Rio Turbio Railway
| Río Turbio Industrial Rail Line | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Train near Rio Gallegos with 60 coal wagons in tow, December 1973 | |||
| Overview | |||
| Native name | Ramal Ferro Industrial Río Turbio | ||
| Status | Inactive | ||
| Owner | Government of Argentina | ||
| Locale | Santa Cruz Province | ||
| Termini | |||
| Service | |||
| Type | Freight | ||
| Operator(s) | YCF (1958–1994) YCRT (1994–2009) | ||
| History | |||
| Commenced | 1950 | ||
| Opened | 1951 | ||
| Completed | 1951 | ||
| Closed | 2009 | ||
| Technical | |||
| Line length | 285 km (177 mi) | ||
| Number of tracks | 1 | ||
| Track gauge | 750 mm (2 ft 5+1⁄2 in) | ||
| |||
The Río Turbio Industrial Rail Line (Spanish: Ramal Ferro Industrial de Río Turbio) is a 285 km (177 mi) 750 mm (30 in) gauge railway that crosses the breadth of Patagonia, from the mining township of Río Turbio on the Chilean border to Punta Loyola, a port distant 20 km from Rio Gallegos on the Atlantic Coast.
The line was initially named "Ramal Ferro Industrial Eva Perón" but after the 1955 coup d'etat that removed president Juan Perón, the militar government renamed it "Ramal Ferro Industrial Río Turbio". The line runs alongside National Route 40.