Ambulances, transport vehicles, and emergency vehicles heading from the eastern periphery to the IMSS hospitals will have to face up to 1.5 kilometers more and a journey that can increase up to double the time, due to changes in roadways implemented by the Ie-Tram public transportation system.
As part of the final details of this project, which is touted as the first 100 percent electric transport system in southeastern Mexico, changes have been made to the directions of main and secondary streets to avoid future traffic jams.
Modifications will be made to streets such as 2B of Nueva Mayapán, 39 and 22 of Máximo Ancona, as well as 2B and 30 of San Luis.
However, the most complex change caused by this project, developed by the Yucatan Government, Banobras, and the private sector, is located on 39th Avenue, near the Federal Electricity Commission (CFE), where a traffic light and a provisional road distributor have already been installed, and signs are still covered with black plastic.
Among the future changes, this avenue will become one-way, from west to east, that is, from hospitals to the Periférico.
On the other hand, ambulances heading urgently to the “Ignacio García Téllez” Hospital or the High Specialty Medical Unit (UMAE) of the IMSS will have to detour at Brisas to head towards the Ex Cohete intersection or enter Mayapán to take secondary streets until reaching Prepa 1.
This detour not only adds a kilometer and a half to the ambulance’s route but also results in an increase in travel time of up to four minutes, depending on the traffic’s respect for the emergency vehicle.
Jose has been a paramedic for the Yucatan Delegation of the Mexican Red Cross for two years. In this short time, he has learned that car accidents happen every day, especially on the city’s periphery, and they need to be assisted promptly.
However, there are also emergencies such as falls, poisonings, heart attacks, and childbirth, where every second between the patient’s location and the emergency medical room is crucial.
Since the construction works of Ie-Tram began in January 2023, he and his colleagues have had to modify the ambulance’s route when heading from the east to T1 to avoid the nearly 4 linear kilometers of construction works.
Although there is a possibility that emergency vehicles may be able to use Ie-Tram’s preferential lanes when it comes into operation, Jose stated that so far, the Yucatan Delegation of the Red Cross has not confirmed if this is true or not. No sign indicating this has been placed either.
The neighbors of the area are also not immune to these changes, which will drastically modify their routine as they will have to find new access roads to reach their homes.
The annoyance of these changes has led the area’s residents to block the intersections of 39 with Circuito Colonias and 39 with 2B on two occasions. The latest demonstration took place on Monday morning and was attended by personnel from the Yucatan Public Works Secretariat (SOP).
However, the officials’ listening does not convince the residents of the area, who have already come to the idea that the government will ignore them and will not consider modifications to its project.
Currently, the alternate works to the lanes where Ie-Tram will pass continue, such as sewer systems, underground wiring, and construction of stops.
While this is happening, the projected changes have not yet begun to be applied. However, the electric buses will begin to circulate in December 2023, so it is expected that by then, the citizens and emergency services will have adapted to the modifications.
TYT Newsroom
