Transport in Argentina

Argentina is great...I love it! Argentina has a complex net of routes, crossed by long distance buses, and a number of national and international airports. The main transportation system in big cities are the numerous bus lines, which transport millions of people every day.

Due to the size of the country and its cities, we can divide transportation in Argentina in the following topics.

City transport

Transportation in Argentine cities might seem chaotic by European standards, but bottlenecks and gridlocks are not very frequent. Most people try to use public transport instead of personal cars when going to the centre, since parking can be both difficult and expensive. Public transportation (buses, urban trains and the underground) is subsidized by the state, which makes it usually inexpensive.

Buses

File:Colectivo-006.jpg

Colectivo from Buenos Aires

The most used method of transportation is the colectivo, or bus. Buses cover the cities with wide and numerous lines, and fares depend on the destination; though usually there is only one fee for an inner-city ride, and higher ones for farther destinations (i.e. Colectivo 60).

Faster, air-conditioned versions, running the same lines and called diferenciales are notably more expensive. Different companies own different bus lines, and they usually have different colors, which makes them easy to identify. Buses are supposed to run night service every half hour, but that is true only for the most popular lines.

Taxis

Taxis are also very common, and relatively accessible. They have different colours and fares in different cities, and robberies with illegal taxis are not infrequent in big cities. Call-taxis companies (radio-taxis) are very common and safer. Another modality are the remises, very much like call-taxis, but prices are agreed beforehand, although they usually have fixed prices for common destinations.

Urban trains

File:Buenos Aires Monserrat.jpg

Subway station in Monserrat, Buenos Aires

Urban trains connect Buenos Aires city with the Greater Buenos Aires. Every day more than 1 million people go to Argentina's capital to came back home after work. Trains stop working from 1 am to 5 am. Most of these lines are electric, but there are still a few running on Diesel.

Metro and tramways

Buenos Aires is the only Argentine city with an underground system. Most of its lines connect the centre (Micro-centro) with areas in the outskirts. The Subterráneo de Buenos Aires has currently five working lines, each labelled with a letter from A to E. There is a modern tram line (E2) that works as a fedeer of E line at their outer terminus. At Caballito district, there is an heritage tramway maintained by tram fans that operates at weekend, near "Primera Junta" metro station (A line). There is a suburban modern tramway line between Bartolome Mitre suburban railway station and Tigre (Tren de la Costa). As of 2006, line H is under construction, and three additional lines (F,G, I) are planned.

Others

Bicycles are not very used in big cities, as there are few bicycle-paths, making it difficult to move with them other than in recreational areas.

Trolleybuses are operated at Córdoba, Mendoza and Rosario.

Long distance transportation

Argentina being almost 4,000 kilometres long, and more than 1,000 km wide, long distance transportation is an important issue. Besides a few toll highways, there are lots of national and provincial routes that spread thought the country, and that are used by cars and long distance buses.

Routes and highways

Argentine's routes are usually simple one-lane-per-side roads, driving on the right-hand-side. There are a few highways between some important cities, such as the Panamerican Argentina Highway 9 Buenos Aires - Rosario and Buenos Aires - Córdoba (still under construction). The Argentine road system, although extensive, does not cover the country entirely; for instance, the Ruta 40 from El Chaltén to Esquel is still being paved. South sea-side backbone Ruta Nacional 3 runs from Buenos Aires to Ushuaia.

Buses

Argentine long distance buses are fast, affordable and comfortable. With three different services regarding the number of stops and type of seats, called Regular, Semi-cama (semi-bed), and Cama (bed), with Cama being similar to an airline's business class. Some services have also on-board dinner, while others stop at canteens by the road. Long and middle-distance buses cover almost all paved-accessible cities and towns, and most of the other towns and villages.

Airplanes

File:Aerolineasargentinaslogo.PNG

National Airline

Though expensive in comparison with the other means of transportation, flights are being used more and more often. Every provincial capital has its own airport, and there are many other working, specially in tourist areas such as Bariloche and El Calafate. Most companies have several daily flights to the most popular destinations, and daily or less frequent flights to other destinations. Even though Buenos Aires is the most important flight hub, both because of economical and geographical reasons, there are flights between important cities, such as Córdoba, Rosario and Mendoza.

Trains

File:Redfar.jpg

Argentine railroad network, most of which is now unused

Services on Argentina's passenger railway system, once extensive and prosperous, were greatly reduced in 1993 following the break-up of Ferrocarriles Argentinos (FA), the now-defunct state railroad corporation. By that time, the company was losing an estimated US$ 1,000,000 per day. Small towns that had depended on the railroad were severely damaged economically by these cutbacks.

Since the mid-1990's, however, several private railway companies have been created and have resurrected some of the major passenger trains that FA once operated. Still, the railroad network is far smaller than it once was, and of the approximately 30,000km of rails once used, only 2,500km are still in service today. Although these trains are heavily used by many Argentines, they cost the government roughly $1,000,000 a day in subsidies.

