Users of the Mexican Customs Office (ANAM) , including transporters, customs agencies, direct clients and importers, held a demonstration in front of the central offices of the National Customs Agency of Mexico , in Mexico City, to denounce a series of abuses that the Mexican Customs Office, located inside the Ferrovalle intermodal terminal , has had with them and demanded an improvement in the service.

The protests began at the customs facilities, located on the Central Railway Station in the Azcapotzalco municipality, and then advanced to the “El Caballito” building , where the offices of the Tax Administration Service (SAT) are also located , and were received by authorities.

Among the complaints are excessive inspection times and detention of merchandise ; mistreatment of transporters by customs personnel; and changes implemented without prior notice, such as adding yellow to their traffic lights.

Alejandra Mendoza, a transport worker, denounced mistreatment by customs personnel and called for improvements in customs operations, as it is one of the main hubs for supplying merchandise to the nation’s capital and its metropolitan area.

“We have operators whose merchandise isn’t inspected and who can’t get off the vehicle. They can spend three or four hours inside the vehicle, and they’re not even allowed to go to the bathroom or eat. So, it’s something that can’t be happening anymore during this time of high temperatures,” he said.

Mendoza noted that there is cargo that has not been released and noted that there are at least 1,500 containers inside the customs office , and that he has even taken possession of the unit, without being able to remove it from the area and continue working.

For his part, Alberto Rojas, head of land transport, expressed his annoyance at the detention of containers at customs, the delay in inspection, which can last three to four days, and the complaint about bribes that customs itself is demanding .

“Today, we realize that the same authorities are the ones who want to rob you with their handouts, with their invented taxes, with their withholdings. It’s all their doing. The people here have to pay to keep working. That’s what we’re here to demand, to find out what they’re going to do, how they’re going to solve it,” he said.

After speaking with authorities, users reported that a customs inspection would be carried out next Monday to clear the backlogged operations. They also warned that if the promised inspection is not carried out, the protests could escalate.

In early May, the Mexico Valley Railway and Terminal (Ferrovalle)  announced that it had requested the suspension of container cargo transits from the port of Lázaro Cárdenas, due to difficulties “unrelated to the operation” in carrying out customs clearance at its intermodal terminal, which has resulted in high occupancy at its facilities, reaching almost 94% of their capacity.

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The Mexico Valley Railway and Terminal (Ferrovalle) announced yesterday that it has requested the suspension of container cargo transits from the port of Lázaro Cárdenas , due to difficulties “unrelated to the operation” in carrying out customs clearance at its intermodal terminal, which has caused high occupancy at its facilities.

In a statement distributed by Ferrovalle Intermodal to its clients, such as shipping lines and logistics operators, it stated that this situation has been occurring for three weeks, and “has caused an occupancy as of today (May 5) of 94% of the total capacity of the controlled area with an average dwell (stay) of 18 days.”

This situation contrasts with the figures reported at the beginning of last April, when the controlled area had a 26% occupancy rate. However, due to the significant imbalance between terminal departures and arrivals, the area is currently at maximum capacity.

“Considering that dispatch times have increased considerably for reasons beyond the control of Ferrovalle Intermodal, we are forced to request the suspension of container loading with final destination to the Ferrovalle Intermodal bonded facility originating from the port of Lázaro Cárdenas, effective today (May 5), until such time as conditions exist for efficient and safe operational resumption,” the statement said.

The concessionaire for the line connecting the port of Lázaro Cárdenas with Ferrovalle is Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) of Mexico . T21 reached out to the railroad company for comment on this situation, but has so far received no response.

The Ferrovalle Intermodal Terminal is an important logistics hub for receiving and shipping goods to Mexico City and its metropolitan area via rail lines that connect with ports on the Pacific and Gulf of Mexico, as well as with the northern border.

The French shipping company CMA CGM told T21 that they are aware of this situation but have not reported any impact so far. The main container terminals in Lázaro Cárdenas have also not reported any adverse impact due to this decision.

Likewise, the Lázaro Cárdenas National Port System Administration (Asipona) told T21 that they are analyzing this situation.

A source close to the operation at Ferrovalle, who requested anonymity, told T21 that customs agents have slowed down their operations , “because there are ANAM (Mexican National Customs Agency) operations outside Ferrovalle, and they prefer not to leave with their cargo to avoid being subject to inspection.”

ANAM statistics report that, during the first three months of 2025, the customs office operating in Ferrovalle (Mexico Customs) totaled 43,728 operations , which has even meant an 18.2% drop compared to the same period last year.

These operations have mostly been imports, with 41,120 also reporting a 14.2 percent decrease.

For the first quarter of this year, this customs office has collected three thousand 122.93 million pesos , an annual increase of 8.4%, an amount that places it in 25th position nationwide (the country has 50 customs offices in total).

“Customs procedures there are very slow,” said another anonymous source who is actively involved in container imports at the Ferrovalle terminal.

