How is the Tren Maya Working?
Why are we saying, “Save the Tren Maya”? It is not even finished, and most articles are just talking about what the Tren Maya is like. Well, we have been at the forefront of this project, watching it be built, we have had friends work on this project and have extensively taken the train and written about it. We also understand tourism and how it works in both Quintana Roo where the Riviera Maya is and the Yucatan Peninsula. From the very beginning we have said that this project was not going to grab the attention of the millions of tourists visiting the Riviera Maya. There was never going to be a huge tourism boom all riding the rails to new destinations around the southeast of Mexico. We had hoped it would work as a way to connect people and places and open up new opportunities. But it has become clear that the Tren Maya is not going to work very well due to location of stations and the efficiency of how the Tren Maya functions.
Now that the Tren Maya has been up and running for about one year (December 15th, 2023), it is pretty clear that the Tren Maya faces an uphill battle to get ridership up and be a fully functioning transportation system. Why do we say this? Why are tourists not jumping on the train? What things have been done that make the Tren Maya ineffective? And most importantly, what can be done to save the Tren Maya? We are going to answer all these questions here. It is easy to complain about something but hard to offer solutions, so here is our best advice for the Tren Maya in order to make it work better than it is and guide it to a better future.
Why are people not taking the Tren Maya?
The Tren Maya was proposed to carry 3 million riders a year. It now has been almost one year since the initial inauguration and ridership is only a small percentage of the proposed number of riders. It is true that the entire project is still not done, but the fact remains that people are not taking the train much nor is it efficient.
We know many people are not taking the Tren Maya according to the numbers they randomly post in social media. We can also look at the competing bus business and see that no changes have been made in the bus schedules. For example, there are 46 buses (one way) a day from Cancun to Merida and Cancun Airport to Merida. Most of those buses have 40 seats and are about 1/2 full. This means about 920 people a day take the bus from Cancun to Merida. There are four trains a day one way to Cancun to Merida. There are 171 seats on a train, so that is 684 seats available. Often these trains are half full as well resulting in about 350 people taking the train from Cancun to Merida. That is only about 30% of the amount of people that take the bus for the same route. So why does the train not get more ridership? The prices are about the same for both services for locals. It is the efficiency to the bus over the train.
From the very beginning we have said a transportation service needs to be efficient, cost effective, or offer some benefit over other options. While prices are similar to other transportation options, there are other factors that result in people not taking the Tren Maya.
Why Locals do not Take the Tren Maya
There are two reasons locals would take the Tren Maya, one for commuting to work and the other as visiting a location. So, are there routes that people commute to a from along the Tren Maya route? No. The main people that commute in the area are construction workers that work all week in Cancun or Tulum and go back to their villages on the weekend to visit the family. Most of these workers use collectivo taxis that cost about 200-300 pesos for door-to-door service. This is far cheaper than the train and they already have a schedule that fits their needs.
Even if someone lived near the train station in Playa Del Carmen for example, and was going to work at the Cancun Airport, it would not work. Even though airport jobs can pay better, the 200 pesos a day in commuting is a lot. In addition to this, there are currently no trains that leave in the morning to get to the airport.
Inefficient for Almost Every Route
From both a local perspective and a tourist perspective, the Tren Maya offers a very inefficient service at almost every turn. How do we know this? Because we have taken the train many times and experienced it ourselves.
We have taken the Tren Maya from Playa Del Carmen to the Cancun Airport. This trip takes about twice as long as taking the ADO bus and is more expensive.
We have taken the train to Chichen Itza. Because the of the train schedule, we took a bus back because there were not enough trains that passed the station, plus you normally take a tour to the ruins which include a cenote. Taking the train gets you to the ruins, but you need to figure out how to get to a cenote and where to eat which makes it very inefficient.
We have taken the train to Campeche, which was agonizingly slow. Slower than actually taking the bus there.
Then there was the time we took the train to Izamal and when we were ready to board for our return trip, there was no train. The station manager drove us to the side of a highway to get a bus back to where we got on. It cost us hours more in time and had to pay a taxi back to our car at the train station.
We were unfortunate to take the Tren Maya to the Cancun Airport one day only to arrive 1.5 hours late. So, with all these experiences, we have seen firsthand some of the issues with the Tren Maya but especially the inefficiency of the Tren Maya.
Short distances are often very inefficient because of the need for transportation to and from the Tren Maya stations. Long distances offer more value but still have issues.
