The transport network in Uruguay consists of 1,673 km of

rail Rail or rails may refer to: Rail transport *Rail transport and related matters *Rail (rail transport) or railway lines, the running surface of a railway Arts and media Film * ''Rails'' (film), a 1929 Italian film by Mario Camerini * ''Rail'' ( ...

network, 7,743 km of paved roads, 1,600 km of navigable

waterway A waterway is any navigable body of water. Broad distinctions are useful to avoid ambiguity, and disambiguation will be of varying importance depending on the nuance of the equivalent word in other languages. A first distinction is necessary ...

s, and 11

airport An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial air transport. Airports usually consists of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surfa ...

s with paved roads.

Railways

Uruguayan Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...

railways have a total operational length of (all standard gauge as of 2005).

Passenger services

Regular passenger services are operated between

Montevideo Montevideo () is the capital and largest city of Uruguay. According to the 2011 census, the city proper has a population of 1,319,108 (about one-third of the country's total population) in an area of . Montevideo is situated on the southern co ...

and 25 de Agosto (63 km) since August 26, 1993 (previously all regular passenger services were withdrawn on January 2, 1988). One daily train was extended to San José (96 km from Montevideo) on January 15, 2007, and another was extended from 25 de Agosto to Florida (109 km from Montevideo) on January 2, 2008. Another line, which operates between Montevideo and Ingeniero Victor Sudriers, was reopened on December 15, 2005 (44 km).

International links

* There is a freight rail connection with

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest ...

(

) over the

Salto Grande Dam The Salto Grande Dam is a large hydroelectric dam on the Uruguay River, located between Concordia, Argentina, and Salto, Uruguay; thus shared between the two countries. The construction of the dam began in 1974 and was completed in 1979. Power i ...

* There is a connection with

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

(

) which includes freight

transshipment Transshipment, trans-shipment or transhipment is the shipment of goods or containers to an intermediate destination, then to another destination. One possible reason for transshipment is to change the means of transport during the journey (e.g ...

because of gauge difference ( to ) at

Santana do Livramento Santana do Livramento is a city in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. It is located along the border with the city of Rivera, Uruguay, forming together an international city of almost 170,000 inhabitants. Santana do Livramento was founded on ...

Future

The state railway administration AFE has announced that starting January, 2010, 419 km of track will be renewed on the Pintado-Rivera section of the central main line and part of the international branch from Rivera to Santana do Livramento, north of Chamberlain using Russian rail given in lieu of a debt. The programme will cost $30m.

Roadways

*Total roadways: *Paved roadways: *Unpaved: (2010)

National Roads

* R1

Colonia del Sacramento , settlement_type = Capital city , image_skyline = Basilica del Sanctísimo Sacramento.jpg , imagesize = , image_caption = Basílica del Santísimo Sacramento , pushpin_map = Uruguay , subdivisio ...

* R2

Rosario Rosario () is the largest city in the central Argentine province of Santa Fe. The city is located northwest of Buenos Aires, on the west bank of the Paraná River. Rosario is the third-most populous city in the country, and is also the most p ...

- Mercedes -

Fray Bentos Fray Bentos () is the capital city of the Río Negro Department, in south-western Uruguay, at the Argentina-Uruguay border, near the Argentine city of Gualeguaychú. Its port on the Uruguay River is one of the nation's most important harbours ...

, border with

. * R3 Villa María -

Trinidad Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands of Trinidad and Tobago. The island lies off the northeastern coast of Venezuela and sits on the continental shelf of South America. It is often referred to as the southernmos ...

Paysandú Paysandú () is the capital of Paysandú Department in western Uruguay. Location The city is located on the banks of the Uruguay River, which forms the Argentina–Uruguay border, border with Argentina. It lies northwest of Montevideo via Rout ...

- Salto - Bella Unión, border with

. * R5

- Canelones -

Durazno Durazno is the capital city of the department of Durazno in Uruguay. Durazno is characterized by being the most central city of Uruguay. It has a population of more than 30,000 inhabitants. In the past it was the capital of Uruguay; today the ca ...

- Tacuarembó -

Rivera Rivera () is the capital of Rivera Department of Uruguay. The border with Brazil joins it with the Brazilian city of Santana do Livramento, which is only a street away from it, at the north end of Route 5. Together, they form an urban area of aro ...

, border with

. * R7

Fray Marcos Fray Marcos is a town in the Florida Department Florida () is a department of Uruguay. Its capital is Florida. It is located in the south of the central part of the country with Durazno Department to its north, the departments of Treinta y ...

- Melo * R8

- Minas -

Treinta y Tres Treinta y Tres () is the capital city of the Treinta y Tres Department in eastern Uruguay. Location The city is located on Route 8, on the north banks of Olimar Grande River. The city is almost surrounded by a populated rural area, a zone of ' ...

- Melo - Aceguá, border with

. * R9 Horno Mulato - Rocha -

Chuy Chuy () is a city in the extreme east of Uruguay, in the Rocha Department, northeast of Montevideo. It lies on the border with Brazil, separated from its Brazilian sister town of Chuí only by a shared avenue that serves as the border, and by th ...

, border with

. * R11 Atlántida - Canelones - Eclida Paullier * R26

, border with

- Tacuarembó - Melo - Río Branco, border with

Motorways

Uruguay has a small network of motorways, owing to the low demand due to sparse population outside the capital. The few highways with 4 lanes are: * Ruta 1:

. Length: . * Ruta Interbalnearia:

Punta del Este Punta del Este () is a seaside city and peninsula on the Atlantic Coast in the Maldonado Department of southeastern Uruguay. Starting as a small town, Punta del Este later became internationally known as a resort for the Latin and North American j ...

. Length: . * Ruta Gral. Fructuoso Rivera:

- Canelones. Length: .

Fuel stations

The traditional fuel stations were Ancap, Esso, Shell and Texaco. In 2005–2006, Petrobras bought the 90 Shell stations. In 2006–2007, Ancap bought the 90 Texaco stations. In 2011, Bridas bought the Esso stations but kept the brand.

Waterways

Uruguay has 1,600 km of waterways.

Ports and harbors

Uruguay has a number of ports and harbors including:

(its major port),

Nueva Palmira Nueva Palmira is a city in Colonia Department in south-western Uruguay. Location It is located on the east bank of Uruguay River, about northwest of the departmental capital Colonia del Sacramento. History A "Pueblo" (village) named "Higuerita ...

La Paloma "La Paloma", "The Dove" in English, is a popular Spanish song that has been produced and reinterpreted in diverse cultures, settings, arrangements, and recordings over the last 140 years. The song was written by the Spanish Basque composer Seb ...

, Juan Lacaze, Carmelo,

Conchillas Conchillas () is a small industrial town located within the Colonia Department, in southwestern Uruguay. Location The town is located on the coast of Río de la Plata near the stream Arroyo Conchillas, northwest of Colonia del Sacramento, the ca ...

, Salto,

Piriápolis Piriápolis is a city in the Maldonado Department of Uruguay. It is an important summer resort in the country, predating the larger and better known resort town of Punta del Este. Because it is mainly used as a resort, it has a relatively small per ...

, Mercedes.

Airports

Uruguay had a total of 94 airfields as of 2012, 11 of which have paved runways. The country is primarily served by the

Carrasco International Airport Carrasco/General Cesáreo L. Berisso International Airport is the main international airport of Uruguay. It is the country's largest airport and is located in the Carrasco, Montevideo, Carrasco neighborhood of Montevideo. It has been cited as ...

Canelones Department The Departamento de Canelones ( es, Departamento de Canelones; ) is one of the 19 uruguayan departments. With an area of and 518,154 inhabitants, it is located in the south of Uruguay. Its capital is Canelones. Geography and climate Neighbou ...

, next to the limit with

. Handing just over 1.5 million passengers a year, its operating traffic is significantly lighter than others in the region such as

Buenos Aires-Ezeiza Ministro Pistarini International Airport ( es, link=no, Aeropuerto Internacional Ministro Pistarini) , also known as Ezeiza International Airport owing to its location in the Ezeiza Partido in Greater Buenos Aires, is an international airport s ...

and São Paulo-Guarulhos. Airports - with paved runways:
''total:'' 11
''over 3,047 m:'' 1
''1,524 to 2,437 m:'' 4
''914 to 1,523 m:'' 4
''under 914 m:'' 2 (2013) Airports - with unpaved runways:
''total:'' 122
''1,524 to 2,437 m:'' 3
''914 to 1,523 m:'' 40
''under 914 m:'' 79 (2013)

National airlines

* Air Class Líneas Aéreas * Amaszonas Uruguay currently not flying because of the COVID-19 pandemic

Exctinct airlines

* BQB Líneas Aéreas ceased operations on April 11, 2015 * Uair Ceased operation on 2005 * Alas Uruguay ceased operations on October 24, 2016 *

PLUNA PLUNA Líneas Aéreas Uruguayas S.A. was the flag carrier of Uruguay. It was headquartered in Carrasco, Montevideo and operated scheduled services within South America, as well as scheduled cargo and charter services from its hub at Carrasco I ...

ceased operations on July 5, 2012.

Pipelines

As of 2010, Uruguay has 257 km of natural gas pipeline and 160 km of oil line.

References

External links

{{Commons category, Transport in Uruguay

Railways

Passenger services

International links

Future

Roadways

National Roads

Motorways

Fuel stations

Waterways

Ports and harbors

Airports

National airlines

Exctinct airlines

Pipelines

See also

References

External links