Sarmiento Line
{{Short description|Commuter rail service in Buenos Aires Province, Argentina}}
{{About|the commuter rail line|the national railway company|Domingo Faustino Sarmiento Railway}}
{{Infobox rail service
| box_width = 250
| name = Sarmiento Line
| logo = Trenes Argentinos - Línea Sarmiento.svg
| logo_width = 200
| image = Csr rc06 00.jpeg
| image_width = 250
| caption = A CSR electric multiple unit that runs the line.
| type = Commuter rail
| status = Active
| locale = Buenos Aires Province
| predecessor = Buenos Aires Western Railway
| first = 1948
| last =
| successor =
| operator = Trenes Argentinos Operaciones
| formeroperator = TBA
| ridership = {{wikidata|properties|qualifier|linked|references|normal+|P3872|P585}}
| ridership2 =
| website = {{URL|https://www.argentina.gob.ar/transporte/trenes-argentinos/horarios-tarifas-y-recorridos/areametropolitana/lineasarmiento|argentina.gob.ar/sarmiento}}
| start = Once
| stops = 40
| distance = 167 km
| journeytime = {{collapsible list|
- 72' {{efn|name=moreno|Once–Moreno}}
- 90' {{efn|name=lobos|Merlo–Lobos}}
- 130' {{efn|name=merc|Moreno–Mercedes}}
}}
| frequency = {{collapsible list|
- 10' {{efn|name=moreno}}
- 20' {{efn|name=lobos}}
- 150' {{efn|name=merc}}
}}
| trainnumber =
| line_used =
| class =
| access =
| seating =
| sleeping =
| autorack =
| catering =
| observation =
| entertainment =
| baggage =
| otherfacilities =
| stock = CSR EMUs
| gauge = {{track gauge|1676mm|lk=on}}
| el = Third rail
800 V (DC)
| speed =
| owners = Government of Argentina
| routenumber =
| map =
| map_state = collapsed
}}
The Sarmiento line is a broad gauge commuter rail service in Buenos Aires Province, Argentina, run by the state-owned Trenes Argentinos since 11 September 2013.{{cite web| url=http://www.infobae.com/2013/09/11/1508248-el-gobierno-nacional-estatizo-los-ferrocarriles-sarmiento-y-mitre| title=El gobierno nacional estatizó los ferrocarriles Sarmiento y Mitre| website=Infobae| date=11 September 2012}}
The line is part of Domingo Sarmiento Railway, running trains departing from Once de Septiembre station in the Balvanera neighborhood of Buenos Aires to the cities of Moreno, Lobos, and Mercedes in Buenos Aires Province. The 167-km long line has 40 stations. As of 2018, a total of 101,453 services had been run, with 85,946,312 passengers carried.[https://www.argentina.gob.ar/sites/default/files/infoest2018_ffccamba_02-sarmiento.pdf Informe estadístico 2018 - Sarmiento] on Argentina.gob.ar
History
File:Desembarco toshiba sarmiento 01.jpg
Since nationalisation of the Argentine railways in 1948, the line was run by state-owned company Ferrocarriles Argentinos. In 1961, the old wooden coaches (that had debuted when the service was electrified in 1923) were replaced by Toshiba multiple units, that would run on the line for more than 50 years."Desembarco de los coches Toshiba" on Crónica Ferroviaria, 24 Feb 2012[https://www.pagina12.com.ar/diario/economia/2-221747-2013-06-07.html?mobile=1 Tres formaciones para el Mitre] on Página12, 7 Jun 2013
FA operated the trains until 1991 when residual company FEMESA temporarily took over all the urban services prior to be privatized. After the Government of Carlos Menem privatized the urban railways services, consortium Trenes de Buenos Aires (TBA) took over the Sarmiento and Mitre lines.[https://www.lapoliticaonline.com/nota/nota-82470/ Tres meses después de la tragedia de Once, el Gobierno le rescindió el contrato a TBA] on La Política Online, 24 May 2012
TBA operated the line until the 2012 Once station rail disaster happened. As a result, the National Government revoked the concession granted to TBA and gave the Mitre and Sarmiento to UGOMS, that operated the line until 2014 when it was re-privatised and given under concession to "Corredores Ferroviarios S.A."