Los Cabos Drastically Decreases Speed Limit On Main Highway To Protect Tourists

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Last Updated 11 months ago

Speed limits on Los Cabos Transpeninsular Highway have recently decreased from 90 km/h to 60 km/h to protect tourists and locals from the many accidents occurring on this road. 

The Transpeninsular Highway is one of the busiest roads in the municipality connecting the two cities of San José del Cabo and Cabo San Lucas to the main airport. 

This measure was taken by the General Directorate of Public Security, Preventive Police, and Municipal Traffic to try to limit the many car crashes occurring on a daily basis on this road. 

These reduced speed limits have been specifically incorporated from Cerro Colorado to San José del Cabo and from the Punta Ballena bridge to El Bordo in Cabo San Lucas. 

These were the stretches that seemed to have caused more accidents, according to the Secretariat of Infrastructure, Communications and Transportation (SICT) of Baja California Sur.

Commenting on this new measure, the mayor of Los Cabos, Oscar Leggs, declared: “Those who do not respect [these limits] are already being fined and there is no condonation.”

Is Los Cabos safe? 

Given the new measures, tourists wishing to visit Los Cabos soon may now wonder where this municipality is safe when it comes to mobility. The answer is quite complicated.

Even though the municipality of Los Cabos is known for being among the safest in Mexico, when it comes to traffic and safety on the road, its conditions are still relatively poor. 

Not by chance, a recent report by the General Director of Los Cabos Tourism Trust (FITURCA), stressed how ‘mobility’ is tourists’ main concern when visiting the area. 

Talking about this issue, Rodrigo Esponda Cascajares, the General Director of Los Cabos Tourism Trust, declared: “Obviously vehicular traffic particularly affects the perception that visitors have, especially when they want to get to the airport or move to (another) destination.”

But why are tourists so dissatisfied with Los Cabos’ streets and general mobility? There are several factors influencing visitors’ perceptions. 

First and foremost, the road conditions need drastic improvement. Potholes are incredibly frequent and street lights are often out of order.

Los Cabos also has a problem with illegal transportation services. Several unlicensed drivers are regularly transporting tourists from one city to another or from the airport to San José del Cabo and Cabo San Lucas. So, are the Los Cabos authorities doing anything to address these issues?

How is the Los Cabos government increasing its road safety?

Apart from the recent decrease in speed limits, the Los Cabos government is constantly introducing new measures to increase its road safety. 

For instance, through the Permanent Pothole Program, hundreds of potholes located throughout the municipality have been fixed. But this initiative was not merely focused on potholes. Employees working on this program also cleaned sidewalks, painted burbs, and re-established public lighting. 

The Permanent Pothole Program has proved to be extremely successful but work to maintain Los Cabos streets in good condition is never-ending also due to the hurricane season affecting this area which often causes several damages to the local infrastructure. 

Apart from improving the general conditions of its roads, the Los Cabos government is also working on upgrading its local transportation options. 

The local authorities have recently announced they will authorize 30 new transportation inspectors to maintain peace between Uber and taxi drivers. On top of this, official buses are now being fully renovated to meet the highest standards of safety. 

Lastly, the Los Cabos authorities are now trying to turn their municipality into a more pedestrian-friendly area. This is being done in several ways. 

For instance, the construction of a pedestrian bridge at the height of Cerro Colorado in San José del Cabo to allow people by foot to cross the Transpeninsular Highway in complete safety, without having to deal with reckless drivers. 

But this is not all. The Los Cabos government is also working on a historical route that will pass by all the most important historical sites in the municipality.