Mexican Federal Highway 95D

Mexican Federal Highway 95D is a toll highway con- its, with amenities such as a Federal Police booth, restau-
necting Mexico City to Acapulco in the state of Guerrero. rants and convenience stores.[5]
Highway 95D is among the most important toll roads in
At kilometer 47, the road passes into the state of Morelos,
the country, serving as a backbone for trac out of Mex- arriving in Tres Maras 6 kilometres (3.7 mi) later after
ico City toward the state of Morelos and tourist destina-
a rest stop at Covadonga. The road turns east and then
tions in Guerrero. makes a hairpin curve dubbed La Pera (The Pear), bend-
Three segments, from north to south, comprise Mexican ing for the southwest and toward Cuernavaca. As Tres
Federal Highway 95: the segment between Mexico City Maras has a large motorcycling community, the high-
and Cuernavaca, the segment from Cuernavaca to Aca- way in this area is sometimes used as a motorcycle race
pulco (commonly known as the Autopista del Sol or Sun track, with fatal consequences for those who fall o at
Highway), and the Maxitnel Interurbano Acapulco, sep- the curve.[7] Shortly after La Pera, Highway 95D spawns
arated from the other two segments and oering a bypass another toll road connecting to Tepoztln and Cuautla,
under local trac in Acapulco. Mexican Federal Highway 115D.
Highway 95D enters the Cuernavaca metropolitan area
east of the campus of the Universidad Autnoma del Es-
tado de Morelos, with interchanges at the Glorieta La
1 MxicoCuernavaca Paloma de la Paz monument, Avenida Vicente Guerrero,
and Avenida Ro Mayo near the Plaza Diana shopping
The rst and oldest segment of Highway 95D is that run- center as it wraps east around the Cuernavaca metropoli-
ning between Mexico City and Cuernavaca, which was tan area; its interchange with the local street Plan de Ay-
the second toll road in the country.[3] The original con- ala marks the end of Mexican Federal Highway 160. This
struction of the highway was performed by Compaa 14.5-kilometre (9.0 mi) portion is known Paso Express
Constructora del Sur, S.A. de C.V., a state-controlled Cuernavaca and is currently being expanded to 10 lanes;
predecessor to Caminos y Puentes Federales, the gov- while the project was scheduled to be completed in De-
ernment agency that maintains the MxicoCuernavaca cember 2016,[8] it was delayed four months because of
highway as well as the Autopista del Sol and other toll issues stemming from the relocation of utilities and dam-
roads and bridges in Mexico.[3] age to nearby homes.[9] Upon its completion, travel times
Users have the option of entering Highway 95D from its through Cuernavaca should decrease from 30 minutes to
Mexico City terminus two ways. The rst is by entering just 10, according to the SCT.[9]
from the intersection of Viaducto Tlalpan and Avenida
Insurgentes, the latter of which carries Mexican Fed-
eral Highway 95. The other is by taking the 7-kilometre
(4.3 mi) Second Story Interconnection (Interconexin Se- 2 CuernavacaAcapulco
gundo Piso), which is a direct yover from the Autopista
Urbana Sur following Viaducto Tlalpan and the Highway On the south edge of Cuernavaca, Highway 95D and
95D route as it hugs the side of the Heroico Colegio Mil- Highway 95 begin to parallel each other past communi-
itar. Users of both options pay a 74-peso toll[4] for the ties such as Temixco. Travelers encounter the rst toll
Tlalpan toll booth, which is designated toll booth number booth of the CuernavacaAcapulco highway, commonly
one by Caminos y Puentes Federales and was expanded known as the Autopista del Sol (Sun Highway), at the exit
in 2016 to add seven additional toll lanes;[5] the intercon- to Emiliano Zapata, where incoming and exiting trac
nection costs an additional 19 pesos, four for the segment are tolled in a new booth put into service in July 2016.[10]
operated by the government of Mexico City and another The next interchange is the Highway to the Cuernavaca
15 for the federal segment.[6] After the toll booth, the in- Airport, located near the ITESM Campus Cuernavaca in
terconnection ends and users merge into the mainline of Xochitepec.
the highway heading south. After a brief jog southwest punctuated by an interchange
Highway 95D then exits the Mexico City urban area and with Morelos State Route 21 at Xoxocotla, travelers on
begins to scale the mountainous terrain separating Mex- the mainline of the Autopista del Sol are tolled for the
ico City from Cuernavaca. As it heads south, it passes a rst time at the Alpuyeca toll booth, later named for
rest stop at Parres, a small town within Mexico City lim- Ing. Francisco Velasco Durn; the road bends around

