Ethio-Djibouti Railways

The Ethio-Djibouti Railways, also Ethio-Djibouti Railway Enterprise, is the successor of the Imperial Railway Company of Ethiopia and jointly owned by the governments of Ethiopia and Djibouti. It was formed after Djibouti gained independence in 1977 and received the French shares of the Imperial Railway Company. The railway links Addis Ababa, the capital of landlocked Ethiopia, to the Port of Djibouti in coastal Djibouti. The maintenance shops are located in Dire Dawa.

Overview

Ethio-Djibouti Railways

Legend 0km Port of Djibouti 19km Chebele Chebele viaducts 32km Goubetto 52km Holhol Holhol viaduct 71km Dasbiyo 88km Ali Sabieh Djibouti International border Ethiopia 108km Dewele 132km Adele 140km Ayesha 162km Lasarat Harr mountains tunnel 202km Adigale 249km Milo 266km Harewa 291km El Bah 299km Shinile 311km Dire Dawa 338km Hurso 370km Erer 377km Gotha 395km Bike 421km Afdem 450km Mulu 461km Mieso 475km Asabot 496km Kora 518km Arba Bordode 548km Awash Awash river gorge bridge 579km Metehara 617km Malka Jilo 634km Borchotto 657km Welenchiti 681km Adama/Nazaret 708km Mojo 732km Debre Zeyit 743km Dukem 763km Akaka Beseka 770km Callite 784km Addis Ababa

The single track 781 km railway has a 1,000 mm (3 ft 3 ³⁄₈ in) gauge, most of it on Ethiopian territory, and about 100 km in Djibouti. The company is headquartered in Addis Ababa; the ministers of the Djiboutian Ministry of Equipment and Transport and the Ethiopian Ministry of Transportation and Communications are the president and vice-president of the company.

In 2009, it was reported that there is no passenger service beyond Dire Dawa, "for several years". The ED-Railways has annually run a deficit and is in need of rehabilitation. The European Commission prepared a grant of EUR 40 million in 2003 and raised it to EUR 50 million in 2006. On November 29, 2006, an agreement was signed with the Italian consortium Costra, and work began in 2007 on sections of the line that deteriorated following the Ogaden War.

A change in management is anticipated. This change is expected to raise the capacity of the railroad from its current average of 240,000 tons to 1.5 million tons. Initially in 2006, the South African firm Comazar was chosen to receive a 25-year concession. However, this plan was not executed, and in early 2008, it was announced that the railway was in negotiations with the Kuwaiti company Fouad Alghanim and Sons Group. The Ethiopian government announced that it had spoken with the visiting Indian Minister of State for External Affairs, Shashi Tharoor, during his visit on 29 January 2010, about funding to improve the cargo capacity of the rail track from 14 to 17 tons, which would boost the national trade volume significantly.

Railway links to adjacent countries

• Ethiopia - yes - 1,000 mm (3 ft 3 ³⁄₈ in)
• Somalia - no railways
• Kenya - no - same gauge 1,000 mm (3 ft 3 ³⁄₈ in)
• Sudan - no - break of gauge 1,000 mm (3 ft 3 ³⁄₈ in)/1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in)
• Eritrea - no break-of-gauge 950 mm (3 ft 1 ³⁄₈ in)

Addis Ababa railway station

The Addis Ababa railway terminal, La Gare, is a century-old historical building. A current street project threatens to lead to its isolation or demolition.

Standards

• Couplers : Alliance
• Brakes : ?

See also

• Railway stations in Ethiopia
• Transport in Ethiopia