Ferrocarril Nacional de Chiriquí

Ferrocarril Nacional de Chiriquí
Ferrocarril de Chiriquí, Panama
Route length:	Pedregal – Boquete: 51.5 km David – Concepcion: 29.0 km Dalega – Potrerillos: 11.3 km Total: 91.7 km
Gauge :	914 mm ( English 3-foot track )
Legend 51.5 km (32 mi) Bajo Boquete (formerly Boquete Bajo) 37.0 km (23 mi) Porterillos 25.7 km (16 mi) Dolega (formerly Dalega) 35.4 km (22 mi) La Concepcion Alanje 6.4 km (4 mi) David 0.0 km (0 mi) Pedal shelf Pedregal Harbor

The Ferrocarril Nacional de Chiriquí was a 91.7 km long narrow-gauge railway with 914 mm gauge at David in Panama .

history

Work began on April 23, 1914, with a budget of $ 2,102,202, and the route was opened on April 22, 1916 by President Belisario Porras Barahona . The last construction work was completed on July 1, 1916. ^{P. 140} During the construction period, first wood and then coal was used to operate the steam locomotives. However, it was soon decided to convert the locomotives to oil burners and the necessary refueling stations were installed. Crude oil was then used as fuel.

In 1925 no signaling system was in operation on the line, the trains are dispatched by telephone. The telephones were installed along the entire route. Steel tube masts were used to carry power lines made of 10 gauge copper wire. Unfortunately, the track was not properly maintained. Very few repairs were done and replacements were virtually unknown. However, around 1925 it was still the main transport artery for this region of Panama.

The Edwards Rail Car Company reported presumably in the late 1920s that three of their railcars had been ordered by the Ferrocarril de Chiriquí, at least one of which was delivered and successfully tested.

In 1928, during the presidency of Rodolfo Chiari, a branch line from La Concepción to the city of Puerto Armuelles was built and a train station was built there. As a result, the Chiriqui Land Company, a subsidiary of the United Fruit Company , had the government build additional branches on which banana fruits could be transported.

After 1974, the infrastructure of the Chiriquí Railway was handed over to the Ministry of Public Works ( Ministerio de Obras Públicas ) and operations ceased around 1990. At the beginning of the 21st century, the tracks of the disused railroads are being dismantled and reused for building bridges in rural areas.

Route

Former train station in Boquete

The route began in the port town of Pedregal ^(en) on the navigable river Rio Platatnal, which flows into the Pacific. From there, the route ran 6.4 km (4 mi) north to David, the capital of Chiriquí Province . A branch line branched off at David, leading west to Alanje and from there to the northwest to the terminus in La Concepcion , which was 29.0 km (18 mi) away from David. The main line ran in a north-westerly direction to Bajo Boquete on the Rio Caldera , which was 51.5 km (32 mi) from Pedregal. The route rose from sea level to an altitude of 1372 m (4,500 feet) during its course. On this route, about 19.3 km (12 miles) north of David, the 11.3 km (7 mi) branch line branched off into the cattle and sugar cane area in the Potrerillos district, at the foot of the famous Volcán Barú . ^{P. 140}

Special features of the route construction

Track width, incline and top speed

The narrow-gauge line had a track width of 914 mm (3 feet ). The maximum gradient of the route was on the branch route to La Concepcion 30 ‰ and on the main route to Bajo Boquete and the branch route to Potrerillos up to 50 ‰. There were no S-curves. Revolving loops were used where trains were traveling at speeds in excess of 32 km / h (20 mph). However, on the steepest inclines, trains did not go more than 18 mph (29 km / h) on average. The elevation of the outer rails in the arches was designed accordingly.

Rails and sleepers

Originally it was intended to use used rails from the Panama Canal construction with a meter weight of 35 kg / m (70 pounds per yard). However, after 43 km (26 mi) of the line had been laid with these rails, no more used rails were available. As a result, the remainder of the route was laid with new rails weighing 28 kg / m (56 pounds per yard). Both sections of the route were T-shaped standard profiles ( Vignol rails ) standardized by the American Society of Civil Engineers . The rails were attached to the sleepers with standardized four-screw angle irons. When using creosote sleepers, sleeper plates were used. At David and La Concepcion, triangular tracks were laid to turn the trains, while a 60-foot turntable was installed at Boquete. Most of the turnout frogs were used manganese frogs, only the frogs that were used with 28 kg / m rails were new. Both types of frogs corresponded to the standard construction in every respect.