{{cite news| url=http://www.lanacion.com.ar/1663435-el-gobierno-vuelve-a-privatizar-la-operacion-de-los-trenes-mitre-san-martin-belgrano-sur-y-r| title=Trenes: le dan a Roggio el Mitre y el San Martín y a Emepa, el Roca y el Belgrano Sur| website=La Nación| date=12 February 2014}}{{cite web| url=http://www.clarin.com/politica/privadas-volveran-operar-mayoria-ferroviarias_0_1083491853.html| title=Las privadas volverán a operar la mayoría de las líneas ferroviarias| website=Clarín| date=12 February 2014}}{{cite web| url=http://www.telam.com.ar/notas/201402/51395-el-gobierno-establecio-un-nuevo-regimen-de-operaciones-de-las-lineas-ferroviarias.html|archivedate=2022-05-22|archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20220522033454/https://www.telam.com.ar/notas/201402/51395-el-gobierno-establecio-un-nuevo-regimen-de-operaciones-de-las-lineas-ferroviarias.html| title=El Gobierno estableció un nuevo régimen de operaciones de las líneas ferroviarias| website=Telam| date=12 February 2014}}
file:Emu mitre line retiro.jpg
In 2014 the Government announced the acquisition of new trains to replace the existing Sarmiento Line rolling stock. The cars were manufactured by Chinese company CSR Corporation, with the first arriving in June 2014.{{cite news| url=http://www.railwaygazette.com/news/passenger/single-view/view/csr-fleet-enters-service-in-buenos-aires.html| title=CSR fleet enters service in Buenos Aires| website=Railway Gazette International| date=10 June 2013}}{{cite web| url=http://www.telam.com.ar/notas/201401/47267-randazzo-la-renovacion-de-la-flota-del-sarmiento-y-mitre-estara-lista-a-mediados-de-ano.html|archivedate=2023-10-18|archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20231018112613/https://www.telam.com.ar/notas/201401/47267-randazzo-la-renovacion-de-la-flota-del-sarmiento-y-mitre-estara-lista-a-mediados-de-ano.html| title=Ya está en viaje la primera de las 25 formaciones para la línea Sarmiento| website=Telam| date=7 January 2014}} The incorporation of the rolling stock was also accompanied by the replacement of rails between Once and Moreno.
During 2015 a series of improvement works were conducted and completed on the line. These included remodelling stations, new signaling and other infrastructure improvements such as replacing track and third rail segments, as well as the refurbishing of workshops.{{cite web| url=http://www.infonews.com/nota/228446/el-sarmiento-vuelve-a-operar-los-domingos| title=El Sarmiento Vuelve a Operar los Domingos| website=InfoNews| date=20 June 2015}} The works, which also included the installation of a communications-based train control system, meant that the line was closed on Sundays from February to June of that year on its electrified segment, with replacement bus services operating during that time.{{cite web| url=http://www.telam.com.ar/notas/201502/95720-el-sarmiento-no-prestara-servicio-los-domingos-durante-90-dias.html|archivedate=2019-02-09|archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20190209173356/https://www.telam.com.ar/notas/201502/95720-el-sarmiento-no-prestara-servicio-los-domingos-durante-90-dias.html| title=El tren Sarmiento no prestará servicio los domingos por obras durante 90 días| website=Telam| date=22 February 2015}}
=Tunnels=
{{multiple image
|align=
|total_width =
|image1 = J30 817 Tunnelportal FCO.jpg
|caption1= Entrance to the tunnel in Puerto Madero which extends to Once station
|image2 = J34 381 WÜ Avenida Elvira Rawson de Dellepiane, 6605.jpg
|caption2 = Freight train operated by Ferrosur Roca running on tracks in the Puerto Madero neighborhood area
|footer =
}}
The line has two underground segments not currently in use for passenger services. The first of these is an underground station within the Plaza Miserere Buenos Aires Underground station, which formerly provided a direct connection with Line A alongside its platforms, rather than passengers transferring from Once railway station to the line using underground passages. In May 2014, this connection was being restored with tracks replaced in order to restore the line's service to the Underground.{{cite web| url=http://www.taringa.net/posts/noticias/17848375/Sarmiento-renovacion-de-vias-en-Plaza-Miserere.html| title=Sarmiento: renovación de vías en Plaza Miserere| website=Taringa| date=27 May 2014}}
