FORT WORTH, Texas — Four locomotives bound for freight service on Mexico’s Maya Train recently were spotted outside Wabtec’s Fort Worth, Texas, factory, awaiting delivery to the rail line operated by the Mexican Army.
The units are part of an order for ES44AC diesels that will introduce freight service on the looping 966-mile route on the Yucatan peninsula, which launched as a passenger-only operation intended to boost tourism in the region. The line has sustained heavy operating losses to date, leading its executive director to say last year that freight traffic would be required to achieve profitability [see “Mexico’s Maya Train …,” Trains.com, May 27, 2025].
The International Railway Journal reports testing with the locomotives and a string of container well cars began in March after the first three units were delivered. At least seven locomotives are part of the Wabtec order.
The Mexican government last fall approved construction of the line’s first dedicated freight facilities in Cancún, including a yard and a locomotive shop [see “First freight facilities …,” Trains.com, Sept. 8, 2025]…