Federal Highways ( es, Carretera Federal), are a series of highways that connect with roads from foreign countries; link two or more states of the Federation; and are wholly or mostly built by the Federation with federal funds or through federal grants by individuals, states, or municipalities.
Locally known as federal highway corridors ( es, los corredores carreteros federales), built and maintained by the
federal government
A federation (also known as a federal state) is a political entity characterized by a union of partially self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a central federal government (federalism). In a federation, the self-governin ...
of
Mexico
Mexico ( Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guate ...
via the
Secretariat of Communications and Transportation ( es, Secretaría de Comunicaciones y Transportes, links=no, SCT). Federal Highways in Mexico can be classified into high-speed roads with restricted access (usually
toll highways that may be segmented, and are marked by the letter "D") and low-speed roads with non-restricted access; not all corridors are completely improved.
High speed with restricted-access roads
Restricted-access roads, known as ''
Autopistas'' or carreteras de cobro, are limited-access expressways with controlled points of access
interchanges. Access to these roads is generally prohibited for
pedestrian
A pedestrian is a person traveling on foot, whether walking or running. In modern times, the term usually refers to someone walking on a road or pavement, but this was not the case historically.
The meaning of pedestrian is displayed with ...
s and
animal
Animals are multicellular, eukaryotic organisms in the Kingdom (biology), biological kingdom Animalia. With few exceptions, animals Heterotroph, consume organic material, Cellular respiration#Aerobic respiration, breathe oxygen, are Motilit ...
-drawn vehicles, as
fences are located at the side of the road for most of the length. ''Autopistas'' are highways with four or more defined lanes. ''Supercarreteras'' are always two-lane highways and are most commonly found in mountainous areas. The maximum
speed limit is normally for
cars and for
bus
A bus (contracted from omnibus, with variants multibus, motorbus, autobus, etc.) is a road vehicle that carries significantly more passengers than an average car or van. It is most commonly used in public transport, but is also in use for cha ...
es and
trucks. In some cases, the maximum speed can be .
Low speed with non-restricted-access roads
Low-speed/non-restricted-access roads, known as ''Autopistas'' or ''
Carreteras'', comprise the majority of the road corridors. ''Autopistas'' are divided highways with four or more lanes. Most of these ''autopistas'' are single-carriageway roads converted into dual carriageway by building an adjacent road body next to the existing one. ''Carretera'' are free, and in most cases, two-lane highways that connect almost all of Mexico. These roads have interchanges at major roads, but most intersections are at grade. The maximum speed limit is for cars and for buses and trucks.
Numbering system
North–south highways are assigned odd numbers, while east-west highways are identified by even numbers. The start of the numbering system is located in the northwest of the country.
Exceptions to the numbering system
There are two exceptions to the numbering system:{{CN, date=January 2018
#
Federal Highway 14 (Fed. 14) and
Federal Highway 14D (Fed. 14D) from
Uruapan, Michoacán, to Morelia, Michoacán, located in the midwest of the country.
# Several roads with letter designations: the Autopista
Arco Norte (M40D),
Fed. I-20D (Libramiento de Irapuato),
Fed. S30 (Libramiento Norponiente de Saltillo, signed as 40D) and,
Fed. GUA 10D (Macrolibramiento Sur De Guadalajara).
Incidents
*
Mexico toll booth interstate disaster
*
Chiapas truck crash
See also
*
List of Mexican Federal Highways
*
List of Mexican autopistas
References
External links
Mexico Secretaria of Comunicaciones y Transportes Official maps of federal highways - in Spanish10 Facts You Should Know About Driving to MexicoGreen Angels Roadside Assistance on Mexican Federal Highways
*