1
2 3 MAXITNEL INTERURBANO ACAPULCO

The Cuetlajuchitln archeological site was discovered during Chilpancingo comes into view along the Autopista del Sol
construction of the Autopista del Sol and sits over a tunnel

streets, with trac on free Highway 95 and tolled High-

Tequesquitengo Lake and features an interchange with way 95D sharing the route. The two roads split o again
Morelos State Route 5 to provide access to the town of in southern Chilpancingo. South of town, travelers en-
the same name, crossing into Guerrero east of Coaxitln, counter the Palo Blanco toll booth, the rst in 111 kilo-
Morelos. The terrain around the highway becomes in- meters on the road;[15] continuing toward Acapulco, the
creasingly rugged in Guerrero, which features ve bridges highway passes the Guerrero Industrial Park before meet-
for Highway 95D. The rst of these is the Puente Quetza- ing another interchange at Tierra Colorada, crossing its
lapa, which crosses over a dip in the mountains. The rst nal bridge, over the Ro Papagayo, and one more tunnel
interchange in Guerrero, however, does not come until before turning southwest toward Acapulco. One last toll
12 kilometres (7.5 mi) after the bridge and 29 kilometres booth awaits motorists at La Venta, immediately followed
(18 mi) after entering the state,[11] at Paso Morelos and by an interchange with Guerrero State Route 200D, the
Guerrero State Route 1. tolled Viaducto Diamante, which connects travelers to the
Playa Diamante area southeast of the main city. Soon af-
ter, Highway 95 merges into Highway 95D, ending the
Autopista del Sol on the northeast edge of Acapulco. Mo-
torists who travel the length of the entire road pay a toll
of 324 pesos as of January 2017.[4]

The Mezcala Bridge 2.1 History

Construction of the Autopista del Sol was completed in
As construction of the highway proceeded in 1991, an
1993. The road, initially slated to cost 800 million pe-
archeological site, Cuetlajuchitln, was discovered, with
sos, ended up costing 2.2 billion, primarily because of
settlement dating back to 800 BC; the highway travels the
the Puente Mezcala, which was designed in conjunction
Los Querendes Tunnel under the site at a depth of 50 me-
with a dam that was never built.[16]
tres (160 ft), allowing for its preservation.[12] At kilome-
ter 212, the 891-metre (2,923 ft) Mezcala Bridge carries In 2007, Gutsa, a contractor selected to maintain and re-
Highway 95D over the Mezcala River; when it opened habilitate a 60-kilometer stretch of the highway, failed
with the highway, it was the worlds tallest bridge.[13] The to meet its contractual obligations, which resulted in the
Autopista del Sol route includes a total of ve bridges.[14] contract being terminated and the SCT taking control of
the road improvements.[16]
As the road nears Chilpancingo, it comes across a full-
access interchange with Highway 95 and Highway 93D,
which oer free access to Zumpango del Ro and a tolled
bypass to Tixtla, respectively; at this interchange, the Dr. 3 Maxitnel Interurbano Acapulco
Raymundo Abarca Alarcn General Hospital is located,
providing medical services in the Chilpancingo area. The The Maxitnel, also signed Highway 95D, opened
Autopista del Sol then cuts south and southeast through November 26, 1996 after construction began in 1994.
the Chilpancingo urban area, passing the campus of the The tunnel is 2,953 metres (9,688 ft) long and was de-
Autonomous University of Guerrero, the oces of the signed to reduce the travel time from Acapulco to Mex-
Congress of Guerrero. A set of frontage roads, known ico City by 25 minutes, allowing motorists to avoid local
as Av. Vicente Guerrero, provides interchanges at local trac. It was built by a consortium of Grupo Mexicano
3

de Desarrollo, Empresas ICA (Ingenieros Civiles Aso- [17] Quadratin (14 January 2016). A partir de maana, in-
ciados), and Triturados Baslticos y Derivados.[2] The crementa tarifa el Maxitnel. El Financiero. Retrieved
most recent toll for the tunnel, eective as of January 17 February 2017.
15, 2016, is 101 pesos for non-residents and 37 pesos for [18] Corona, Jessica. Guerrero pide que Maxitnel sea
residents.[17] gratis. Milenio. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
In 2013, the state government called on the tunnels
operator, the Autova division of ICA, to temporarily
not charge vehicles on the road after Hurricane Ingrid
and Hurricane Manuel struck the region and stranded
tourists.[18]

