Saltillo–Monterrey–Nuevo Laredo Passenger Train (Tren del Norte)

Alignment

The line is the northern end of the federal program to restore passenger service between Mexico City and Nuevo Laredo. It starts at Derramadero, south of Saltillo, and runs through Saltillo and Ramos Arizpe in Coahuila, then east into Nuevo León to García (at Avenida Hacienda del Fraile), Santa Catarina (on the Saltillo–Monterrey highway at Calle Los Arredondo), Monterrey Centro (beside the Mercado Campesino on Avenida Venustiano Carranza, about 850 m from Metro Edison station), and Escobedo (Las Torres, at Avenida Las Torres and Manuel L. Barragán). From there it heads north through Salinas Victoria to Bustamante/Villaldama, on the site of an old station, then Lampazos de Naranjo and Anáhuac, ending at Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas. The 2025 plan listed 11 stations; federal officials cited 13 planned stations in September 2026. Besides intercity trips, short regional services are planned between Derramadero and Ramos Arizpe and between García and Escobedo.

The new passenger track runs mostly alongside the existing freight line, on its own dedicated track, with design speeds of 160–200 km/h. Works include a 9 km steel viaduct through the Monterrey area. Officials expect trips of under two hours from Monterrey to Nuevo Laredo and about three and a half hours from Saltillo, and about 30,000 riders a day. Service will use Alstom Adessia Stream diesel-electric trains built at Ciudad Sahagún, Hidalgo, as part of a 47-train order shared with the Mexico City–Querétaro–Irapuato corridor.

The line is being built under separate contracts by section: Saltillo–Santa Catarina (111 km), the Monterrey metropolitan segments, Unión San Javier–Arroyo El Sauz (about 100 km, from Salinas Victoria north), and Arroyo El Sauz–Nuevo Laredo (136.48 km). Workshops, depots, and inspection and maintenance facilities are planned at Derramadero, García, Las Torres, Salinas Victoria, and Nuevo Laredo.

Updates

2026-09 — Progress nears 10%

ATTRAPI head Andrés Lajous told the president’s September 23 press conference that the line was nearly 10% complete, with 81% of the right-of-way acquired. He gave the cost as about MX$140B for 396 km and 13 planned stations, with demand of about 30,000 passengers a day. He said a Derramadero–Ramos Arizpe trip would take about 15 minutes by train, compared with about 45 minutes today.

2026-08 — Alstom prepares train production

Alstom’s contract, signed in late 2025, is worth MX$20.2B for 47 Adessia Stream diesel-electric trains (33 long-distance and 14 short-distance) for this line and the Mexico City–Querétaro–Irapuato corridor, plus five years of maintenance. The trains, with a top speed of 160 km/h, will be built at Ciudad Sahagún with 76% Mexican content. The first is due in mid-2027.

2026-06 — Clearing done on 178 km; workshop contract awarded

ATTRAPI reported land clearing on 178 km, 31 km of embankment, drainage works at 48 sites, and 18 active work fronts. Production of 30,000 tonnes of steel plate had begun for the 9 km viaduct in the Monterrey area. A consortium of Regiomontana de Construcción y Servicios, Comsa, and Vise won a MX$7.152B contract for workshops and maintenance facilities, with work due to start June 25, 2026.

2025-12 — Nuevo León station sites published

Documents published with the tender for the Monterrey metropolitan segment showed the locations of six Nuevo León stations: García, Santa Catarina, Monterrey Centro, Escobedo (Las Torres), Bustamante (Villaldama), and Anáhuac. The documents confirmed that the line will follow the existing freight tracks.

2025-11 — Work starts in Tamaulipas

Work began on the 136.48 km Arroyo El Sauz–Nuevo Laredo section with a ceremony in Nuevo Laredo. The section includes 52 rail bridges, 42 road crossings, and 108 drainage works.

2025-09 — Construction begins; main Saltillo contract awarded

President Claudia Sheinbaum announced the start of construction at her September 9, 2025, press conference, with work beginning on the first section north of Monterrey. Federal officials projected 7 million passengers a year and an opening in 2028. Days later, Grupo Carso’s Operadora CICSA and FCC Construcción won the 111 km Saltillo–Santa Catarina section for MX$31.843B including VAT, with 9 viaducts and 40 rail bridges and a 32-month schedule. At that point the regulator estimated the whole project at MX$138B.

2025-07 — Eleven stations and four construction phases announced

The federal rail regulator (then called ARTF) presented a 393.5 km route with 11 stations, from Derramadero to Nuevo Laredo, and split construction into four phases. The first was Unión San Javier–Arroyo El Sauz, followed by Saltillo–Santa Catarina, Arroyo El Sauz–Nuevo Laredo, and the Santa Catarina–Monterrey–Escobedo section.