Línea San Martín (Buenos Aires)
Encyclopedia
The San Martín line is a 55 Kilometre,19 station commuter rail service in the metropolitan area of Buenos Aires
, Argentina
run by the private company Transportes Metropolitanos General San Martín S.A. (TMS), a subsidiary of Metropolitano
, between 1 April 1994 and 7 January 2005. This service had previously been run by the state-owned Ferrocarril General San Martín
since nationalisation
of the railways in 1948.
The San Martín line operates from the city-centre terminus of Retiro railway station northwest to Pilar
along a broad gauge
line built by the British-owned Buenos Aires and Pacific Railway
.
In spite of the large government subsidies received by TMS a serious decline in the standard of their rail services has led to the original concession being revoked and the service is now operated by the consortium UGOFE
.
Nevertheless, the under-funded and overused San Martín rail line, with an estimated 36 million passengers transported yearly and which has seen an annual increment of 15% in ridership, has finally seen the light and major future improvements are on the way in the form of, electrification employing catenary of the whole system, a new maintenance yard, new track for the entire line and all level road crossings are to be eliminated, the project is to be started by mid 2008 and will continue for six years. In the mean time the new formations of 24 diesel-electric locomotives and 160 coaches that will arriving from China in the couple next years will be serving the line, and will eventually be adapted to electric current or to other networks once the new electrification project kicks in around 2014. Up to date, this electrification project has not yet started and there are no news about it.
Recently a new semi-fast service to Hurlingham
powered by English Electric
designed ex Portuguese Class 1401 locomotives has been introduced making use of the four tracks from Retirio station.
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
, Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
run by the private company Transportes Metropolitanos General San Martín S.A. (TMS), a subsidiary of Metropolitano
Metropolitano
Metropolitano S.A. was a privately owned consortium formed in 1994 to take over concessions granted by the Argentine government, through the state-owned company FEMESA as part of railway privatisation during the presidency of Carlos Menem for the operation of commuter rail services in Buenos Aires...
, between 1 April 1994 and 7 January 2005. This service had previously been run by the state-owned Ferrocarril General San Martín
Ferrocarril General San Martín
Ferrocarril General San Martín , named after the former Argentine general José de San Martín, was one of the six state-owned Argentine railway companies formed after President Juan Perón's nationalisation of the railway network in 1948...
since nationalisation
Railway Nationalisation in Argentina
In 1948, during President Juan Perón’s first term of office, the seven British-owned and three French-owned railway companies then operating in Argentina, were purchased by the state...
of the railways in 1948.
The San Martín line operates from the city-centre terminus of Retiro railway station northwest to Pilar
Pilar, Buenos Aires
Pilar is a city in the province of Buenos Aires, Argentina. It has a population of more than 226,000 inhabitants as per the . Pilar is part of the Greater Buenos Aires urban conurbation and is the head of the administrative division of Pilar Partido...
along a broad gauge
Broad gauge
Broad-gauge railways use a track gauge greater than the standard gauge of .- List :For list see: List of broad gauges, by gauge and country- History :...
line built by the British-owned Buenos Aires and Pacific Railway
Buenos Aires and Pacific Railway
The Buenos Aires and Pacific Railway was one of the Big Four broad gauge, , British-owned companies that built and operated railway networks in Argentina....
.
In spite of the large government subsidies received by TMS a serious decline in the standard of their rail services has led to the original concession being revoked and the service is now operated by the consortium UGOFE
Unidad de Gestión Operativa Ferroviaria de Emergencia
Unidad de Gestión Operativa Ferroviaria de Emergencia is a temporary consortium of Argentine companies formed on 7 January 2005 by Ferrovías, Metrovías and Trenes de Buenos Aires to take over the running of commuter railway services in Buenos Aires after concessions granted to Metropolitano in...
.
Nevertheless, the under-funded and overused San Martín rail line, with an estimated 36 million passengers transported yearly and which has seen an annual increment of 15% in ridership, has finally seen the light and major future improvements are on the way in the form of, electrification employing catenary of the whole system, a new maintenance yard, new track for the entire line and all level road crossings are to be eliminated, the project is to be started by mid 2008 and will continue for six years. In the mean time the new formations of 24 diesel-electric locomotives and 160 coaches that will arriving from China in the couple next years will be serving the line, and will eventually be adapted to electric current or to other networks once the new electrification project kicks in around 2014. Up to date, this electrification project has not yet started and there are no news about it.
Recently a new semi-fast service to Hurlingham
Hurlingham, Buenos Aires
Hurlingham is a city in the Province of Buenos Aires, Argentina. It forms part of the Gran Buenos Aires metropolitan area and is situated 23 km west of the city centre...
powered by English Electric
English Electric
English Electric was a British industrial manufacturer. Founded in 1918, it initially specialised in industrial electric motors and transformers...
designed ex Portuguese Class 1401 locomotives has been introduced making use of the four tracks from Retirio station.