# North America's Busiest Light Rail: Guadalajara



## Matthew H Fish (Dec 17, 2019)

I have been in Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico, for over two weeks, and I have been wanting to write about the mass transit here, but have been reluctant to do so because I have been busy, and because I don't totally understand the system. 

Then I realized the fact that I don't totally understand the system is in itself part of what I want to write about. 

First: Guadalajara is a city with a metro area of around 5 million people, making it Mexico's second largest city, and one of North America's bigger cities, as well. (Of course this gets into issues of what constitutes a metro area, etc, but in general, it is comparable to Philadelphia in size)

Guadalajara has North America's busiest light rail system, according to Wikipedia. Around 100,000,000 people ride it a year, more than twice the ridership of the San Francisco MUNI or Portland MAX. It was first built in 1989, and was last improved with a second line in 1994. There is a Line 3 in process, which is scheduled to open next year, but it has, in the way of many mass transit systems, had delays in opening. Line 1 is 16 kilometers long, with 20 stations, and runs from north to south. Line 2 is 9 kilometers long, with 10 stations, and runs east from the center of the city. Line 3 will be over 20 kilometers long, with 18 stations planned, and will run from northwest to southeast. (Much of Line 3, and its stations, are completed, just not open)

Line 1 is underground for a short while through the center of Guadalajara, but is above ground, and utilizes at-grade crossings for much of its run north and south of downtown. Line 2, which intersects Line 1 at Juarez station in the center of Guadalajara, is totally underground, and is functionally a subway line, although it uses the same cars as Line 1. Line 3 will also be totally separated in grades, either above or below. 

The system uses a contactless card, which costs about a dollar, and can be recharged. Riding the subway costs 50 cents, which is incredibly cheap by my US standards. The stations are clean and well-maintained, but are pretty no-frills: I think Juarez station is the only station I have seen any type of stores or conveniences in. The trains and stations aren't air conditioned, but Guadalajara usually has moderate weather year round, so it isn't as much of a problem. (Of course, I am here in December...not the summer time). 

I am not the biggest expert on what is possibly a contentious issue, but the transit system (and Guadalajara in general) seems pretty safe. In fact, the people on the train seem to be polite to a fault: people won't sit in the seats for the disabled, even when there are multiple seats available. There is a campaign against sexual harassment on the light rail, so perhaps it is not always comfortable for everyone. 

Guadalajara also has I think three other types of buses: one is associated with the train (and might be cross-fared with them?), another is a Bus Rapid Transit line, and then there are normal city buses. The way these systems interact seems to make a lot of technical sense, once you learn to use them, but is not very intuitive for a new comer. (The Bus Rapid Transit Line takes its own type of card, not the Light Rail card, and if you don't have one, you either pay the fare with exact change, or pay an attendant to use a card for you...this can be difficult to understand, especially for a visitor). 

Overall, Guadalajara's mass transit system works well, but it suffers from being built in stages. The At-Grade Line 1 especially seems to be a relic of a time when Guadalajara was a smaller city. In the 1970s and 1980s, when the system was being planned, Jalisco, and probably Guadalajara, had half its current population. This is actually very similar to Portland, which started planning its own Light Rail at the same time, and is also currently hampered by a Light Rail system that utilizes at-grade crossings, combined with a patchwork of other transit options.


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## Asher (Dec 18, 2019)

Interesting, I have quite a few neighbors from Guadalajara.


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## neroden (Dec 18, 2019)

From first principles, it seems like a well-designed system. It also looks like it could use a lot of expansion! Part of the high ridership is obviously going to be due to lower car ownership and lower median incomes than in Portland or SF.


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## Bob Dylan (Dec 18, 2019)

neroden said:


> From first principles, it seems like a well-designed system. It also looks like it could use a lot of expansion! Part of the high ridership is obviously going to be due to lower car ownership and lower median incomes than in Portland or SF.


Yep, the Majority of Mexicans live on $10 a day or Less, and Prices are Comparable to the US!!!


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## fairviewroad (Dec 20, 2019)

Thank you for the interesting and informative write-up.


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## Ziv (Jan 6, 2020)

I think the median income in Mexico is $10,100US, so more like half the population lives on $27US or more a day. Though, that is median family income.
https://www.efe.com/efe/english/lif...embers-843-in-monthly-income/50000263-2666718



Bob Dylan said:


> Yep, the Majority of Mexicans live on $10 a day or Less, and Prices are Comparable to the US!!!


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