El Banco (meaning "
river bank
In geography, a bank is the land alongside a body of water.
Different structures are referred to as ''banks'' in different fields of geography.
In limnology (the study of inland waters), a stream bank or river bank is the terrain alongsid ...
" in
Spanish
Spanish might refer to:
* Items from or related to Spain:
**Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain
**Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas
**Spanish cuisine
**Spanish history
**Spanish culture
...
), also called Cumbia Empire City, is a
municipality of Colombia located in the southernmost part of the department of
Magdalena, at the confluence of the
Magdalena and
Cesar River
The Cesar River () is a river in northern Colombia which is a part of the Magdalena Basin. It flows through the Cesar-Ranchería Basin and separates the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta from the mountain ranges of the Serranía del Perijá, an exten ...
. It is part of the
Depresión momposina. Surrounded by the
Zapatosa and Chilloa swamps.
River
El Banco, Magdalena has a river named
Magdalena River (Spanish name is Río Magdalena) has been a major commercial artery since the Spanish conquest. On keelboats, goods were transported from colonial times to the 19th century.
Demographics
El Banco is the fifth most populated municipality in the department of Magdalena. According to DANE statistics (2023) the population of the municipality has 48,998 inhabitants in the municipal seat and 72,131 if the rural area is taken into account, representing 4.88% of the total of the department and 0.14% of the total Colombian population of which 49.61% are women, 50.39% men. The 67.93% live in urban areas, 32.07% in rural areas.
Transport
In the city of El Banco, there is no public transportation system by automobile. Instead, motorcycles, private transport, and motorcycles predominate. This peculiarity distinguishes the city, as there are more motorcycles than automobiles on the streets. This situation creates a different traffic scenario than in other localities, where motorcycles are the preferred means of transportation for most residents.
The construction of the Roncador Bridge in Magangué on the Transversal Momposina road has generated congestion and deterioration in the main urban streets of the municipality, and repair work is currently underway on Calle Nueva, Carrera 13 and 15, in order to rehabilitate and improve the passage of heavy vehicles. However, the ideal would be the construction of a bypass to divert traffic from the urban area of El Banco.
Air Transportation
Las Flores Airport is not currently operational; it is only used for state or ambulance flights. Nearby airports are Hacaritama Airport (122 km away) and San Bernardo de Mompox Airport (73 km from El Banco).
State of National Route 43 that connects El Banco -
Chimichagua -
Astrea -
El Paso
El Paso (; ; or ) is a city in and the county seat of El Paso County, Texas, United States. The 2020 United States census, 2020 population of the city from the United States Census Bureau, U.S. Census Bureau was 678,815, making it the List of ...
to National Route 45.
[https://www.opinioncaribe.com/2017/06/14/aeropuerto-las-flores-no-despega/ Consulted on May 24, 2023]
Interurban transportation
The municipality has the
El Banco Transport Terminal that maintains a constant direct flow of passengers and cargo with the metropolitan centers of
Bogotá
Bogotá (, also , , ), officially Bogotá, Distrito Capital, abbreviated Bogotá, D.C., and formerly known as Santa Fe de Bogotá (; ) during the Spanish Imperial period and between 1991 and 2000, is the capital city, capital and largest city ...
,
Barranquilla
Barranquilla () is the capital district of the Atlántico department in Colombia. It is located near the Caribbean Sea and is the largest city and third port in the Caribbean region of Colombia, Caribbean coast region; as of 2018, it had a popul ...
,
Bucaramanga
Bucaramanga () is the capital and largest city of the department of Santander Department, Santander, Colombia. Bucaramanga has the fifth-largest economy by GDP in Colombia, has the lowest unemployment rate and is the ninth most populous city i ...
and
Santa Marta
Santa Marta (), officially the Distrito Turístico, Cultural e Histórico de Santa Marta (), is a port List of cities in Colombia, city on the coast of the Caribbean Sea in northern Colombia. It is the capital of Magdalena Department and the fou ...
, An average of 350 buses are dispatched monthly from the terminal and the demand from nearby municipalities and townships is met by small companies that dispatch from the Plaza Almotacén and through river transport from the river port and the Plaza Almotacén. It should also be noted that it has a transport terminal which is the largest collection center for passengers arriving in this city.
River transportation
The municipality has river trips to
Barrancabermeja
Barrancabermeja () is a municipality and city in Colombia, located on the shore of the Magdalena River, in the western part of the department of Santander. It is home to the largest oil refinery in the country, under direct management of ECOP ...
,
Magangué and others in southern
Bolívar,
Cesar Cesar or César may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* ''César'' (film), a 1936 French romantic drama
* ''César'' (play), a play by Marcel Pagnolt
Places
* Cesar, Portugal
* Cesar Department, Colombia
* Cesar River, in Colombia
* Cesar ...
and
Magdalena.
Main roads
* El Banco-
Chimichagua-
Cuatro Vientos
Cuatro Vientos is an administrative neighborhood () of Madrid belonging to the district of Latina.
Geography
Cuatro Vientos is situated in the south-western area of central Madrid, close to the motorways A5 and M40 and to the homonymous airpor ...
(Route 43)
* El Banco-
Guamal-
Mompox (Route 78)
* El Banco-
Tamalameque-
El Burro (Route 78)
Calle 7, also known as the "
Calle Nueva", is the main avenue of the municipality. This street starts from the road that connects El Banco with the municipality of Chimichagua, and from there it extends until it reaches the shore of the Magdalena River in the commercial area of the municipality.
There are also Carrera 15 (El Banco-Guamal-Mompox) and Carrera 13 (El Banco-
Tamalameque-
El Burro), these two start from
Calle Nueva.
Climate
El Banco has a
tropical monsoon climate
An area of tropical monsoon climate (occasionally known as a sub-equatorial, tropical wet climate or a tropical monsoon and trade-wind littoral climate) is a tropical climate subtype that corresponds to the Köppen climate classification category ' ...
(Am). The average annual temperature is 30 °C, but during the hot season the temperature can exceed 39 °C and during the winter season it can drop to 24 °C, rarely dropping below 23 °C or rising above 40 °C. Relative humidity is 87% and in the rainy season up to 330 mm are collected. The predominant climates in this subregion are tropical rainy and tropical dry, the latter are characterized by two dry seasons and two rainy seasons. Summers in the municipality are short, hot, sultry and dry, and winters are short, hot, oppressive and wet.
In the year 2023, the shortest day in the municipality will be December 21, with only 11 hours and 36 minutes, and the longest day will be June 21, with 12 hours and 39 minutes.
References
External links
El Banco official website
{{Authority control
Municipalities of Magdalena Department