Mexico City to install more than 39,000 C5 surveillance cameras, with allocations based on coverage gaps and emergency hotspots

Mexico City’s planned expansion of its C5 surveillance network will not give every borough the same number of cameras. The distribution has been designed around areas without existing coverage, places with a high incidence of emergencies and demands collected through programs including Casa por Casa, Zócalo Ciudadano and Tótem por Tótem.

According to the second government report presented by Mexico City Mayor Clara Brugada, the city will have installed 39,454 cameras across its 16 boroughs between October 2024 and the projected total for December this year. The figures reflect a broad expansion, but the increases vary sharply from one borough to another.

Iztapalapa is expected to receive the largest numerical increase, with 14,636 additional cameras, a rise of 42.4%. Gustavo A. Madero follows with 14,349 more cameras, up 44.7%, while Tlalpan is projected to add 10,347, an increase of 60.3%.

Cuauhtémoc is set to add 10,221 cameras, equivalent to a 40.1% increase. Álvaro Obregón will receive 9,062 more, Coyoacán 8,231 and Venustiano Carranza 6,785. Their projected increases are 57.8%, 59.1% and 48.7%, respectively.

The plan also calls for 6,764 additional cameras in Benito Juárez, 6,431 in Miguel Hidalgo, 5,884 in Xochimilco and 5,783 in Azcapotzalco. Tláhuac is expected to add 5,221, Iztacalco 4,887, Magdalena Contreras 2,924, Cuajimalpa 2,736 and Milpa Alta 2,335. Milpa Alta would register the largest percentage increase, at 88.2%, followed by Magdalena Contreras at 69.7% and Xochimilco at 63.4%.