Urban transport

Last review: April, 2025

Banobras provides interested parties with information about the sector in Mexico, using data from various sources to offer knowledge and useful elements for decision-making in the field. The presented content does not reflect Banobras’ position.

In Mexico, around 130 million trips are made daily, of which nearly 80% are by public transportation. Mexican families spend an average of $1,011 pesos per quarter on public transport. Families in the tenth decile, those with the highest incomes, allocate an average of 11% of their income to transportation, while families in the first decile, those with the lowest incomes, spend an average of 21% (National Institute of Statistics and Geography [INEGI], 2020).

Public transportation as a whole enables the daily travel of more than 21 million 264 thousand people. Medium and low-capacity collective public transport serves 89% of passengers, while mass transit systems (such as the subway, commuter trains, and light rail), in conjunction with medium-capacity systems like BRT (Bus Rapid Transit), trolleybuses, and trams, transport 11% of daily demand, equivalent to 2 million 359 thousand people per day (National Institute of Statistics and Geography [INEGI], 2021).

Additionally, the International Association of Public Transport (UITP) emphasizes the importance of public transportation in Mexico. According to the publication “Public Transport in Mexico Towards 2030”, 96% of people travel between states by bus, 43% of workers commute to their workplaces using urban transportation, and 27% of students use public transport. Furthermore, 83% of road freight is transported by trucks, and 100% of product distribution and delivery is done by trucks.

According to INEGI’s “Urban Passenger Transport Statistics (ETUP)” report, which outlines the characteristics of structured urban passenger transport systems in major metropolitan areas, such as the number of passengers transported and kilometers traveled, in November 2024, 250.2 million passengers traveled on urban transport systems, a 4.1% increase compared to the previous year.

The Secretariat of Agrarian, Territorial, and Urban Development (SEDATU) offers the “Territorial and Urban Information System (SITU)” to interested individuals. This digital platform allows the storage, organization, processing, and dissemination of updated geographic, documentary, and statistical information for the design and implementation of public policies in areas such as land use planning, urban development, housing, mobility, agrarian development, cadastre, and other related topics.

SITU is a valuable tool for decision-making in territorial planning and urban development, enabling the design and implementation of more effective public policies.

In terms of infrastructure, Mexico has a defined strategy that offers investors medium and long-term visibility regarding the development of projects, through a series of plans and programs of national and sectorial scope. To access the information, please consult the following documents:

Description of the hierarchy and roles of the different entities and actors involved in the sector, including how the different institutions and agencies coordinate and collaborate.

Products:

• Direct credit for infrastructure projects and public services
• Infrastructure financing through financial intermediaries
• Financial Guarantee
• Guaranteed Refinancing

Financing for States and Municipalities and Decentralized Public Organizations: The products and services are designed to meet the infrastructure needs of states, municipalities and their decentralized public organizations, in order to improve the quality of life of the population and increase competitiveness.

Infrastructure is a pillar of development, which is why Banobras has innovative products and services focused on contributing to regional development through the promotion of financial mechanisms to:

Boost investment in infrastructure and public services.
Promote the financial and institutional strengthening of states, municipalities and decentralized public agencies.
To this end, Banobras has the following financing schemes:

Products:

• Banobras-FAIS programm 
• Simple Credit
• Restructuring and/or Refinancing
• Current Account Loans

Project Development: Banobras offers services aimed at assisting public sector agencies and entities in the development of infrastructure projects.

Financial structuring of the project:

1. Elaborate and/or update studies required by the Public-Private Partnerships Law.
2. Support in the review of the bidding conditions and contract model.
3. Assist in obtaining financing for the project.
4. Assist in the registration process of the project in the portfolio of the Investment Unit of the Ministry of Finance and Public Credit (SHCP).
5. Assist in dealing with any observations made by the SHCP Investment Unit.
6. Support in the financial closing of the project.

The program aims to provide financial support to local governments for urban mass transport projects with private sector participation; and to strengthen the institutional capacity of local authorities responsible for planning and regulating public transportation, as well as their business organization.

• Presentation
• PROTRAM Guidelines
• Additional Agreement PROTRAM Guidelines
• Presentation and Evaluation Guide
• Guide for Safe Infrastructure in Public Transport Systems

This section offers documents, reports and reports with technical, statistical and regulatory information on the sector: