Ferrocarriles Argentinos

Ferrocarriles Argentinos logotype

Company headquarters, Retiro, Buenos Aires.

The Gran Capitán, Ferrocarriles Argentinos' long-distance service to Misiones province

Ferrocarriles Argentinos (FA) was a public company that managed the entire Argentine railway system for nearly 45 years. It was formed in 1948 when all the private railway companies were nationalised during Perón's first presidential term, and transformed into the Empresa de Ferrocarriles del Estado Argentino (EFEA) (in English: Argentine State Railways Company).

Divisions

The FA comprised the following 6 divisions:

• Ferrocarril Domingo Faustino Sarmiento
• Ferrocarril General Bartolomé Mitre
• Ferrocarril General Manuel Belgrano
• Ferrocarril General Roca
• Ferrocarril General San Martín
• Ferrocarril General Urquiza

Growth and decline

During the FA era, the Argentine railway system featured its maximum extension, being the biggest in Latin America, with over 45,000 kilometres (28,000 mi) of railways. However, under the military junta of the Proceso (1976–1983) and the following democratic Alfonsín administration, FA entered a recessive period that ended with its total privatisation beginning in 1992, as part of Menem's neoliberal reforms.

Break-up and privatisation

In 1991 it was divided, with the Buenos Aires metropolitan services being grouped in Ferrocarriles Metropolitanos S. A. (FEMESA). The major freight line, the Ferrocarril General Manuel Belgrano, was kept by the state until it was given to the railway workers' trade union, the Unión Ferroviaria and renamed the Belgrano Cargas. The second biggest line, the Mitre Cargas, was granted by concession in December 1992 to Nuevo Central Argentino S. A. (NCA). The Railroad Development Corporation is another concessionary, under the name of América Latina Logística (ALL).