Track ballast

Gravel bed north of David

The tracks were bedded in gravel, and due to the large number of local workers, practically all of the stone crushing was done by hand. Since the 168,000 creosote impregnated sleepers required in the original specification, measuring 127 × 178 × 1829 mm (5 × 7 in × 6 feet), would have had to be imported from the United States at an additional cost, sleepers made from the best available native wood were replaced and were laid 610 mm (24 inches) center-to-center the entire route. However, these indigenous thresholds have not proven to be satisfactory.

Water towers

At David, a 75,000 liter (20,000 gallon) water tank was installed on a steel tower, while at Rio Cochen and Boquete 55,000 liter (15,000 gallon) tanks were built. The water for the tanks was obtained from nearby streams, the water of which was suitable for railroad purposes.

Bridges and water passages

Twenty-six steel bridges and 108 water culverts were built on the route. The majority of the culverts consisted of corrugated iron tubing 0.6 to 1.8 m (24 to 72 inches) in diameter, with concrete ends and wing walls. All large pipes under heavy pouring are reinforced with 30 cm (1 foot) thick concrete throughout to prevent sagging. The remainder of the culverts, 6 x 6 feet to 10 x 10 feet (1.8 x 1.8 to 3.0 x 3.0 m) were made of reinforced concrete and rubble masonry.

Clearance profile

Passenger car in Boquete

There were no tunnels on the route. The clearance profile , as determined by the internal dimensions of the bridges, was 3.8 m (12 feet 8 inches) in width or 6 feet 4 inches on each side of the centerline and 1.9 m (18 feet 6 inches) in height above the top of the rail. Building material 12 to 15 m (40 or 50 feet) in length could be transported by loading onto two or three coupled flat cars.

Protective fences

The cattle fences required for the Right of Way were made by stretching four barbed wires on wooden posts made of wild plum wood. The cattle grids were made of sheet steel, the side fences and posts were made of sheet metal that was left over from the bridge foundations. ^{Pp. 143-144}

Transport volume

The freight traffic carried by the Chiriqui Railway from inland consisted mainly of local products such as coffee, sugar, rice, bananas, vegetables, cattle and other livestock. The incoming transport volume comprised mainly canned goods, clothing and industrial goods. Very few heavy or bulky goods are carried in either direction. ^{P. 143}

Rail vehicles

The rail vehicles available in 1916 and 1922 are listed in the following table: ^{pp. 144–145}

	1916	1922
Steam locomotives	2 Consolidation steam locomotives with a 1'D wheel arrangement with 457 × 610 mm (18 × 24 inch) bore × stroke and a pulling force of 62½ t. 2 used Panama Canal saddle tank locomotives with 254 × 406 mm (10 × 16 inch) bore × stroke and 18 t pulling power.	2 Consolidation steam locomotives with 457 × 610 mm (18 × 24 inch) bore × stroke and 100 t pulling power. Locomotive weight: 55 t, tender weight: 35 t. 1 saddle tank shunting locomotive with an extra tank with 18 t pulling power.
Railcar	2 trolleys. 19 American six-cylinder gasoline railcars for passenger transport.	1 Stutz railcar for 20 passengers. 1 Ford multiple unit for 12 passengers. 1 Maxwell railcar for 10 passengers. 1 Ford -draisine for 2 passengers. 1 sidecar for 10 passengers. 1 Buda railcar for 10 passengers.
Freight wagons	19 steel flat wagons for 20 t payload with modern air and hand brakes. 6 small wooden flat cars with a loading weight of 10 t.	3 closed freight cars for 20 t payload. 5 flat wagons for a load weight of 20 t. 7 animal transport trolleys for 20 t load weight or 20 animals.
Passenger cars	2 first-class passenger cars, one for 45 and the other for 60 passengers.	2 first-class passenger cars for 44 passengers. 1 second class passenger car for 54 passengers. 1 mixed cattle and passenger car for 46 passengers.
Construction vehicles	4 dump trucks with a volume of 0.75 m³ (1 cubic yard). 1 Denitz car. 6 small two-axle flat cars. 1 Bucyrus steam shovel excavator type 70 with 1.9 m³ (2½ cubic yard) shovel. 1 track ballast plow.

Web links

• La historia del Ferrocarril de Chiriquí (with more photos)

See also

• Chiriquí Land Company light railways

Individual evidence

1. ^ ^{A b c d e} William Rodney Long: Railways of Central America and the West Indies. Pp. 139-146.
2. ^ Edwards Rail Car Company.
3. ^ Panama - Friends of Latin American Railways . Retrieved January 11, 2017.
4. ↑ La Prensa. February 21, 2003.

Coordinates: 8 ° 33 '57.2 "  N , 82 ° 25' 0.5"  W.