Politics: Causes and political implications of the Metro Line 12 collapse
The recent collapse of part of the elevated section of Line 12 of the Mexico City Metro that left 26 dead and 80 injured, was a major development in the city, and its consequences could be far reaching. It served to highlight problems plaguing not only the city’s newest line (L12), but the entire metro, the backbone of the capital’s public transportation system. Metro workers and riders had complained of structural problems for some time, but were ignored despite clear deficiencies in the line’s halting design and construction. The extent to which the metro system is woefully underfunded has led to severe deficiencies in train and track maintenance as well as system security.
An incident on the scale of the May 3 tragedy was bound to have repercussions, but much attention is focused on whose head will be on the proverbial chopping block. Attention is centered on three high-level political figures: Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard, who was head of the city government when the line was built and inaugurated; Miguel Mancera, currently a PRD senator, who was head of the city government in 2014, when major structural problems came to light, forcing the suspension of L12; and Claudia Sheinbaum, the current mayor, who is criticized by some for not addressing the major problems plaguing the system.
President Andrés Manuel López Obrador himself has not escaped criticism, due to some comments that many perceived to be insensitive. Sheinbaum has ordered an independent technical investigation, with a respected Norwegian company in charge, and criminal liabilities might be assigned.
The fallout from May 3 might well affect the upcoming June 6 midterm elections. Initial public opinion polls show a sharp drop in support for AMLO’s Morena party in Tlahuac, the municipality where the L12 accident occurred, and a corresponding rise in the fortunes of the opposition electoral coalition both locally and citywide. Less clear is how much L12 will weigh on voters’ minds when they go to the polls three weeks from now. So far it appears the fallout will be largely confined to the nation’s capital.
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