Operation in Ferrovalle

According to the most recent data from the Mexican Railway Transport Regulatory Agency (ARTF) , as of October 2024, Ferrovalle handled 2.02 million tons , a 4.20% year-over-year increase. This represented 1.81% of the 111.86 million tons transported on the Mexican Railway System.

With information from Evangelina del Toro

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PLAYA DEL CARMEN, Q. ROO.- The demand for logistics and freight transportation services in Mexico is beginning to feel extraordinary pressure, given the increase in volume caused by the effect of nearshoring (relocation of production lines).

Different providers have detected this for some time and have begun to offer new services related to this trend , placing special emphasis on intermodal services.

Ferrovalle , the short line railway terminal inside Mexico City, has witnessed this effect with clear increases in the volume operated in its two divisions.

On the one hand, the railway division adds a 10% annual growth in the volume of railway cars operated in the first six months of this year, where there are 50 thousand additional cars of which they have detected that 12 thousand 500 of them are product of new industrial activity related to nearshoring .

Meanwhile, the intermodal division has had a 30% increase during the same period, with 25 thousand additional containers operated, six thousand of them also identified by nearshoring .

“These are increases in volume never seen before,” said Francisco Fabila, general manager of the company, during his participation in the 24th National Freight Transport Forum organized by the National Association of Private Transport (ANTP) .

He himself promotes the terminal as the “logistical lung” of the country’s capital, since it has a rail connection with the main sea ports, such as Manzanillo, Lázaro Cárdenas and Veracruz , as well as five border crossings between Mexico and the United States. all this either through the main railway lines that operate in the national territory and also with their peers in the northern neighbor.

The capacity of the terminal to receive goods or containers by rail allows its clients, mainly shipping lines, to carry out the last mile through motor transport providers , which reduces polluting gas emissions due to the effect of intermodalism.

Francisco Fabila also said that the company has opened new cross-border services in alliance with North American railway companies, as part of the relocation of companies that have installed their production lines in Mexico, but seek to move these goods to the United States or Canada.

Transmaritime route

Others that seek to take advantage of this increase in the need for transportation of goods as a result of industrial relocation have been  SSA Marine México and  Crowley , through Mexico Gulf Express , a maritime service that connects Mexico with the United States through the Gulf of Mexico waterway. Mexico.

This logistics alliance offers weekly departures from Tuxpan, Veracruz , where SSA has a marine terminal, and arrival in Gulfport, Mississippi, where Crowley also operates its own terminal.

The characteristics of the service include the offer of containers and reefers available, customs clearance, a transit time of three days with the Crowley fleet, service for cargo of all types and sizes, and motor transportation and intermodal services both in the Mexican as in the American.

“Every part of the supply chain has to prepare for that growth,” said Claudia Kattán-Jordán, vice president for Central America, Mexico and Panama at Crowley Logistics, also present at the ANTP forum.

For his part, Iker Allison, vice president of SSA Marine Mexico, indicated that they saw the opportunity “for a long time” to build this transportation alliance with Crowley, motivated in part by the shortage of motor transport drivers – which in Mexico number around of 56 thousand seats available -, “but more than that, we want to provide diversification for the transportation of all merchandise going to the United States.”

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Railway and Terminal of the Valley of Mexico (Ferrovalle) aims to onboard the cargo transported through over 12 thousand units of road transport via five main feeder corridors of the Valley of Mexico and Mexico City.

Francisco Fabila, general manager of the company, explained in an interview with T21 that this modal shift is to support road transport on long-haul journeys through the true vocation of the railway and to have that volume at the terminal.

He explained that together with the Government of Mexico City and consultancy firm Steer Davies, they conducted a study to explore options for maximizing the infrastructure of Ferrovalle Intermodal.

This was done by understanding the flows feeding the Valley of Mexico and identifying where the cargo capable of migrating to the intermodal system is located, entering this entity, but via rail.

It’s a big number, the reality is tough, but that’s what the study reveals. You have the Pacific, northeast, and highway corridors, and those are the loads. We identified them by type of cargo and which ones could potentially be moved into containers; grain, corn, mainly finished products,” he said.

Without going into further detail, he mentioned that the study also discusses the investments needed in infrastructure, as well as implementing public policy “to make this a reality.”

He mentioned that they have met with different administrations, even those involved in the political change that the country will undergo in the upcoming elections.

“We’re discussing this with different administrations, there will be changes, but we’re already starting to talk about it with everyone. This is an ongoing topic, and the major railways are interested in moving cargo from the source and continuing to supply the entire Valley of Mexico,” he said.

He reiterated that this intermodal shift will maximize the different modes of transportation, where rail is more efficient over distances of more than 600 kilometers.

“A dedicated intermodal train, over more than 600 kilometers up to a thousand or two thousand kilometers, fulfills its purpose, and the operational efficiency gained by the user in terms of cost is very significant compared to moving it by road,” he said.

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