Trolleybuses in Mexico City

Mexico City trolleybus system
Yutong ZK5120C model of trolleybus
Operation
LocaleMexico City, Mexico
Open9 March 1951 (1951-03-09)
StatusOpen
Routes14 (as of 2026)
OperatorServicio de Transportes Eléctricos (STE)
Infrastructure
ElectrificationParallel overhead lines, 600 V DC
Statistics
Route length203.64 km (126.54 mi)
Overview
Network, 2026
Websitewww.ste.cdmx.gob.mx

The Mexico City trolleybus system (Spanish: Red de Trolebuses de la Ciudad de México) is a trolleybus network serving Mexico City. It is operated by Servicio de Transportes Eléctricos (STE), which also operates the Xochimilco Light Rail and Cablebús systems. Along with other public transportation services, including the Mexico City Metro, Metrobús, and Mexibús, it forms part of the Mexico City Integrated Mobility System.

The system opened on 9 March 1951.[1][2] As of 2026, it comprises 14 routes, some of which operate on dedicated corridors with characteristics similar to bus rapid transit (BRT) systems. Until 2019, the routes were identified by letters, after which numbered route designations were adopted.[3][4]

Beginning in 2019, the system underwent a major modernization and expansion program under the administration of Claudia Sheinbaum. The program included the purchase of new battery-equipped trolleybuses manufactured by Yutong in China to replace vehicles dating from the 1980s and 1990s. The new vehicles can operate both from the system's 600 V DC parallel overhead lines and independently using onboard batteries, allowing them to travel up to 100 kilometres (62 mi) away from wired infrastructure.

Lines

Line Formerly Route Length
km (mi)
1 A Metro Autobuses del Norte – Autobuses del Sur 36.6 (22.7)
2 S Metro Pantitlán – Metro Chapultepec 18.0 (11.2)
3 D San Andrés Tetepilco – Metro Mixcoac 12.3 (7.6)
4 G Metro Boulevard Puerto Aéreo – Metro El Rosario 44.9 (27.9)
5 LL San Felipe de Jesús – Metro Hidalgo 26.1 (16.2)
6 I Metro El Rosario – Metro Chapultepec 30.2 (18.8)
7 K1 Ciudad Universitaria – CETRAM Periférico Oriente 24.5 (15.2)
8 CP Circuito Politécnico (Metro Politécnico – Instituto Politécnico Nacional) 11.0 (6.8)
9 M Metro Villa de Cortés – Río Churubusco / Metro Apatlaco[5] 10.0 (6.2)
10 – Metro Constitución de 1917 – Metro Santa Marta[6] 8.0 (5.0)
11 – Metro Santa Marta – Chalco[7][8][9] 18.5 (11.5)
12 – Perisur – Tasqueña[10] 14.6 (9.1)
13 – Metro Constitución de 1917 – Metro Mixcoac[11] 29.6 (18.4)
14 – CETRAM Universidad – CETRAM Huipulco[12] 13.2 (8.2)

Lines 1 to 7 are cross-city routes, of which 3, 4, and 7 are tangential routes, not reaching the city centre and generally oriented perpendicular to radial routes ("crosstown" route in American English). Line 9 is a short tangential route that is not "cross-city". Line 8 is a "feeder" route, feeding the city's metro system at Politécnico station and also line 1.

On October 29, 2022, line 10 was inaugurated from Metro Constitución de 1917 to Acahualtepec. The section from Acahualtepec to Metro Santa Marta was inaugurated in May 2025.[13]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Trolleybus Magazine No. 235 (January–February 2001), p. 14. National Trolleybus Assn. (UK). ISSN 0266-7452.
  2. ↑ Morrison, Allen (2010; updated 2014). The Trolleybuses of Latin America in 2014. Retrieved 24 December 2014.
  3. ↑ Trolleybus Magazine No. 318 (November–December 2014), p. 159. National Trolleybus Assn. (UK). ISSN 0266-7452.
  4. ↑ "Líneas de Trolebús" [Trolleybus lines] (in Spanish). STE. Retrieved 9 June 2026.
  5. ↑ "Reactivación De Línea 9 Del Trolebús Villa De Cortés - Río Churubusco" (in Spanish). Servicio de Transportes Eléctricos. 31 January 2021. Retrieved 9 February 2021.
  6. ↑ "Línea 10" (in Spanish). Servicio de Transportes Eléctricos. May 18, 2025. Retrieved May 18, 2025.
  7. ↑ Ayala Espinosa, Camila (October 24, 2021). "Autoridades del Estado de México y de la capital del país firmaron un convenio de colaboración para construir el Corredor Trolebús Chalco-Santa Martha, el cual será el primer sistema metropolitano en su tipo". El Economista (in Spanish). Retrieved January 11, 2022.
  8. ↑ "Proyecto Trolebús Chalco-Santa Martha". Gobierno de Chalco (in Spanish). Retrieved October 14, 2022.
  9. ↑ "Línea 11" (in Spanish). Servicio de Transportes Eléctricos. May 18, 2025. Retrieved May 18, 2025.
  10. ↑ "Línea 12 del Trolebús". STE (in Spanish). June 4, 2024. Retrieved January 4, 2024.
  11. ↑ "Línea 13 del Trolebús". STE (in Spanish). June 7, 2025. Retrieved June 7, 2025.
  12. ↑ "Línea 14 del Trolebús". STE (in Spanish). June 9, 2026. Retrieved June 9, 2026.
  13. ↑ Luz Coello (29 October 2025). "Trolebús Elevado cumple tres años de operación, pero hace cinco meses completó su recorrido hasta Santa Martha" (in Spanish). Infobae.

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