New Bridge Will Make Getting To The Cancun Hotel Zone Easier Than Ever This Year

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Last Updated 3 weeks ago

By the end of the year, travelers will have a more direct route to get to the tourist zone of Cancun thanks to the completion of a brand new bridge now under construction over the Nichupté Lagoon.

Nichupté Lagoon Bridge

After nearly two years, the highly anticipated Nichupté Lagoon Bridge is starting to appear like a bridge as the first slab went into place earlier this week.

The almost six-mile bridge, which will eventually connect Cancun’s center with the tourist zone, was declared 40 percent complete by the contractor working on the project.

Ultimately, it will connect the center of Cancun with the tourist zone at kilometer 13, right in front of the popular Plaza Kukulcán.

It was originally set to be ready for tourists this month. However, the project has been plagued by delays, both on the part of the Mexican Federal Government and the construction company building the bridge.

It will also cost more than the original cost of $341.3 million ($5.57 billion pesos). The additional costs stand currently at $104.2 million ($1.70 billion pesos).

The extra costs were expected because of the recent increase in price inflation and labor costs in Mexico along with the additional costs for steel and other construction materials needed to construct the new bridge.

Current Status of the Bridge

Currently the bridge looks halfway complete as the span reaches the middle of the lagoon.

Cranes are stationed in the lagoon actively moving the parts of the bridge into place to advance the project forward.

Other construction crews on the project are progressively moving the bridge span towards Plaza Kukulcán, a well-known symbol of the tourist zone.

Eventually the parts will connect as the bridge reaches from the beaches over to the centro of Cancun.

The construction company on the project, Empresas ICA, also provided an update on the Nichupté Lagoon Bridge, mentioning that the first major road slab was being put into place this week.

This was scheduled to take place between supports 62.5 and 61, which are the first two bridge supports that enter the lagoon from Tajamar.

It’s a monumental milestone step in the construction of the bridge as it starts to assume its final structure for tourists to view.

The completed project will eventually speed up traffic and reduce travel times for tourists, as well as hotel zone employees, first responders and service providers.

Investment in Infrastructure

Even with the delays and extra costs, the bridge demonstrates an important investment in infrastructure that has not been able to keep up with the increasing demand from additional tourists and hotel properties in the tourist zone of Cancun.

It’s a step in the right direction to reduce the amount of traffic and travel times tourists have to endure when visiting Cancun on a vacation getaway to the beach resort destination.

What Travelers Need to Know

Tourists should be excited to see that this project is actively moving forward, with a projected completion date in the second half of this year.

It will cut the time and hassle many Cancun travelers currently face when trying to get around town.

In fact, this is one of the biggest complaints tourists have about the area in their departure surveys.

Hopefully, it is just the start of the many infrastructure projects needed to improve transportation in the Mexican Caribbean and make the area more tourist-friendly.

The progress made by the new Nichupté Lagoon Bridge and the Maya Train project should provide travelers with a more positive image of the government meeting the needs of tourists in the beach resort community.

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