pioneer in bringing the first mass public transportation system to two important urban centers, Toluca and Sant Fe. Its construction has generated 6,500 direct and 18,000 indirect jobs and will have a positive impact on the lives of five million inhabitants. of the ZMVM.

Despite being a magnificent work, with cutting-edge technology and an environmentally friendly system, El Insurgente is just the foundation—along with the AIFA—of the infrastructure that allows the State of Mexico to develop, since the historical debt with this organization is undeniable. entity in the country, the most populated with its more than 16 million inhabitants (13.5% of the national population) of which unfortunately 42.88% live in poverty.

In terms of GDP, Mexico City contributes 15% of the national total and the State of Mexico ranks as the second entity in contribution in the country with 9 percent. El Insurgente consolidates the region as a logistics node with access to a potential market of more than 25 million people. Likewise, until before the pandemic, the demand for real estate for the logistics sector captured 47.6% of the industrial market in the west of Mexico City (Cuajimalpa and Álvaro Obregón) and the metropolitan area of ​​the Toluca Valley (Toluca, Metepec, Zinacantepec , Lerma de Villada and Tenango del Valle). The Insurgente is the first interurban passenger train put into operation in more than 20 years in our country; It symbolically inaugurates a new stage in urban, tourist and logistical mobility, but especially it vindicates the quality of life of the people, because with the town, everything, without the town, nothing.

* Secretary of Economic Development of Mexico City