The second is a tunnel which runs directly from Once railway station to Puerto Madero in the centre of the city. Nowadays it is only used for freight to the Port of Buenos Aires, being operated by private company Ferrosur Roca; however, it was briefly used for passenger services in the 1990s.{{cite news| url=http://www.lanacion.com.ar/74419-desde-puerto-madero-a-castelar-en-20-minutos| title=Desde Puerto Madero a Castelar en 20 minutos| website=La Nacion| date=8 August 1997| access-date=23 August 2015| archive-date=8 December 2015| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151208115834/http://www.lanacion.com.ar/74419-desde-puerto-madero-a-castelar-en-20-minutos| url-status=dead}} The tunnel is around {{Cvt|5|km}} long and runs through the middle of the city below Line A. Construction of the tunnel had been initiated by the Buenos Aires Western Railway in 1912; however, it was not completed until 1916 due to delays caused by the First World War.{{cite web| url=http://edant.clarin.com/diario/97/07/28/e-02801d.htm| title=Un nuevo tren irá por un viejo túnel| website=Clarin| date=28 July 1997}} As of November 2015, Trenes Argentinos Operaciones was replacing pipes in the Puerto Madero tunnel with no plan of reopening it for passenger services.{{cite web| url=https://www.sofse.gob.ar/servicios/pdf/obras-ejecucion-sarmiento.pdf| title=Archived copy| access-date=3 May 2024| archive-date=27 March 2015| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150327110255/https://www.sofse.gob.ar/servicios/pdf/obras-ejecucion-sarmiento.pdf| url-status=bot: unknown}}
= Historic operators =
Companies that have operated the Sarmiento Line since it was established after the 1948 nationalisation are:
| class= wikitable | |
| width=200px| Operator
! Period | |
|---|---|
| Ferrocarriles Argentinos | 1948–1991 |
| FEMESA | 1991–1995 |
| Trenes de Buenos Aires | 1995–2012 |
| UGOMS | 2012–2013 |
| SOFSE | 2013–2014 |
| Corredores Ferroviarios | 2014–2015 |
| Trenes Argentinos | 2015–pres. |
Sarmiento tunnelling
File:Tunel soterramiento sarmiento.jpg
The performance of the Sarmiento line was to be greatly improved by drilling a new tunnel. Under plans announced in 2006, a 33 km tunnel would be bored between Moreno and Caballito in order to replace the surface alignment of the Sarmiento commuter route. According to the Minister of the Interior and Transport, the first stage was to cost 11·5bn pesos, removing many level crossings which would "avoid many accidents and much loss of life". The new underground alignment would increase the service frequency to every 3 minutes, increasing capacity from 100 million to 280 million passenger-journeys a year. The tunnel segment would have 13 underground stations.
Drilling took place for a few months in 2012, was suspended, resumed in 2016, and suspended again in July 2019 due to lack of funds; as of January 2020 the government is studying its options regarding contract cancellation.{{cite news |year=2020| title=El soterramiento del tren Sarmiento, la obra maldita de Buenos Aires |work=El País | url=https://elpais.com/internacional/2020/01/14/argentina/1579032419_732452.html |access-date=2020-01-15| last1=Centenera | first1=Mar }} During the construction, service on the surface line will continue.{{cite web | year=2012| title=Ceremony marks start of Sarmiento tunnelling | work=Railway Gazette International | url=http://www.railwaygazette.com/nc/news/single-view/view/ceremony-marks-start-of-sarmiento-tunnelling.html | access-date=2012-07-05}}
Train services
{{Sarmiento Line}}
| class="wikitable sortable" | |||
| width=120px | Start
! width=150px | End ! width=40px | Time ! width=80px | Type | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Once | Moreno | align=center| 72 min | Electric |
| Moreno | Mercedes | align=center| 90 min | rowspan=2| Diesel |
| Merlo | Lobos | align=center| 130 min |
Gallery
File:Fiat 7131 green ochre.jpg|Fiat Materfer 7131 railcar, c. 1963
File:TrenTBA-Lobos.jpg|Materfer railcar in Lobos
File:Villa Luro-Estación-Acceso Víctor Hugo1.jpg|Villa Luro stations after being rebuilt
File:Toshiba Electrico Ferrocarril Sarmiento Haedo.JPG|EMU called Toshiba PUMA-V2
File:Frente de la Estación Luján.jpg|Luján station facade
See also
Notes
{{Notelist}}
References
{{reflist|2}}