Finding cases of insecurity in road transport in Mexico is so common these days, although official figures mentioned that there was a 54% reduction in daily robberies, and in a less optimistic scenario it could be 20 percent.
This past weekend, on a stretch of the Maravatío-Guadalajara highway, three cars and a semi-truck with a trailer attempted to block another truck. The driver, fearing for his safety, managed to evade the roadblock they were setting up and reached the nearest tollbooth to request assistance from the state police. Incredibly, the criminals fled, but the driver was detained. Videos—in T21’s possession—show public security officers searching the inside of the semi-truck and even blocking the dashcam to prevent their actions from being recorded.
Given the reality of insecurity experienced by the freight transport sector in the country, and the coercion exerted by the federal government to prevent private organizations from updating their information, T21 Business Intelligence will conduct a quarterly survey with various transport companies to gain firsthand knowledge of the reality on national roads, beyond the official narrative.
The survey “Impact of insecurity on freight transport in Mexico”, in which companies with a combined fleet of more than 7,500 tractor-trailers responded, shows that 100% of the companies consulted have suffered a robbery, and this translates into the “Insecurity Perception Index” being at 8.65 points out of a maximum of 10.
One of the revelations of this survey is that 50% of companies have suffered more than six robberies so far this year, only 5% once and 45% between two and five times.
One finding identified by the T21 Business Intelligence exercise is that, of the companies that participated in this survey, 95% of the resignations of their operators are linked to the insecurity situation they face.
When asked about the types of incidents they experienced, the highest percentages were assault on the operator with 80% of the responses, while total theft of the unit was recorded by 70 percent.
Regarding the routes and states where the highest incidence is faced, the data coincides with that presented by various institutions such as Overhaul , identifying the most dangerous routes as Puebla–Veracruz, Mexico–Queretaro, Arco Norte, Circuito Exterior Mexiquense, Celaya–Leon, Tinaja–Cosamaloapan and Puebla–Esperanza.
When inferring the impact of insecurity on businesses, 45% of respondents identified an impact ranging from two to 10 million pesos (mdp) annually, while 15% considered that it exceeds 10 million pesos, and only 10% reported that the impact was less than 500,000 pesos.
The above scenario leads to 30% of companies reporting that they have increased rates in order to cope with losses, while 50% say they are in the process of implementing the increase.
Regarding operational implications, 70% of respondents reported an increase in operating costs exceeding 6 percent.
Meanwhile, 70% of companies stated that they have stopped operating on certain routes due to the insecurity in the country.
T21’s objective through this new T21 Business Intelligence exercise is to generate value for this industry, which is relevant to the economy, and which will allow for better decision-making.
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