MÉRIDA.– With an obsolete methodology that only considers a part of the current users and that excludes non-motorized transfers, but that contains relevant data that can serve as a starting point for an improvement plan, this is how two representatives of civil society describe the “Mobility and Diagnostic Study of the Public Transportation Service of Mérida and its Metropolitan Area 2025”.
The investigation was sponsored by the State Government, through the Yucatan Transportation Agency (ATY)which presented it behind closed doors to a group of businessmen, dealers, researchers and activists in recent days.
Among the attendees were Claudia González Góngora, leader of the Canirac and president of the Business Coordinating Council, as well like Graciela Carrillo Carrillo, master in Public and Urban Policies and head of the organization Making City. Both, at the request of the newspaper, shared the data that seemed most relevant to them, as well as their opinion on the study and the transportation situation in the Yucatecan capital. The full document is not available to the public.
Acceptance of the Go and Come in Mérida
“Something very interesting was that he comes and goes It received a citizen acceptance of 80%, which indicates that it largely covers the mobility needs of citizens. It was also reported that this system has around 470,000 trips per day,” said Claudia González. The businesswoman added that, however, the number of trips decreased in the last 10 years. In the past there were 650,000 daily trips, she said.
At this point, urban planner Carrillo Carrillo considers that the response generated may not reflect real feelings. “Something curious is that, when they are asked if they are happy with the transportation, they say yes, but that question is poorly formulated. ‘Are you happy?’ It’s too subjective. ‘Service’ means different things to different people. ‘Better’ too. If people say it’s better, maybe they mean that The trucks are better, not because the service is good.
“We know that the service is still poor because people continue to buy cars and prefer them over the public transport. From the data, what is relevant is that the people who should start using transportation do not do so.”
Among the needs revealed by the study is the construction of more bus stops to protect themselves from the weather—rain, sun. Long waiting periods and extensive routes that could be reduced were also mentioned, the restaurant businesswoman explained. A press release indicated that the average trip between two points increased to 34–37 minutes, compared to the historical 27 minutes.
What is missing from the Va y Ven routes?
The study also confirmed “something that was already known,” according to Graciela Carrillo: 95% of the routes are still radial as they were 30 years ago (passing through the center of Mérida) and do not satisfy current needs; Frequency times are too high (“a bus every 15 minutes is a lot if you have the option of using a car”), and there are areas without service that should have it.
“It was commented that an evaluation of routes is being carried out to analyze the number of people who use each one in order to determine what type of unit is needed, with the aim of efficiency: where there is more demand, larger units are required and where there is less volume, smaller units,” said Claudia González.
For her part, Graciela Carrillo questioned the method used to reach these conclusions. “The problem is that you can’t make decisions like that based only on current demand, because what we want is for people who don’t use public transportation today to start using it. And how are you going to know what they need if you’ve never asked them or analyzed where they’re going?”
The researcher explained that the same methodology used in 2014 was used, when the Comprehensive Urban Transport System (Situr). According to him, said study and the 2025 study were coordinated by Oscar Sanchez Floresprofessor at the Faculty of Engineering of the Benemérita Universidad Autónoma de Puebla. According to information released by the ATY, the doctor in Economic Sciences “has directed more than 150 projects in mobility, transit and transportation for cities in Mexico and Latin America.”
Study of transportation in Mérida, with obsolete methodology
Teacher Carrillo explained that the research was based on “origin-destination” surveys, method used from the 1980s to the early 2000s, which only describes those who use transportation today. “They consist of getting on trucks or at stops and asking users where they are going, where they are coming from, what time they leave and some sociodemographic data.”
“Also, when you ask someone who takes the truck where they’re going, they tell you where they can go, not where they want to go. They go where the trucks go today, not necessarily where they should have access,” he adds.
“For me, the biggest problem is that they are taking into account only the current demand, when the relevant demand also includes all those trapped motorists in congestion: those are your potential customers,” he explains.
Carrillo explained that between 2010 and 2015, in international research, a methodology based on GPS data from phones began to be used “to understand where people move.”
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Proposal for transportation in Mérida
The most current method is activity-based modeling, also known as accessibility. “What you do is map where the activities that people carry out are, where they live, the population density, the location of jobs, schools, hospitals, shops and entertainment. With these maps you make planning that seeks to improve access to opportunities. That is the new objective of transportation planning.”
In Carrillo’s opinion, “if urban accessibility analysis is not carried out… nothing will be solved. They cannot solve the problem because they do not have the necessary data to plan a system that addresses real needs.”
He added that one cannot speak of a mobility study if non-motorized travel is not considered. “It’s absurd. I should have taken into account mobility by bicycle, scooter, bike… Not onlyl public transport, because all transportation trips begin and end by walking or cycling… Not taking that into account means that the study is incomplete.”
And the night routes of the Va y Ven?
For her part, Claudia González considered that the diagnosis presented did not include night routes. “The study ends at 11 at night and starts again at 4 in the morning, when today it was guaranteed that we would have a decent public transport and secure 24/7.
“We ask for more information on how this issue will turn out, because it is a historic request from Canirac. Many collaborators, not only from the restaurant sector, but from various business sectors and citizens, use the night routes,” he commented.
What will happen to the Va y Ven in Mérida?
Claudia González explained that, based on the study, dialogue tables will be held with representatives of different sectors to put together proposals. “Budgets will be generated, adjustments will be made and how the system will evolve will be defined to make it more efficient and, to the extent possible, self-sufficient. Let us remember that, as it is a public service, there will always be a part subject to subsidy.”
Regarding the proposal that businessmen contribute through a “mobility bonus” to her employees, which they could deduct from taxes, the leader reiterated her emphatic no.
“From the business sector we already contribute a lot in state taxes. Yucatán has the seven existing state taxes in the country, and also with the highest rates. The business sector is already contributing. Burdening the formal sector more is what we have warned about for years: it puts pressure on them and does not expand the tax base. The correct thing is to encourage formality, not only persecute those who are already formal.”
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Opinions on transportation in Merida
For her part, Graciela Carrillo points out that “as civil society, as transport users and even as motorists – because we are also affected by congestion, which is not going to end as long as there is no public transport that works—, we all have to get involved.
“I hope the Transportation Agency opens its doors to more people, especially specialists. They can do urban accessibility analysis… There are many ideas and a lot of will. They should not limit the conversation only to service concessionaires, and even less so in closed meetings…
“Social networks allow many people to participate. I hope they take advantage of it so that citizens are a real part of the process, not just to give their opinion and that opinion ends up in a notebook that disappears. Let it be a participation that is taken into account. It benefits us all, users and non-users,” the activist urged.
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