mexican toll road expenses?

Thanks everyone! So much information here.
Really appreciated!

We travel with a pick-up/5th wheel. In 2013 to & from Laredo & Huatulco on toll roads when available we spent $6340 pesos on tolls and $11500 pesos on gas. Boy it sounds like a lot when you write it down but well worth it.

Most toll roads in Mexico charge motorcycles much less than cars - sometimes half as much. There are no similar discounts in the United States that I have ever witnessed.

I took the Toll out of Mexicali a couple months ago to get to the Tecate crossing. Cost me around $25 in the Dually. I'd only driven that way in the Jeep for about half the cost. I about fell out of the truck when she asked me for 120 pesos, as best as i can recall, at the toll gate. No arguing that the Dually wasn't a commercial vehicle. It's a nice road but ~$25 to avoid an additional 30min at the Mexicali crossing hurt.

iowabob4 wrote:
toll is about $250 to drive from Nogales AZ to Mazatlan Sin.--(p.99, 4th ed)
Is this a misprint, or was it meant to be pesos instead of USD?

Not familiar with this area, but if most of the road is toll - then this distance can easily cost $US 250. Quotas (toll roads) are preferable for getting from A to B with minimal problems - better road, no traffic lights, not too many crazy drivers.

iowabob4 wrote:
Is it expensive to RV in MX?

Compared to what - to RV in the US, or to air+bus+motel in Mex? Cost of the full hookup will likely exceed the cost of low-end motel in most places. Toll road fees for RV are 50-70% higher than for a car. Gas and propane are cheaper than in the US.

iowabob4 wrote:
Also, how limited would you be in a 40' x 8' vs a 36' x 8' RV in MX?

Shouldn't be much difference.

Chris - slight correction - in the US fuel taxes are supposed to pay for roads - in Texas 38.4 cents per gallon for gas and 44.4 cents per gallon for diesel - last I heard. Fuel taxes vary in each state. If you travel much in the US you probably note that not many roads are being very well maintained these days - and at last report some 66,000 highway bridges do not meet requirements. And in the Northeast US there are a great many high priced tolls and high fuel taxes and the roads will still knock your teeth out. When I paid property tax for my house in CO they broke down where the money went - mostly local schools and some to local hospitals - none for roads. Texas may be different of course. It is my understanding that in MX the toll rate is somewhat controlled by the Gov - they set the maximum toll?

Oh, I think that the laws are pretty clear here. Many people who sell their land make out like bandits. They have lawyers who come in to represent them.

Like the mess in Aquilá, turns out, the mining giant Ternium paid off the ejidos and they receive monthly payments for life. Now those who live there but weren't part of the ejido are p.o.ed and want a share even though they weren't land owners.

Eminent domain is pretty clear here and people get paid fair value, not speculation prices but "valor catastral" is what it is. Sorry to disagree. I will say that the concessionaires make a ton of money, why not? It's a business. I wouldn't want them to be poor. Helps build national infrastructure, and if you don't want to take the toll highway you can take the libres. You get what you pay for. People always say how nice everything is in McAllen, Tx. Fine, my property tax is 120 dollars a year in Mexico, the same house in San Antonio would pay close to 6000 dollars. That money paves roads.

BTW, we took the "libre" from Monterrey to Reynosa. Very good highway and much more scenic than the autopista.

Getting back to the OP's original question, a motorhome towing an automobile is charged TWO times at each toll gate. One time a higher rate for the MH, and the second toll is for the car just like if you were driving it. A three axle motorhome trailer towing a motor vehicle is due to see some interesting toll rates. One time on the autopista between Valladolid and Merida, one single toll amounted to over fifty dollars pesos conversion rate. Tolls are a gold mine. The concessionaires are rich. They bribe government officials. The government goes in and makes outlandish promises to landowners (usually poorer Mexicans) then grabs the land under eminent domain. Little if any money is ever paid and the fat cats just keep raising rates.

I might add that many of the new roads are not yet shown on maps because they are so new. Those who visit this website and travel all over Mexico can provide some more updated info based on recent travel. Plan a route and ask here if that route is good or if there are better routes - or if the route has been recently improved - or if there are new perifericos around towns etc.

Thanks Briansue and everyone else!