The modernization of the Estación Don-Nogales highway section in Sonora will have an approximate length of 650 kilometers, according to information from the Mexican government.

As of December 6, 2021, the section is 99.2% complete and the government confirmed that it has the necessary financing to complete the project, which is expected to be completed in the second half of 2022.

Overall, in 2021, the government continued to prioritize the maintenance of roads and highways, as well as the completion of unfinished infrastructure projects, investing 55.9 billion pesos in ongoing projects.

With the modernization of this road, the connectivity of the center with the north of the country and the south of the United States is improved, since it is the only access road with the borders of California and Arizona.

Nogales highway

The Mexican government builds and maintains a large part of Mexico’s road network; but, since 2003, the government has granted long-term concessions to private sector companies, allowing them to build, operate and maintain toll roads.

According to preliminary figures, as of 2020 (the last year for which data is available), Mexico’s road network totaled an estimated 397,938 km, of which 176,250 km consisted of paved roads and 10,843 km of toll roads.

In particular, the project to modernize the Estación Don-Nogales highway is carried out along the 650 km of the Estación Don-Nogales highway, and consists of: widening the existing bodies of 7.0 m (body “B”) and 9.0 m (body “A”) to a section of 10.5 m each body, to house two circulation lanes of 3.5 m each and interior shoulders of 1.0 m and exteriors of 2.5 m, at a cost of 19,772.5 million pesos.

The Mexican government announced in December 2018 the National Highway Infrastructure Program 2018-2024, which prioritizes the construction and maintenance of highways in areas of Mexico that currently lack significant road infrastructure to incentivize development.

In 2021, the government allocated 2,500 million pesos to improve the conditions of 68 kilometers of road infrastructure.

In November 2019, the Government published the National Infrastructure Investment Agreement, a tool to facilitate and accelerate the implementation of private sector projects that contribute to the growth and development of Mexico, eliminate barriers that prevent private sector investment and guarantee that these private investments adhere to legal frameworks and have the support of public agencies, as well as the federal and local governments.