The Querétaro State Mobility Agency (AMEQ) announced the implementation of the “Más QroBus” program, an initiative that seeks to improve public transportation service in the metropolitan area through three new route types.
AMEQ Director Gerardo Cuanalo Santos presented the program, highlighting the system’s historic growth, which reached 12.7 million monthly rides in March and registered a record 514,000 daily riders on May 8.
These are entirely new routes that will connect high-demand areas with fewer stops, reducing travel times by up to 50%. Initially, two routes will be implemented: R-301 (Mompaní-Alameda) and R-302 (UTEQ-Alameda), which will operate Monday through Friday from 5:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.
These routes will be free from Wednesday through Friday of the first week so that riders can become familiar with the service.
Short Routes
They will operate as a complement to existing routes, covering half the journey in areas with higher demand. They will operate during peak hours (6:00-9:00 am and 5:00-8:00 pm) and will be one-way.
They will be implemented on six routes initially: T03, T06, T09, T10, T13, and C21. Their objective is to reduce wait times and congestion during peak hours.
Express Routes
They will maintain the same origin and destination as existing routes, but with 50% fewer stops, serving 80% of users. This will reduce travel times by 30%. They will be implemented on eight routes: T02X, T03X, T06X, T08X, T09X, T10X, T12X, and C23X.
Impact and Benefits
The program will allow the number of buses in circulation to exceed 1,000 by incorporating 25 additional 12.5-meter Mercedes-Benz buses. In this first phase, the program will benefit 25% of public transportation system users by addressing 10 strategic routes.
The implementation will be gradual: first, rapid transit routes, followed by short-distance routes, and finally express routes. The director of AMEQ indicated that the program’s performance will be constantly evaluated to make necessary adjustments and possibly expand it to more routes.
Identification and Accessibility
Riders will be able to identify the new modes by their special nomenclature on the front of the buses: “R” for rapid transit routes, “short-distance” for short-distance routes, and “X” for express routes.
With this program, AMEQ seeks to respond to the growth of the Qrobús system, which has doubled its ridership since the start of the current administration, going from 223,000 to more than 500,000 daily boardings.
Source: rotativo
