The Dominican government, through the Trust for the Development of the Mass Transportation System (FITRAM) announced Hercules Construcciones of Mexico is the engineering firm that will be providing the engineering expertise for the first phase of the Santo Domingo Monorail. Hercules Construcciones at present is building mass transit systems in Monterrey, Mexico.
This ambitious infrastructure project is a core component of the Santo Domingo Integrated Transportation System (SIT-SD), designed to alleviate the capital’s chronic traffic congestion by integrating multiple high-capacity transit modes. The winning bid was for RD$28.98 billion or approximately US$460-470 million.
The first stage of the monorail will span 10.5 kilometers and feature 12 stations. The route is set to run from Bridge Rey Juan Carlos on Av. Charles de Gaulle in Santo Domingo Este to the Juan Pablo Duarte Olympic Center in the National District. This strategic alignment offers direct transfers to Lines 1 and 2 of the Santo Domingo Metro. Phase I will serve a population estimated to be about one million persons. It is expected to handle over 306,000 passengers per day.
Key technical specifications for Phase I include:
• Capacity: An initial demand of 12,500 passengers per hour per direction (PPHPD), totaling roughly 306,000 daily commuters.
• Rolling stock: Operations will begin with 4-car trains carrying 562 passengers per convoy.
• Frequency: Trains are scheduled at 90-second intervals, providing a service supply of 22,480 PPHPD.
• Future Proofing: The system is engineered to eventually accommodate 6-car trains, pushing capacity to 34,160 PPHPD as demand grows.
The Abinader administration chose the Consorcio Nacional de Movilidad Integral (CNMI) made up by the Mexican partners Hercules Construcciones and Constructora Moyeda of Monterrey, Mexico and Dominican partners Sanesto MG Ingenieria, Forca. CNMI outbid on price the consortium made up by The CNMI consortium secured the contract with a technical score of 99.8 points, narrowly defeating the Consorcio de Transporte de Santo Domingo (Ingeniería Estrella and Sofratesa/Alstom) that reached a score of 97.4 points. CNMI’s offer reported was selected as the most economically advantageous and technically sound.
About the winning consortium partners
Hércules Construcciones de Monterrey is a Mexican engineering and construction firm with a portfolio in high-complexity infrastructure, particularly in the northern region of Mexico. The Hercules track record includes the Metrorrey (Monterrey Metro) Lines 4 and 6: Hércules is part of the “regio” (Monterrey-based) consortium—alongside Constructora Moyeda and Garza Ponce—tasked with the expansion of the Monterrey Metro system. This project is notable for implementing monorail technology, which serves as a direct technical precursor to the Santo Domingo project.
Tren Maya (Mayan Train): The company has participated in infrastructure works for the Mayan Train (Tren Maya) in southeastern Mexico, which involves complex soil engineering and large-scale railway logistics.
Urban and highway infrastructure: Hercules has a history of building bridges, viaducts, and drainage systems in the state of Nuevo León, often specializing in works that require advanced hydraulic engineering and reinforced concrete structures.
Of the two Dominican partners of the Santo Domingo monorail consortium, Sanesto MG Ingenieria is a little known engineering firm under engineer Sandy Ernesto Montero Vidal that had won public works contracts since 2020 with the start of the Abinader administration for aqueduct works in Barahona, San Cristobal and Haina (Inapa).
Grupo Força Diseño & Ingeniería is a leader in heavy lifting and complex foundations, which are essential for the elevated transit systems currently being built in the DR. The company has provided lifting services for the Charles de Gaulle Overpass and large-scale industrial projects for companies like AES Itabo power plant and César Iglesias manufacturing.
During his trip to France earlier in March, President Luis Abinader had announced that work on the monorail for Santo Domingo would begin very soon.
Stations for the new Santo Domingo Monorail, Phase I:
Station 1: Puente Juan Carlos
Station 2: Ensanche Isabelita
Station 3: Los Tres Ojos
Station 4: San Vicente de Paul
Station 5: Darío Contreras Trauma Hospital
Station 6: Vista del Faro
Station 7: Villa Duarte
Station 8: Villa Duarte
Station 9: Parque Enriquillo
Station 10: Palacio Nacional
Station 11: Miraflores
Station 12: Centro Olímpico Juan Pablo Duarte
Read more in Spanish:
Ministry of the Presidency
Fitram
Diario Libre
La Opinion de Mexico
Facebook/Hercules
El Caribe
Acento
DGAPP
30 March 2026