The completion of the Suburban Train branch to the Felipe Ángeles International Airport (AIFA) has faced a significant hurdle in starting tests and being opened in the third quarter of 2024. This is the final stretch of the administration of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, who has pledged not to leave any work unfinished.

In an interview, Max Noria, director of Marketing for Suburban Railways, stated that the right-of-way has been the main issue and that as of September, the authority reported that they were 80 percent clear of the road. The exact number of sections remaining to be released in the 15 kilometers where the company works remains unknown, but it is expected that the project will be ready for testing sometime in the last quarter of this administration’s term, allowing for potential operation to begin in the third quarter of next year.

The new deadline implies an extension of the previously mentioned June 2023 date for the train to be operational. The construction of this branch from Lechería station to AIFA covers 23 kilometers, with eight located on Santa Lucía air base polygon and 15 in Tultitlán and Tultepec municipalities. In this latter section, Suburban Railways is carrying out civil engineering work to equip with catenary electrical substation and signaling systems while Secretariat de Infraestructura Comunicaciones y Transporte is responsible for acquiring trains and other infrastructure.

As September progressed, Max Noria stated that work on this project was still ongoing day and night by 77 machines and over 2 thousand workers to fulfill President López Obrador’s promise not to leave any work unfinished. Despite these efforts, it seems like there are still some obstacles that need to be overcome before this project can move forward as planned.