The Mexican government has proposed a 140% increase in tolls for using the country’s railways ; however, the Maya Train, the Interoceanic Corridor, and other projects less than 15 years old will be exempt. It is estimated that the measure will have a greater impact on inflation, as well as an increase in logistics costs and the prices of various goods.
Humberto Vargas, Chief Commercial Officer of Crossdock , mentioned that the impact would be on essential products such as grains, raw materials in general, fuels, steel and finished products.
“We must be very careful; the current situation in freight transport could generate a greater inflationary impact than what is happening in the cross-border and national industries, due to increases in fuel costs and the shortage of operators that has led to price increases in the transport of goods,” he said in an interview with T21.
He indicated that it is necessary to be very careful in the application of this type of measure, since the cure could be worse than the disease. We see the effort to reduce the fiscal deficit, as the 2027 budget proposal seems to suggest; however, it must be analyzed in greater depth, and we must be careful about the impact it could have on royalties for the railway service.
Vargas emphasized that despite the example of other Latin American countries where the fee for concessions is higher, in Mexico concessions have been successful, as well as the model of Brazil, Argentina or Colombia.
According to the proposal included in the 2027 Economic Package, the Federal Law of Rights will be amended to update the rate from 1.25% to 3% on the total income obtained from the use, enjoyment or exploitation of the assets within the Regulatory Law of the Railway Service.
“This adjustment applies only to those participants in the sector with more than 15 years of experience using this public asset, with the purpose of maintaining conditions that favor the maturation of railway projects in early stages of development, guaranteeing a competitive railway system, strengthening connectivity and contributing to the sustainable reduction of passenger and freight transport costs at the national level,” the document stated.
According to the text, in Colombia the compensation is up to 5%, while in Argentina it is 3% and 3.5% in Brazil.
The government insisted that the upgrade will contribute more resources to the development of the sector, guaranteeing a “fair return to the State for the exploitation of a national asset, will allow investments in strategic areas for its development, thus guaranteeing the safety, continuity and efficiency of passenger and freight rail transport services.”
For his part, Carlos Barreda Westphal, director of Ferroviaria.mx , commented that the proposal is positive if it is justified that the resources obtained will be allocated to “guaranteeing the development, security, continuity and efficiency of the railway system of our country.”
“This objective is clearly positive given the increase in the number of incidents (vandalism), migrant boarding of trains, and accidents at level crossings that seriously affect freight train operations. However, I believe that an increase of this magnitude (140%) should have been implemented gradually over a five-year period . We hope to see the results then, which will give the freight rail system the efficiency required to meet the projected increase in trade volumes with the United States,” he stated.
He explained that, under the proposed terms, the increased contribution would initially apply only to the country’s four main freight carriers : Ferromex, Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) , Ferrovalle, and Ferrocarril Coahuila Durango . In the case of Ferromex, for example, which reported gross revenues of 48.038 billion pesos (MXN) in 2025, a 7% annual increase, this increase would represent a difference of 840.665 billion pesos (MXN) to be paid.
According to the Agency for Trains and Integrated Public Transport (ATTRAPI) , the National Railway System (SFN) has 29,042 kilometers of tracks and, during the period from January to March 2026, it moved 31.88 million tons of cargo by rail and 15.20 million passengers .
For this cycle, the SFN operated with 11 active concessionaires and assignees providing freight and passenger transport services.
ATRAPPI highlighted that in the first quarter of this year, 31.88 million tons of cargo were transported, which, compared to the same period in 2025, grew by 1.89 percent.
During that period, Ferromex moved 15.38 million tons, representing 48.2% of the cargo transported by the system. The company recorded a year-over-year increase of 6.5 percent.
In second place was CPKC of Mexico with 11.84 million tons and a share of 37.1%, although it showed an annual decrease of 7.1 percent.
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