History of rail transport in Madagascar

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This article is part of the history of rail transport by country series

History

C. de F. de Madagascar 0-4-4-0 Mallet locomotive, built by Baldwin Locomotive Works. An 0-4-4-0 of the metre gauge C. de F. de Madagascar.jpg
C. de F. de Madagascar 0-4-4-0 Mallet locomotive, built by Baldwin Locomotive Works.

The history of rail transport in Madagascar began at the end on the nineteenth century, with the construction of industrial and military Decauville lines in the north of the country, centred on the port of Diego-Suarez (now Antsiranana). [1] [2] [3]

Contents

These were closely followed by the construction a metre gauge line between Brickaville (now Ampasimanolotra) and Madagascar's capital, Tananarive (now Antananarivo) in 1909. This line was extended to Toamasina, the country's chief seaport in 1913. The line is known as the Tananarive–Côte Est railway (TCE). It subsequently became the nucleus of a network of three railways, the Network North (French : Réseau Nord).

Between 1926 and 1936, an isolated line, the Fianarantsoa-Côte Est railway (FCE), was built, again in metre gauge, in the south east of the island. The FCE is known as Southern Network (French: Réseau Sud).

Management

The two separate networks were combined under the same management in 1944.

On 1 January 1951 Régie des chemins de fer de Madagascar (RCFM) came into operation.

The whole system was nationalized in 1974.

It became a state corporation on 6 May 1982 as Réseau National des Chemins de Fer Malagasy (RNCFM).

By the 1990s, the national system was very run down and the Malagasy government decided to privatize it. In 2003 Network North was concessioned to a joint stock company, Madarail, under a 25-year concession, while the Southern network remained under parastatal operation. In 2022 the private investors desisted and the company is now 100% owned by the state of Madagascar. [4]

Railways on Madagascar Railways on Madagascar.svg
Railways on Madagascar

Existing lines

All of the above are of 1,000mm gauge.

Service on the line from Antananarivo to Antsirabe ceased the mid-1990's after the passage of the Cyclone Ana damaged a bridge over the river Sasaony. [5] The line between Antananarivo and Antsirabe re-opened on 2 December 2023. [6]

There had been also a project to connect the port of Mahajanga with the port of Toamasina, via Lac Alaotra. This was never realized.

Decauville locomotive at Namakia PRIORI Madagascar 20190830 093116.jpg
Decauville locomotive at Namakia

Former Lines

All of the above were of 1,000mm gauge.

In addition there were a number of industrial and military lines including:

See also

Related Research Articles

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List of Railway stations in Madagascar include:

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Decauville railway at Diégo Suarez</span>

The Diego Suarez Decauville railway was a 24 km (15 mi) long 600 mm gauge military railway from Antsirane to Sakaramy in Madagascar.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sakaramy</span> Place in Diana, Madagascar

Sakaramy is a rural municipality in Madagascar, 22 km from Antsiranana. It belongs to the district of Antsiranana II, which is a part of Diana Region. The population of the municipality was estimated to be approximately 3400 in 2012.

References

  1. "Histoire de Madagascar - les Rues de Diego Suarez : le Quartier Militaire". latribune.cyber-diego.com (in French). 2011-07-10. Retrieved 2023-12-18.
  2. 1 2 3 "Histoire : A toute vapeur dans la campagne : les locos de Diego Suarez (1)". latribune.cyber-diego.com (in French). 2012-07-11. Retrieved 2023-12-18.
  3. 1 2 "Histoire : A toute vapeur dans la campagne : les locos de Diego Suarez (2)". latribune.cyber-diego.com (in French). 2012-07-25. Retrieved 2023-12-18.
  4. L'Express de Madagascar: Ligne Antananarivo-Antsirabe
  5. L'Express de Madagascar: Ligne Antananarivo-Antsirabe
  6. Ouverture de la ligne TA (Antananarivo – Antsirabe) pour la circulation des trains. Le 02 décembre 2023, par message du Chef de District Voie à 9H40, la... | By Madarail | Facebook , retrieved 2023-12-20
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Dickinson, Rob (15 March 2012). "Industrial Heritage in Madagascar, 2012 Part 1". www.internationalsteam.co.uk. Retrieved 2023-12-18.

Further Reading

Commons-logo.svg Media related to Rail transport in Madagascar at Wikimedia Commons

madarail website