Trenes de Buenos Aires (TBA), Ferrocentral, Ferrobaires, Tren Patagónico, and Ferrovías are some of the private companies which now manage Argentina's passenger rail network. The following is a list of most of the current long distance passenger trains in operation (Plaza Constitucion, Once and Retiro are stations located in Buenos Aires):

• Plaza Constitución - Pinamar: twice a week R
• Plaza Constitución - Mar del Plata: three trains daily, other added Friday. R
• Plaza Constitución - Miramar: once a week R
• Plaza Constitución - Ayacucho - Tandil: once a week
• Plaza Constitución - Azul - Olavarría: five days a week R
• Plaza Constitución - Bahía Blanca (Lamadrid route): three times a week R, D
• Plaza Constitución - Bahía Blanca (Pringles route): two times a week R
• Plaza Constitución - Carmen de Patagones: once a week R
• Plaza Constitución - Saladillo - General Alvear: twice a week
• Plaza Constitución - 25 de Mayo - Bolívar: five days a week
• Plaza Constitución - Daireaux: once a week
• Once - Chivilcoy - Bragado: daily
• Once - Los Toldos - Lincoln: once a week
• Once - 9 de Julio - Carlos Casares: four days a week
• Once - Pehuajó: three times a week
• Retiro - Junín: daily
• Retiro - Rosario - Santa Fe: once a week
• Retiro - Rosario - La Banda - Tucumán: once a week R, D
• Retiro - Rosario - Córdoba: twice a week R, D
• Córdoba - Villa Maria: twice a week
• Viedma - San Antonio Oeste - S. C. de Bariloche: thrice weekly R, D
• Ing. Jacobacci - San Carlos de Bariloche: thrice weekly
• Federico Lacroze - Concordia - Monte Caseros - Posadas: twice a week R, D
• Basavilbaso - Villaguay Central - Concordia: five days a week
• Resistencia - La Sabana - Los Amores: to La Sabana daily, to Los Amores three days a week
• Roque Sáenz Peña - Pinedo - Chorotis: daily
• Resistencia suburban service: several trains daily

R = Restaurant, at least in most of the trip.

D= Sleeping car

See timetable for long distance and regional passenger trains

There are also a number of tourist trains (from Esquel, San Carlos de Bariloche, Usuahia and in the Entre Rios Province), including the seasonal Tren de las nubes in the province of Salta, running from Salta to San Antonio de los Cobres, that runs only from October to March. At present this service is suspended until further notice.

Fluvial

Fluvial transport is also not very used, with the exception of those who cross the Río de la Plata from Buenos Aires to Colonia del Sacramento and Montevideo, both in Uruguay. Other services are exclusively used as river crossing, such as those in Tigre.

Statistics

Railways

• Total: 38,326 km (160 km electrified)
• Broad gauge: 24,481 km 1.676-m gauge (134 km electrified)
• Standard gauge: 2,765 km 1.435-m gauge (26 km electrified)
• Narrow gauge: 11,080 km 1.000-m gauge (1999)

City with metro: Buenos Aires (subte). There are two modern tram lines (E2 and "Tren de la Costa") and an heritage tramway at Caballito district that operates at weekends.

International links

• Bolivia - yes - 1.000m gauge.
• Chile - IRJ of March 2005 reports start of reconstruction of the South Trans-Andean Railway. 1.000m gauge.
• Paraguay - yes - 1.435m gauge.
• Uruguay - yes - 1.435m gauge.
• Brazil - yes - 1.435m gauge (Argentina), 1.000m gauge (Brazil).

Highways

• Total: 215,434 km
• Paved: 63,553 km (including 734 km of expressways)
• Unpaved: 151,881 km (1998 est.)

Waterways

10,950 km navigable

Pipelines

• Crude oil: 4,090 km
• Petroleum products: 2,900 km
• Natural gas: 9,918 km

Ports and harbors

• Bahía Blanca, Buenos Aires, Comodoro Rivadavia, Concepción del Uruguay, La Plata, Mar del Plata
• Necochea, Río Gallegos, Rosario, Santa Fe, San Antonio Oeste, Ushuaia

Merchant marine

• Total: 26 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 218,540 GRT/333,413 DWT
• Ships by type:
  • Cargo ships: 9
  • Petroleum tankers: 11
  • Railcar carrier: 1
  • Refrigerated cargo: 2
• Roll-on/roll-off: 1
• Short-sea passenger: 2 (1999 est.)

Airports

Total (including airstrips): 1,359 (1999 est.)

With paved runways

• Total: 142
• Over 3,047 m: 5
• 2,438 to 3,047 m: 26
• 1,524 to 2,437 m: 60
• 914 to 1,523 m: 44
• Under 914 m: 7 (1999 est.)

With unpaved runways

• Total: 1,217
• Over 3,047 m: 2
• 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2
• 1,524 to 2,437 m: 63
• 914 to 1,523 m: 614
• Under 914 m: 536 (1999 est.)

National airline: Aerolíneas Argentinas.

See also

• Colectivo
• Buenos Aires Metro
• Aerolíneas Argentinas