Mexico’s tourism board Fonatur will settle a 15-year old expropriation debt in Quintana Roo state as part of its plan to build the US$6.7bn Maya train.
The board, which is in charge of building the rail link, announced on Monday that the payment would be made to landowners in Felipe Carrillo Puerto municipality in the next 15 days. The total to be paid was not disclosed on the beneficiaries’ request.
The government assumed the debt to build the 300km federal highway 307 between the resort city Cancún and Quintana Roo state capital Chetumal.
Fonatur announced in May that it had found a “historic debt” while researching records on existing rights-of-way to build the 1,500km rail line in southeast Mexico and other projects such as highways.
While the board said it would not expropriate land to build the project, it committed to pay almost 800mn pesos (US$34mn) to landowners along the route.
The Felipe Carrillo Puerto municipality is on stretch six of the Maya train, which will run about 213km from Tulum to Chetumal. Construction of the stretch will begin in 2022 by defense ministry Sedena, according to Fonatur.
The government also plans to widen the 208km Bacalar-Tulum route, which is part of highway 307, under a public-private partnership, according to government project tracker site Mexico Projects Hub.
The project is still in the pre-investment stage but will involve widening the route from two to four lanes and the maintenance and operation of the stretch for an unspecified length of time.
Source: https://www.bnamericas.com/en/news/mexico-to-pay-debt-for-maya-train-stretch