AMLO Hits the Road And Mexico City Streets Start Coming to Life

(Bloomberg) -- Mexico City streets returned to life over the weekend as residents ignored concerns over the coronavirus and went out in droves, even as cemeteries worked at all hours to bury the dead and hospitals grew more packed.

Walking and driving trackers run by Apple Inc. showed Mexico City traffic rebounded to levels not seen since the end of March, when the federal government shut down non-essential businesses in response to the virus. One exception: use of public transit including buses remained low. The capital city is the epicenter of the nation's coronavirus outbreak.

The increase in mobility coincides with mixed messaging from the federal government on how and when to resume activities. President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador is currently on a cross-country tour, which included driving from Mexico City to Cancun, even as Deputy Health Minister Hugo Lopez Gatell insisted on Sunday that people stay home. Starting today, state governments are in charge of deciding their own reopening measures.

“I want to make something clear: the epidemic does not end today,” Lopez Gatell said during a Sunday night press conference. “It's really important to continue to restrict mobility. We're not returning to normal, we're not opening back all activities. The danger persists.”

On Sunday, the Panteon Dolores cemetery on Constituyentes Avenue had a large sign outside that read its cremation oven is operating 24 hours a day. In past days, the cemetery has seen cars and people line up waiting to enter for burials. Mexico reported 2,771 new cases on Monday for a total of 93,435 accumulated cases and 10,167 deaths. A little more than a quarter of the nation's cases are in Mexico City, according to Health Ministry data.

Of the 76 public hospitals in the capital tending to Covid-19 patients, more than half reported “medium” capacity, indicating a 50% to 89% availability of beds. Twenty-one reported “critical” capacity and 14 had “good” availability on the three-step scale as of Monday, according to the city.

Overall, the city's hospitals are at 80% capacity and ICU beds are 65% full, according to the Health Ministry.

“The picture is still quite gloomy,” JPMorgan analysts Steven Palacio and Gabriel Lozano wrote in a note on Monday. Mexico is “proceeding to the exit,” despite cities still battling the pandemic.

Messy Reopening

And yet, traffic on main arterial roads into Mexico City had significantly more cars at rush hour on Monday morning than at the beginning of the lock-down. Transportation manufacturing, construction and mining are considered essential businesses as of this week, which helped bring out approximately 500,000 people to the roads on Monday, according to Reforma.

Those companies looking to resume activities still have to fill out a self-evaluation form certifying they're in compliance with new sanitary guidelines, including distributing personal protective equipment and ensuring workers can maintain a safe distance to prevent the spread of the virus.

But with applications needing approval from social security agency IMSS, which is also in charge of public hospitals, there may be some delays. Last week, Ford Motor Co. said some of its suppliers had not yet been allowed to restart, making their own reopening a challenge.

Touring President

Over half of Mexicans rejected Lopez Obrador's decision to start touring, according to a poll from daily newspaper Reforma. Of those polled, 67% think the trips put him and others at risk of contagion, while also contributing to relaxing of lock-down measures.

After a day-long road trip to Cancun on Saturday, the president will spend the rest of the week visiting six other states in southeast Mexico, including Yucatan and Tabasco. He plans to attend rallies for as many as 50 people.

On Monday, the president announced that Cancun and Tulum beaches will reopen next week. The state, which depends heavily on tourism, has lost more than 83,000 jobs in the past few months, according to the governor.

“We need to move toward the new normal,” Lopez Obrador said last week.