The Mexican railway sector will seek to be a consultative and collaborative entity for the federal government in passenger train projects, according to Francisco Fabila, recently appointed president of the Mexican Railway Association (AMF), who reiterated that this will be part of his agenda, along with six other actions.
“To be a permanent technical consultation tool for the new administration in the development of new passenger railway projects, to be seen as a consultative entity and an entity of permanent collaboration with the federal administration for the successful development of these projects,” he said.
In an interview with T21, he commented that the AMF has experience in both cargo and passenger railway projects, and also has national and international suppliers to serve as allies in the planned works.
“We have already been the consultation mechanism for the administration, but we want to position ourselves as that true consultation body for passenger projects. We have seen how this first stage of the extension of Lechería to the Felipe Ángeles International Airport was carried out, it was developed in a professional manner, they had very good suppliers, and it should not be different. Today, decisions are being made that are very similar to what has already been done and we are sure that they are the right ones,” he said.
He said that the AMF has consulting firms to carry out the necessary studies for passenger trains, so they will be attentive to any request, although he made it clear that as an association they are not participating.
Fabila said they will first meet with the Ministry of Infrastructure, Communications and Transport (SICT) and the Railway Transport Regulatory Agency (ARTF) to discuss this and other issues.
Regarding the possibility of using freight routes for passenger transport, he said that the information they have from the government is that in order to prioritize safety, they will circulate on different routes.
“And as an association it is an extraordinary success, mainly for security reasons, and that is something that has come from the government itself. And we will be evaluating it in due time,” he said.
Regarding security in the sector, Francisco Fabila said that they will seek synergies with the different authorities and in immigration matters “we will also be on the lookout to collaborate and ensure greater fluidity.”
During the first seminar of the organization he heads, he also reiterated that he will promote and lobby for multimodal public policies that allow for an increase in the participation of the railroad in land freight; in addition to collaborating with the different authorities in terms of security and outsiders seeking to get on the train.
Likewise, transforming the AMF into a true “think tank” that can focus on regulatory improvement for all sectors, “where we can increase efficiency through governmental and operational improvements to generate greater fluidity in industrial zones and strategic points.”
Likewise, the development of an agenda that generates value for passengers and suppliers, and promoting safety campaigns “and being spokespersons for the importance of urban-railway coexistence.”
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