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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El cargo Insecurity on public transport, far removed from the government’s “optimistic” figures apareció primero en T21.

Mexican ports showed positive signs in the period January-November 2025. According to figures from the Secretariat of the Navy (Semar) , seven million 930 thousand 438 twenty-foot containers (TEU) were handled during that period , which meant a growth of 2.2% compared to the same period in 2024.

However, November 2025 saw a decline in operations, reporting 794,996 TEUs, a 2.8% decrease compared to the same period last year . The most important ports showed mixed results in their November performance compared to the cumulative total for the first 11 months of the year.

An example of this is Manzanillo, Colima, which remained the port with the most movements in November 2025, with a total of 323,989 TEUs , although it showed a decrease of 4% compared to the same month of the previous year.

In the January-November period, the figure was negative. Manzanillo handled 3,547,352 TEUs, a decrease of 1.2% compared to 2014. It’s worth noting that the port has experienced some conflicts this year, such as the workers’ strike last May.

Meanwhile, Lázaro Cárdenas, in Michoacán, totaled 225,911 TEUs moved in November, a growth of 7.9% compared to the same month last year; however, in the accumulated total it moved two million 387 thousand 758 TEUs, a contraction of 1.6% compared to the same period in 2024.

The Port of Veracruz reported 120,849 TEUs handled in the eleventh month of the year, a 4.6% increase compared to the same period in 2024 , although the accumulated total reached 1,197,805 TEUs, a 0.2% decrease compared to the same period in 2024.

Altamira, Tamaulipas, experienced the steepest decline. In November 2025, it closed with 64,610 TEUs, a drop of 15.4% ; while from January to November of this year, it reported the movement of 820,263 TEUs, a decrease of 1.7% compared to the same period in 2024.

Regarding the percentage of movements, during November, Manzanillo accounted for 40.7% of container movement ; Lázaro Cárdenas 28.4%, Veracruz 15.2%, and Altamira 8.12% of the total operations.

The performance of the country’s main ports in 2025 paints a contrasting picture. Overall, they show that, despite national growth of 2.2%, the most important ports face a year of adjustments and a loss of momentum, hence the marginal declines reflected in the cumulative figures.

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El cargo Container traffic: moderate growth and decline in key ports apareció primero en T21.

Confidence in transportation and logistics at the end of the second quarter of 2025 (2Q25) showed a constant decline and an unfavorable outlook , according to more than 140 executives and businesspeople involved in this industry who were surveyed for the Transportation and Logistics Confidence Index (ICTYL) , developed by T21 Business Intelligence.

Generated since the first quarter of 2018 (1Q18), the ICTYL is an indicator that shows the confidence of the transport and logistics sector, and which at the end of 2Q25 registered four consecutive quarters of decline, this time standing at 78.6 points (1Q18 = 100) .

Like the index, the confidence indicator is also experiencing one of its worst periods. This indicator, above zero, signals optimism; in Q2 2025, it stood at 3.30 points , the third-worst period in the 30 quarters evaluated.

Another fact that highlights the reality of companies in the transportation and logistics sector is the performance of their business during 2Q25, where 46.7% rated it as unfavorable, and while 53.3% considered it favorable, it is the second lowest level, only behind the second quarter of 2020 (2Q20), during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The same happened with the outlook for the third quarter of 2025 (3Q25), where more than 140 participants expressed that they have a 50% expectation for it to be favorable and the same 50% for it to be unfavorable .

ICTYL identified that for the business sector, the pace of the national economy and political uncertainty are the two factors that pose the greatest threat to their businesses.

Regarding the impact of the imposition of tariffs on their businesses, 40% identified the impact as moderate, while only 27% considered it to be significant and have had to modify their operations.

The ICTYL is the only confidence indicator in transportation and logistics that evaluates confidence in the most important business aspects every quarter.

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El cargo ICTYL reveals “dangerous route” for confidence in transport and logistics apareció primero en T21.

