Northern Railroad of Guatemala

Guatemala Northern Railway
Bridge over Motagua River, c. 1940.
Overview
StatusClosed to public
Connecting lines
  • Ferrocarril de Ocós
  • Ferrocarril del Sur
  • Ferrocarril a El Salvador
Service
Operator(s)International Railways of Central America (IRCA) (formerly)
Ferrocarriles de Guatemala (FEGUA) (formerly)
Ferrovias Guatemala (FVG)
History
Opened1896 (1896)
Route map
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Interoceanic railways sections and stations built during general José María Reina Barrios tenure. The Panajax -Guatemala City section could not be built due to the steep mountain terrain and the lack of funds after the Guatemalan economy crashed in early 1897.
  1. Puerto Barrios
  2. Tenedores
  3. Los Amates
  4. Gualán
  5. El Rancho
  6. Panajax
  7. Palín
  8. Escuintla
  9. Iztapa

The Northern Railroad of Guatemala was a railway system that ran from Guatemala City to Puerto Barrios, the main port of Guatemala, between 1896 and 1968. The American United Fruit Company had the monopoly of the railway system through its affiliate, International Railways of Central America (IRCA), along with the docks at Puerto Barrios, the banana plantations in Izabal and the cargo and passenger transport with its Great White Fleet. The system was highly efficient, but once a parallel highway was built, it could not compete and eventually was handed back to the State of Guatemala in 1968. After that, the system slowly lost its relevance, as the trucks were more profitable than railway transportation along this route. It ceased regular operations in 1996, and has remained partially abandoned since.

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