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The Trans-Andean railways provide rail transport over the Andes. Several are either planned, built, defunct, or waiting to be restored. They are listed here in order from north to south.

Colombian Railways

• Feb 2011 - The Chinese Government plans to cooperate with Colombia in building a 220 km transcontinental railway which would link Colombia's Atlantic and Pacific coasts, according to a British newspaper.WEB,weblink China to build inter-oceanic rail link through Colombia,

Ecuador Trans-Andean Railway

Much of Ecuador's Trans-Andean Railway (a railway network that once ran from Guayaquil to Quito) has been rendered useless by natural disasters. Torrential rains from the 1982–83 and 1997-98 El Niño caused massive landslides that damaged the railway line. The network is operated by Empresa de Ferrocarriles Ecuatorianos. Only three sections remain operational: a {{convert|37|mi|km|adj=on|order=flip}} segment connecting Quito and Cotopaxi National Park, a {{convert|27|mi|km|1|adj=on|order=flip}} stretch between Ibarra and Primer Paso, and the mountainous five-hour, {{convert|62|mi|km|0|abbr=on|order=flip}} excursion from Riobamba to Sibambe.

Peru

Although wholly within Peru, the Ferrocarril Central Andino (FCCA; the former Ferrocarril Central del Perú) running inland from Callao and Lima crosses the Andes watershed at Galera en route to La Oroya and Huancayo.BOOK, Fawcett, Brian, Railways of the Andes, 2nd, Plateway Press, East Harling, 1997, 1-871980-31-3, From here the route is extended by the Ferrocarril Huancayo - Huancavelica. In July 2006 FCCA began work to regauge the Huancavelica line from {{RailGauge|3ft|first=met}} to {{RailGauge|4ft8.5in|first=met}} (standard gauge). There was also a proposal for a {{convert|21|km|mi|abbr=on}} tunnel under the Andes.NEWS, Huancavelica upgrade, Railway Gazette International, 2006-06-01,weblinkhuancavelica-upgrade.html, dead, https:web.archive.org/web/20120531202455weblink 2012-05-31, The Ferrocarriles del Sur del Perú (FCS), now operated by PeruRail, runs from the coast at Matarani to Cuzco, and to Puno on Lake Titicaca from where steamers and train ferries have been run connecting with Guaqui in Bolivia.BOOK, Whetham, Robert D., Railways of Peru, 2 – The Central and Southern Lines, Trackside Publications, Bristol, 2008, 978-1-900095-37-2,

Proposed Bolivia-Chile Trans-Andean railway

Empresa Nacional de Ferrocarriles - ENFE, operator of the National Railways of Bolivia, and consultant Hagler Bailly, United States, have signed a contract to undertake an economic feasibility study into the proposed $US 1 billion 338 km Aiquile–Santa Cruz Railway (IRJ July p6). The line would connect the Eastern Railway network with the Andean Railway network, and effectively create a new trans-Andean railway from Pacific Ocean ports in Chile to the port of Santos in Brazil.IRJ October 1999Other Bolivia-Chile railways:

• Ferrocarril de Antofagasta a Bolivia
• Arica–La Paz railway, Arica, Chile–La Paz

Proposed Peru - Brazil Railway

In 2014, proposals were advanced by ProInversión for the above railway.WEB,weblink Railpage, WEB,weblink Railpage,

• Ucayali - western Brazil
• Huánuco - Peru
• Pasco - Peru
• San Martin - Peru
• Amazonas - Brazil
• Cajamarca - Peru
• Piura - Peru - near Pacific coast in north

Argentina - Chile

• (from North)

Salta-Antofagasta railway

The Huaytiquina railway is a single {{RailGauge|1000mm}} gauge linking Salta, Argentina, to Antofagasta, Chile. The Tren a las Nubes is a touristic service running for {{convert|217|km|mi}} on the Argentinian side.

Transandine Railway

The central Transandine Railway from Valparaíso, Chile, to Mendoza, Argentina is defunct, pending reconstruction.WEB,weblink 2023-05-26, En julio se licitará tren Los Andes - Mendoza, es, March 24, 2006,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20070310140626weblink">weblink March 10, 2007, While Chile and large parts of Argentina both use the same {{RailGauge|1676mm}} gauge, the connecting Ferrocarril Trasandino Los Andes - Mendoza used a narrow gauge of {{RailGauge|1000mm}} with rack railway sections. Thus there are two break-of-gauge stations, one at Los Andes, Chile and the other at Mendoza.In 2009, a deal was signed to build a {{Track gauge|1676mm|lk=on}}, single gauge, base tunnel connecting Chile and Argentina{{Citation needed|date=March 2013}}.

South Trans-Andean railway

• from Lonquimay (Chile) to Zapala (Argentina) – construction abandoned.WEB,weblink Attempts to cross the border, Railways of the Far South, dead,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20070929024056weblink">weblink September 29, 2007, {{convert|220|km|mi}} line once again proposed in 2005IRJ March 2005 and work underway at Chilean end in 2005; first stage completed by early 2006.NEWS, Work starts on trans-Andean link, Railway Gazette International, 2005-02-01,weblinkwork-starts-on-trans-andean-link.html, Possible break-of-gauge and rack railway.NEWS, IIRSA, Initiative For Regional Infrastructure Integration In South America, 2005-09-01, http:www.iadb.org/biz/ppt/092305tuliod.pdf, dead,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20070628071653weblink">weblink June 28, 2007,
• from Osorno, Chile to Bariloche – never built.

BiOceanio

• (2010)
• Brazil - Paraguay - Argentina - Chileweblink {{Dead link|date=March 2022}}
• {{flagicon|Chile}} Mejillones
• {{flagicon|Chile}} Antofagasta
• {{flagicon|Brazil}} Paranaguá
• {{flagicon|Brazil}} São Francisco do Sul

See also

• Panama Canal Railway
• Railway stations in Peru
• Track gauge in South America
• Tren a las Nubes

References

{{reflist|2}}

External links

• Mercosur report on links - Argentine Ministry of Economy (doc format)