Quintana Roo Dump-Truck Unions Call Off Caravan After Reaching Talks With Sedena

Unions representing cargo truck operators from several municipalities in Quintana Roo called off the dump-truck caravan they had planned for Thursday, July 16, along federal highway 307 toward Tulum, after Mexico's Secretariat of National Defense (Sedena) agreed to open dialogue tables to review their labor demands.

The group, which identifies itself as the Unión de Volqueteros de Quintana Roo (Quintana Roo Dump Truck Union), is demanding that the agency hire only locally licensed, concessioned transport for the federal works it carries out in the state — including the Maya Train and the Tulum airport — instead of using units from other states or belonging to the military institution itself. The unions' central demand, as stated in their call to mobilize, is that "la Sedena ocupe solo el transporte concesionado en el estado de Quintana Roo" ("Sedena use only concessioned transport in the state of Quintana Roo"), without displacing local operators.

The mobilization had been called for the day before President Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo began her tour of Quintana Roo on Friday, July 17, departing from Air Base No. 12 in Tulum. Truckers sought to make their demands visible to federal authorities ahead of that visit.

Ismael Flores, a representative of the group, said that after a meeting with federal officials, both sides agreed to open formal work tables starting the following Monday to review, case by case, local truckers' participation in the works. With that agreement, the unions called off the caravan, and none of the road blockages anticipated for the area materialized.

Sedena as a builder in the state

The defense ministry has carried out federal infrastructure works in Quintana Roo since the construction of the Maya Train and the Tulum airport. Hauling materials for those projects has become a contested source of employment between companies contracted by Sedena and local dump-truck unions that claim preference as the state's concession holders.

What it means for people traveling through the area

With the caravan called off, no prolonged closures were reported on federal highway 307 or on access roads into Tulum during Thursday morning. Still, the unions warned they will keep watching whether the agreements are honored at the upcoming work tables, so further mobilization calls are not ruled out.

• If you're driving federal highway 307, keep in mind transport unions remain in talks and could call new actions.
• Check traffic conditions before heading out, especially on the Cancún–Tulum stretch.
• The Maya Train remains an alternative that doesn't depend on the highway.
• For road emergencies, call 911.

As of this report, Sedena had not issued its own public statement confirming the terms of the agreement reached with the unions.