Comodoro Rivadavia Railway
| Comodoro Rivadavia and Colonia Sarmiento Railway | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Cdoro. Rivadavia station, c. 1940. | |||
| Overview | |||
| Native name | Ferrocarril de Comodoro Rivadavia a Colonia Sarmiento | ||
| Status | Defunct company; rail line dismantled | ||
| Owner | Government of Argentina | ||
| Locale | Chubut | ||
| Termini | |||
| Stations | 27 | ||
| Service | |||
| Type | Inter-city | ||
| Services | 3 | ||
| Operator(s) | Ferrocarriles Patagónicos (1912–48) Ferrocarriles Argentinos (1948–78) | ||
| History | |||
| Opened | 1912 | ||
| Closed | 1978 | ||
| Technical | |||
| Line length | 208 km (129 mi) | ||
| Track gauge | 1,676 mm (5 ft 6 in) | ||
| |||
The Comodoro Rivadavia and Colonia Sarmiento Railway (Ferrocarril de Comodoro Rivadavia a Colonia Sarmiento) was an Argentine railway company that built and operated a broad gauge line that connected the port of Comodoro Rivadavia with Colonia Sarmiento in Chubut Province. The FCCRCS -belonging to Argentine State Railway- also connected to Central Chubut Railway.
This railway, also known by local inhabitants as "Autovía", was the transport that joined oil wells of the region, where local companies Astra and YPF extracted petroleum that had been discovered in Comodoro Rivadavia in 1907.
At the very beginning, goods and passengers were carried by steam locomotive trains and then by railcars, nicknamed "chanchitas" due to their lack of comfort. The FCCRCS' remnants are considered as cultural heritage in Comodoro Rivadavia and Sarmiento, where they are kept and exhibited at Railway & Port Museum and National Petroleum Museum (in Comodoro) and Regional Museum Desiderio Torres (in Sarmiento).