4 References
[1]

[2] INGENET Maxitnel Interurbano Acapulco

[3] Contreras Valdez, Mario (2012). Los primeros cuatro

tramos carreteros de cuota y la ciudad de Mxico. Mitad
del siglo XX. (PDF). Ponencias.

[4] CAPUFE Tarifas Vigentes, as of January 31, 2017

[5] "Trayectos ms rpidos y seguros!". SCT. 11 February

2017. Retrieved 17 February 2017.

[6] Aldaz, Phenlope (27 October 2016). Autopista Urbana

Sur costar 89 pesos. El Universal. Retrieved 17 Febru-
ary 2017. (note that the federal toll is now 74 pesos in-
stead of 70)

[7] Gmez, Abigail (1 November 2015). Va fatal. Jugarse

la vida a 265 km/h. El Universal.

[8] Paso Express de Cuernavaca estar listo el 12 de diciem-

bre: SCT. Milenio. 8 November 2016. Retrieved 17
February 2017.

[9] Hernndez, Francisco (14 December 2016). Paso Ex-

press de Cuernavaca se retrasa 4 meses. El Financiero.
Retrieved 17 February 2017.

[10] Entra en funcionamiento nueva caseta de cobro en Emil-

iano Zapata. ADN Morelos. 21 July 2016. Retrieved 17
February 2017.

[11] Datos Viales Guerrero, SCT, 2016

[12] Cuetlajuchitln (Los Querende)". Instituto Nacional de

Antropologa e Historia. Retrieved 17 February 2017.

[13] Torres, Alberto (25 January 2012). Parten el Espinazo

del Diablo. El Universal. Retrieved 26 February 2017.

[14] Castro, Marlen (22 March 2007). Escalar el puente Mez-

cala es ver el cielo de cerquita"". La Jornada de Guer-
rero. Retrieved 26 February 2017.

[15] CAPUFE Map of the Mexico-Acapulco Highway

[16] Yamashiro, Celinas (20 September 2013). Autopista del

Sol, una obra con 20 aos de 'derrumbes". Obrasweb.
Retrieved 26 February 2017.
4 5 TEXT AND IMAGE SOURCES, CONTRIBUTORS, AND LICENSES

5 Text and image sources, contributors, and licenses

5.1 Text
Mexican Federal Highway 95D Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mexican_Federal_Highway_95D?oldid=768828368 Contributors:
Mindmatrix, The Rambling Man, AjaxSmack, Raymie, AnomieBOT, SporkBot, HaEr48 and Anonymous: 1

5.2 Images
File:Carretera_federal_200.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5a/Carretera_federal_200.svg License:
Public domain Contributors: Own work Original artist: Fredddie
File:Carretera_federal_95.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/52/Carretera_federal_95.svg License: Pub-
lic domain Contributors: Own work Original artist: Fredddie
File:Carretera_federal_95D.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f0/Carretera_federal_95D.svg License:
Public domain Contributors: Own work Original artist: Fredddie
File:Chilpancingo_-_Desde_la_Autopista_del_Sol.JPG Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ae/
Chilpancingo_-_Desde_la_Autopista_del_Sol.JPG License: CC BY-SA 3.0 Contributors: Own work Original artist: Mitrush
File:Flag_of_Mexico.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fc/Flag_of_Mexico.svg License: Public domain
Contributors: This vector image was created with Inkscape. Original artist: Alex Covarrubias, 9 April 2006
File:Mezcala_Bridge_-_Mexico_edit1.jpg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/81/Mezcala_Bridge_-_
Mexico_edit1.jpg License: CC BY-SA 3.0 Contributors: Own work Original artist: Jujutacular
File:Z.A._de_Cuetlajuchitln.JPG Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/16/Z.A._de_Cuetlajuchitl%C3%A1n.
JPG License: CC-BY-SA-3.0 Contributors: self-made Original artist: Mitrush

5.3 Content license

Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0