No Online Customer Service
It is hard to imagine a whole new transportation network and having no online customer service, but here we are. When the Tren Maya launched there was no contact information on their website. There were just links to their social media like Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Tik Tok and Instagram. We posted comments with questions (both in English and Spanish) on their posts but got zero replies. Then the Tren Maya put up an email address ([email protected]) which we sent emails in two separate months and have gotten zero responses. They have added a WhatsApp number that is supposed to be 24/7 customer support. We have sent questions to the WhatsApp number and have gotten no response. The Tren Maya has changed the email address ([email protected]) and we have sent questions to them, but still no response. We also have tried the phone number, but each time it was not available. In total we have tried sending messages for almost one year and have never gotten a response.
If this was our experience, think about how many people have had questions about taking the Tren Maya but have not gotten a reply. Having bad customer service is not going to win over riders. This has to change in order to make the service more user friendly.
What things can the Tren Maya do to save itself?
It is easy to complain, but harder to offer actual solutions and ideas to help. But this is what we do. When we visit hotels, parks, restaurants and other services, we often offer “off the record comments” and suggestions for businesses. We want all businesses to succeed, and since the Tren Maya is built, it has the potential to introduce the world to new parts of the southeast of Mexico. Here are 8 things the Tren Maya could do to raise ridership and function better.
Actually have Customer Service Online
In preparing to take the Tren Maya, we researched and used the Tren Maya website. There has been and still is a lot of information missing from the official website of the Tren Maya. We resorted to visiting the train stations and asking questions there. We found that people were pretty helpful at the stations. Not all the information was the same, but people were working hard to answer people’s questions. Online is another story.
As stated above we have gotten ZERO response to all social media, emails and WhatsApp messages. This is definitely an area that the Tren Maya needs to improve. How are people supposed to plan when they have questions, and the information is not available online?
Provide more Information about Connections for the Tren Maya
Currently the Tren Maya has the information about schedules and prices but not how to connect to the destinations. Technically accordingly to the Tren Maya website the online customer support answers these questions. But by our account, we have contacted all three options for customer service and never gotten a response even though they say it is 24/7 customer support. What would be better is to have more information on their website. For example, at each station, what public transport is available? How much are taxis to the center of town? How long does it take to get into town from the station? How frequent are buses running that connect city centers to the Tren Maya? This is hard to keep updated because prices change, especially with taxis, but that is what customer service is. The Tren Maya needs to have this information so people can plan and travel with confidence.
We personally have arrived at stations without any information about transportation. We followed the crowd in Campeche to the bus and had to ask a lot of questions so we could figure out how to get back to the station. We have also arrived in the Izamal Tren Maya Station to an empty parking lot. It was not until a person working in the station offered to call a taxi for us, were we able to get into town. These are just two examples of how taking the Tren Maya has surprises for riders and unknowns that need to be taken out of the equation for taking the train.
Start Working with Bloggers and Vloggers
If you want to write about the Tren Maya or make a video about it, you have to pay for your own way and figure out how it works and make your conclusions based on your experience. Almost every aspect of the travel industry knows the important work that travel writers, bloggers and vloggers do. The Tren Maya should have a program to work with influential travel writers and vloggers.
If you go online and look for information about hotels, airlines, cruises, restaurants, parks and more, you will find information presented by influencers and many have gotten courtesies to visit the places so at least they don’t pay out of pocket to experience something. Some of the larger travel influences are even paid to write or make a video about a service. Having the Tren Maya work with travel influencers can help shape the message and give important details that might not be covered because writers do not know about it or have access to it. A wide range of voices and having information presented in different languages works as promotion for the Tren Maya.
Have a Week of Discovery for Locals
The fact is that many locals have not taken the Tren Maya yet. Why not? The train is more of a novelty than a practical means of transporting. People that live in the five states the train runs through are practical people. Most of which live on tight budgets that do not offer much room for weekend getaways and vacations. In fact, the average wage in the five states ranges from 5,250 pesos to 8,250 pesos per month. At current exchange rates that means the average person makes only about $250-$400 USD a month. This means that locals and not upwardly mobile and do not transport a lot because it would eat into a large percentage of what they make per month. This will always have an impact on how much people use a service.
Even though the population of the Yucatan Peninsula is about 2.4 million people, and the population is highly urbanized, there still is a large number of people that are not serviced by the train. To help people discover the Tren Maya, there could be a discover week of half-price tickets for locals. Not only would this raise ridership, but it would also be a good introductory experience for locals to get to know the train and perhaps be more prone to think about a train trip in the future.
Have Regional Events at Tren Maya Stations
By making the train stations a destination, people will come to the stations, both locals and people arriving by train. Imagine a food festival at the Izamal Tren Maya station. People from Merida could take the Tren Maya to Izamal and have a great authentic experience, and the trip is just 38 minutes on the train.
At most of the Tren Maya stations there are stalls and spaces for rent. Most of these are empty and not used. We predict that most of these will never be used because there is not enough traffic to make renting one profitable. For example, in Valladolid station there are about 20 stalls that are completely empty. Only a handful of people use the station daily. No one is going to stop at a stall and buy something when they are on their way to Valladolid where there are many stores and artisans.
