Another metro accident stains Mexico City mayor’s record

Maintenance on Mexico City’s metro is once again in the spotlight following a crash between two trains on line No. 3 that left one person dead and more than 100 injured Saturday morning. 

Authorities have not yet explained how the accident took place, but the attorney general’s office in the capital said Sunday that it had secured the trains’ black boxes, launched an investigation, collected evidence and testimonies and supervised the removal of the railcars. 

Meanwhile, metro director Guillermo Calderón told a press conference on Sunday that operations subdirector Alberto García Lucio was removed from his post and replaced by Francisco Echavarri Hernández while the investigations continue. 

He also said the four stations on the line affected by the accident – Indios Verdes, 18 de marzo, Potrero and La Raza – will remain closed until further notice. The remaining stations, from Tlatelolco to Universidad, continue operating as normal. 

The accident is the third major one during mayor Claudia Sheinbaum’s term, which began late 2018.

On May 3, 2021, a train fell off the track after a section of elevated track on line No. 12 collapsed in the Tláhuac district, leaving 26 dead and many more injured. In March 2021, a crash between two trains at line No. 1’s Tacubaya station left one person dead and more than 40 injured. 

Lack of investment in maintenance has been cited as a factor behind the most recent accident, although Sheinbaum said during a press conference on Sunday that this year’s metro budget is 25% up on 2022’s. 

For several months the line has presented operational issues and the metro workers’ union SNTSC even put up notices along the route warning of malfunctions and possible danger to users.