For next August, a technical delegation of the United States Army Engineers (USACE) will present a report and a proposal on the reactivation of the rail system in Guatemala, after having delivered a preliminary report at the end of the mission.
A letter of agreement on the cargo train and the railway meter will be signed, as happened with the expansion and modernization of the Quetzal Port Company, explained President Bernardo Arévalo by making the details known.
On Friday, May 23, the USACE mission presented a preliminary executive report on the findings with respect to the current rail system, and it was concluded that there is feasibility to reactivate load services, passengers, as well as the riel subway or nearby train in the area of the city of Guatemala.
In addition, that institution will make a new line of the rail network to connect the load circuits between the Pacific and the Atlantic ports, as well as the connection with Tecún Umán, San Marcos and Mexico, in addition to El Salvador.
The program is part of the agreement between the United States Army Engineers (Usace) and the Ministry of Defense (Mindef) of Guatemala, for the development of critical infrastructure that, in a first phase, includes the modernization and expansion of the Port Company Quetzal (EPQ), in Escuintla.
For both macroprojects, feasibility studies and analysis will be carried out, so the designs and a final proposal will be presented, always under the direction of Usace.
Evaluation terms
The ruler explained that the technical mission of the USACE evaluated the railway network and the Riel Metro with the aim of reaching an agreement to initiate the reconstruction of both systems.
We had concrete and formal advances. The specialized technical team shared a report on the process that is proposed for the reconstruction of the railway network and the riel subway in Guatemala City. These advances are clear and precise; They are relevant to a modernization that is not only road, but also economic and social, said the president.
During the press conference, Arévalo remarked that a mobility system in Guatemala is being built, in which railroad solutions, a riel meter, line of clocks and feeder buses are integrated, which must transport users to those axes of mass transport that have been identified and that, together, will give the solutions that have come looking for.
The USACE will contribute during this period with the design of connectivity works and strategic modernization for the country. It is a solution that has been found, and the existing cooperation between government will be used for Guatemala to hire the United States Army Corps of Army, so that I attend in the development of this strategy, in collaboration with the body of engineers of the Guatemala Army, the president said.
By 2026, advances in the hiring of the projects of the Railway Network and the Riel Metro are expected to continue, the head of state reiterated by making the reactivation of the cargo system in the ports of Guatemala and the Tecún Umán-Ciudad Hidalgo section, to connect with Mexico.