The Tren Maya stations are spacious and were designed with a lot of retail space. These are not going to fill up, so you might as well create events at stations to make them a destination and make it fun for people to take the train to stations.
Finish the Project and Deliver on What was Planned
If the Tren Maya stopped construction now it would be a disaster for the project. The project benefits from having a loop that connects the bulk of the tourism in Quintana Roo to the other side of the peninsula. Currently the train in the state of Quintana Roo is pretty much useless. It is not efficient in getting from the Cancun Airport to places in the Riviera Maya, it is not efficient between Playa Del Carmen and Tulum. and it is not efficient in getting from the Riviera Maya to Merida because it takes so long. It certainly is not efficient to get to Campeche and all the way to Palenque because only one side of the loop is open.
Having the complete loop open connect things a little bit better. Getting the trains up to speed, to the normal operating speeds will make the train more efficient. Having more trains running will also make it more attractive to take the train and make some trips possible that otherwise are not with limited daily trains. One of the saving graces of the train is speed. It is planned to go up to 160 kph (100 mph). To give you some perspective, driving on the highways, the speed limit is 110 kph. So, buses and cars can travel similar speeds to the Tren Maya now. When the project is finished, having the extra speed will make the train more appealing.
Have Advertising and Social Media Posts that are Actually True
If you follow the Tren Maya on a social platform you will see a nice photo with a short slogan. The posts might be touting a destination you can visit or a feature of the Tren Maya. Some of these posts are helpful but many are not. One of the best examples was a post saying that locals could travel for as little at 100 pesos on the Tren Maya. While technically true, the details of reality made it a blatant lie. The example they gave was a trip between Valladolid and Izamal. At the time, the price for a local ticket was 100 pesos (it is currently 170 pesos). But in reality, you need to get from Valladolid to the train station which it outside of town. A taxi cost 150 pesos one way to the station. Then in Izamal a taxi from the station to town is another 100 pesos. So that is about 600 pesos (now 840 pesos) for one person to go round trip on the train for this short route. A bus that covers this route costs about 140 pesos each way or 280 round trip. The buses leave from the center of Valladolid and arrive at the center of Izamal. No further transportation is necessary.
Locals are not stupid and are not going to see the post from the Tren Maya and think “Wow, that is a great, I will take the train now”. No, they will consider the costs and realize that the train is still more expensive and time consuming with transfers and waiting.
The Tren Maya is not going to be cheaper or faster in most cases. The train is more comfortable, relaxing and many people feel that trains are safer and will always go where they say because they are on tracks. Advertising the benefits of the train and doing so in an honest way will gain the trust of customers.
Make Packages for the Tren Maya and Excursions
Tourists love packages. When things are bundled together it makes it easier to plan and often reduce costs. How many times have you considered a hotel and airfare bundle? or booked a multi destination flight on one airline because it gives you security that if there is a delay with one flight you are guaranteed service to your final destination because it is all one airline ticket? These are just two examples of price and security of packages that work. So, with the same principles, the Tren Maya could offer packages with train tickets, bus connections, and possible hotels or entrances included.
This is a win win for all businesses that participate because otherwise these tourists probably would not visit these destinations. The Tren Maya can negotiate prices which will give customers a savings of a few hundred pesos and a nice complete package that they can enjoy.
Here are some sample packages:
Playa Del Carmen to Chichen Itza. The package includes round trip bus transport to the Playa Del Carmen Tren Maya Station, round trip train ticket, round trip bus ticket to and from the Chichen Itza Station to the Ruins. Entrance to the ruins.
Riviera Maya to Merida Overnight. Round trip train ticket, breakfast onboard the train, round trip bus from the station to the center of Merida. There can be a choice of three hotels in different categories. In the paper folder could be a map and advertising from local restaurants and attractions.
Conclusion
It has been interesting watching this project be built and opened to the public. It has been fun exploring with the Tren Maya and at times stressful when it is delayed or not running. Now that the Tren Maya is built, for the most part, it would be nice if it operates to the maximum benefit for locals and tourists.
We have discovered the Tren Maya not to be that efficient and have mainly taken it to write about it or share the experience with locals that cannot afford to take the train. The Tren Maya still has potential to be a useful tool for tourism and local economies. We hope that some of the ideas presented here will help to make the Tren Maya more relevant, boost usage, and be a positive contribution to people discovering more of what is in the Yucatan Peninsula.
What do you think of these ideas? Do you have further ideas that might help the Tren Maya? Are there some things you would like that would incentivize you taking the Tren Maya?
And if anyone from the Tren Maya would like to discuss more of these ideas, we are open to meeting.
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