The passing works of the Maya train have already destroyed more than 10 million trees. Environmental entrepreneurs have warned that this gigantic project has led to an “eco-dose” and that it will have other consequences in the future, as the project continues. Construction of a railway of over 1,500 kilometres is planned.

The intention of the railway to cross the area of Playa del Carmen (Quintana Roo) has sparked debate because it has more than 1,800 kilometres of caves, including the world’s two major underground rivers. Although the Government initially assured that the railway would be built next to the Playa del Carmen highway, at the last moment the road has been modified and the work has been sent to the center of the jungle.

Both environmental groups and ecologists have denounced this decision and have mobilised themselves to prevent the passage of the train at this point, not least because the railways would “fully” affect caves and deep water wells. “Megaproject exacerbates the situation of the jungle. Of the 254,800 square kilometers (25.4 million hectares), there are currently only 40,086 square kilometers (4 million hectares),” says Roberto Rojo Quintana, member of the Sélvame del Tren de Roo.

Attempts to paralyse the project

Eleven initiatives have been taken to break the macro-project and protect the forest. But no attempt to paralyse the project has been successful. In May, President López Obrador described the Maya Railroad as “strategic, priority, public interest and national security.”