A Look Into Mexico’s Road Network

Are you going to enjoy your holidays to Mexico? Definitely, you are going to want to drop by different sites around the country, not just in its capital Mexico City. Well, that is already taken cared of. Going around the country is relatively easy thanks to its extensive roadway network.

Mexico’s roads cover virtually all areas in the country, reaching out into its interior and central parts. In fact, the country has 366,095 kilometers of road of which 116,802 kilometers are paved. There are 10,474 kilometers of multi-lane freeways: 9,544 kilometers of it are highways with four lines while the rest have 6 or more lanes. The network is the largest in Latin America.

To make it easier for motorists to drive from one place to another, the highways of Mexico are classified by the types of access and the number of lanes. Undivided or divided two-lane highways, which make up most of the network, are called carreteras. Speeds in carreteras are usually limited depending on terrain conditions.

Freeways that are composed of four or more lanes, with restricted or unrestricted access, are called autopistas. They link the major cities in Mexico—Mexico City, Monterrey, and Guadalajara. In autopistas, motorists can drive speeds up to 110 kilometers per hour. Buses and trucks, which are bigger and slower, coast around at 95 kilometers per hour. Autopistas are typically toll-roads where you need to pay a certain fee, or toll. The toll includes some type of traveler’s insurance in case an accident happens within the freeway. Toll expressways often have phone booths, water wells, and emergency braking ramps at short intervals for people to use.

Just like in other countries with a freeway system, Mexican highways are identified by 1 to 3-digit numbers. North-to-south highways are identified with odd numbers while east-to-west highways are identified with even numbers. Toll expressways usually run parallel to a free road, thus, they are assigned with the same number the free road is identified with, with the addition of a letter “D.” For example, the two-lane highway that connects Mexico City to Puebla is identified as MX 150 while the 6-lane toll expressway beside it is MX 150D.

When spending your cheap holidays abroad, you are ensured of convenient accessibility. Book your trip through Travel Republic.