Sheinbaum expropriates 107,378 square meters across eight municipalities for the AIFA-Pachuca train

The Official Gazette of the Federation published this September 29, 2026, the presidential decree expropriating 107,378.835 m² corresponding to 98 privately owned properties for reasons of public utility for the execution of the AIFA-Pachuca Interurban Train project. The area is designated in favor of the Federation, through the Agency for Trains and Integrated Public Transport, and covers eight municipalities in Hidalgo and the State of Mexico. The decree was signed on September 24, 2026, by President Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo and appears on page 4 of issue 264/2026 of the bulletin.

The instrument is based on articles 27 and 28 of the Political Constitution of the United Mexican States, the Expropriation Law, and article 25 of the Regulatory Law of the Railway Service. The Ministry of Infrastructure, Communications and Transportation (SICT) requested the acquisition of the plots via official letter 2.2.-401/2026, dated April 27, 2026, and the Ministry of Agrarian, Territorial and Urban Development (SEDATU) compiled the expropriation file SEDATU.1S.13.I110.UAJ.003.2026.

The project was declared a priority area for national development in the decree published on November 20, 2023, and is part of commitment 79 of the National Development Plan 2025-2030, which envisions 3,000 km of new passenger train lines. Prior to this expropriation, the decree of public utility and temporary occupation of 110,296.687 m² of 99 properties was published on May 27, 2026, and the declaration of public utility cause on June 25, 2026; on August 18, 2026, SEDATU confirmed the cause regarding 98 assets.

The affected properties and municipalities

• Hidalgo: Mineral de la Reforma, Tizayuca, Tolcayuca, Villa de Tezontepec, and Zapotlán de Juárez.
• State of Mexico: Tecámac, Temascalapa, and Zumpango.
• Total area: 107,378.835 m² (one hundred seven thousand three hundred seventy-eight point eight hundred thirty-five square meters).
• Number of properties: 98 privately owned, identified with nomenclatures such as AP-DOT, AP-TEC, AP-TEM, AP-TIZ, AP-TEZ, AP-TOL, AP-ZAP, and AP-MRF.
• The expropriation includes the constructions and installations that are part of the properties.

Immediate occupation, compensation, and deadlines

• The Integrated Trains and Public Transport Agency proceeds with the immediate occupation of the assets.
• The filing of any means of defense does not suspend said occupation.
• The compensation will be covered by the Agency’s authorized budget, in accordance with the appraisals issued by the Institute for the Administration and Appraisal of National Assets (INDAABIN).
• Interested parties have ten business days, counted from the notification, to pursue the judicial procedure under Article 11 of the Expropriation Law and contest only the amount of the compensation.
• If the assets are not used for the purpose that motivated the expropriation within five years, the affected parties may exercise reversion actions within the following two years.
• SEDATU is responsible for the registration of the decree in the Federal Public Registry of Property and in the corresponding state registry.

Effects on previous temporary occupation

The decree nullifies the temporary occupation ordered in May 2026, with one exception: polygon AP-DOTE-004 with folio 407795 (Tizayuca), whose temporary occupation will continue until the expropriation procedure for the folios resulting from its subdivision is concluded or until it is acquired by any legal act of transfer of ownership.

The decree enters into force on the day of its publication and must be notified personally to the interested parties; if their address is unknown, a second publication will be made in the Official Gazette of the Federation. The countersignatures correspond to the Secretary of Infrastructure, Communications and Transportation, Jesús Antonio Esteva Medina, and the Secretary of Agrarian, Territorial and Urban Development, Edna Elena Vega Rangel.

The publication closes the administrative stage of right-of-way clearance in the AIFA-Pachuca section and moves the owners of the eight municipalities to a limited schedule: occupation is immediate and is not suspended by appeals, while the discussion regarding the amount of compensation is limited to ten business days. For those affected, the decree also establishes the route for reversion if the work is not executed within five years.

Source: Official Gazette of the Federation, No. 264/2026, September 29, 2026, Executive Branch, p. 4 (official reference: Decree by which an area of 107,378.835 m² is expropriated for reasons of public utility in favor of the Federation for the AIFA-Pachuca Interurban Train project).