On the afternoon of May 23rd, the Megalopolis Environmental Commission (CAMe) maintained phase 1 of the environmental contingency, as conditions persist due to a high-pressure system in the central region of the country at various levels of the troposphere. This combined with weak winds in the morning, high solar radiation, and stagnant pollutants resulting in ozone formation, leading to Poor to Very Poor air quality conditions.

The aforementioned explanation has been repeated 12 times during 2024, marking this year with a record of environmental contingencies decreed by CAMe since 2020.

An analysis by T21 Business Intelligence reveals that with the activation of phase 1 for this Friday, May 24th, in 2024, these measures have been implemented 12 times, surpassing by far the highest record in recent years, which was eight in 2022, based on data provided by CAMe.

In 2024, it can also be noted that the license plate endings (emissions stickers) most affected by phase 1 of the environmental contingency have been blue (9 and 0), green (1 and 2), and red (3 and 4).

By days, in 2024 Thursdays and Fridays have been the most affected with restrictions, three each, while those of Saturday and Sunday that have been applied have affected the yellow (5 and 6) and pink (7 and 8) license plate endings.

With the activation of phase 1, the circulation of private vehicles with verification hologram 2 is restricted, as well as vehicles with verification hologram 1 depending on whether their license plate ends in an odd or even number, while vehicles with verification holograms 00 and 0 are restricted according to the corresponding day.

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El cargo In May, Record of Environmental Contingencies; Who Has Been Most Affected? apareció primero en T21.

Entering a port in Mexico and retrieving a container last April required an average of five hours and 21 minutes for transportation. In economic terms, this translates into a direct cost of between six and eight thousand pesos before the transportation service begins its route to the final destination.

The result comes from a sample conducted by T21 on a universe of 6,694 transportation units over the working days of the past month at the four main ports of the country (Altamira, Lázaro Cárdenas, Manzanillo, and Veracruz), with the collaboration of transportation companies and GPS companies that provided access to their information.

Here’s the translation into English:

**Divided into three sections comprising the circuit, the one with the longest waiting time is related to the customs crossing, which consumed 54.82%, or two hours and 56 minutes, to complete the customs inspection. Yes, that requirement, which, with an average duration of 3.5 to four minutes per shipment in front of the tax authority, demands an investment of two hours and 52 minutes waiting in line inside the port, excluding inspection time.**

Next, in descending order, is the time spent waiting to enter the port, which represented 23%, or measured by a stopwatch, one hour and 14 minutes; and finally, the time spent maneuvering inside the terminal, which consumed the remaining 21.8% with one hour and 10 minutes.

In the measurement by port, Altamira is the maritime terminal that recorded the shortest time with a total of four hours and 47 minutes for the entire circuit, although it is also worth noting that the sample size at the Tamaulipas port was smaller, with just 196 transportation units during the study period.

Veracruz followed with a time of four hours and 55 minutes, based on a sample of 1,087 transportation units.

Next, in descending order, was Manzanillo with an average time of five hours, based on a sample of 2,151 units; and in fourth place was Lázaro Cárdenas with an average circuit time of five hours and 45 minutes, based on a measurement universe of 3,260 units.

At the extremes of the measurement, there were cases with times close to four hours and exceeding 11 hours in intra-port logistics.

By arrival time at the port, it was observed that the highest density of transportation units occurs between 8:00 a.m. and 12:00 p.m., while the most important departure window extends from 12:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.**

On routes like Altamira-Monterrey, the cost of intra-port transportation for a double trailer truck represents 19.44% of the total average rate, while for the routes Manzanillo-Mexico City and Manzanillo-Monterrey, the cost is around 12% and 14% respectively.

Prolonged waits for trucks at ports generate collateral costs related to reduced effective driving hours for operators, at a time when the industry is facing its worst shortage of operators. Business representatives warn that long waits also discourage the profession, as the main income for operators is associated with their driving kilometers.

Additionally, ports like Lázaro Cárdenas suffer from a lack of sufficient transportation services, and spending time idling at the port does not help reduce turnaround cycles to replenish capacity more quickly and mitigate the service shortage.

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El cargo How long does it take and how much does it cost to enter the port and clear customs for the cargo? apareció primero en T21.