Rail transport in Madagascar is primarily operated by Madarail. There are two unconnected systems having a total length of , as of 2006, all

metre gauge Metre-gauge railways are narrow-gauge railways with track gauge of or 1 metre. The metre gauge is used in around of tracks around the world. It was used by European colonial powers, such as the French, British and German Empires. In Europe, la ...

, . The northern railway (TCE, Tananarive–Côte Est) is currently concessioned to Maragall. The southern line, Fianarantsoa-Côte-Est railway (FCE), is a parastatal (state owned) line.

History

Construction started in 1901 on the Madagascar Railway (Le Chemin-de-Fer de Madagascar) from Tananarive to

Ambatolampy Ambatolampy is a city (commune urbaine) in the Vakinankaratra Regions of Madagascar, Region, situated in the Central Highlands (Madagascar), Central Highlands of Madagascar. It had a population of about 28,500 in 2013. It is the administrative c ...

. The full line was completed from Tananarive to

Antsirabe Antsirabe () is the third largest city in Madagascar and the capital of the Vakinankaratra region, with a population of 265,018 in 2014. In Madagascar, Antsirabe is known for its relatively cool climate (like the rest of the central region), it ...

in 1923.

Operations

There is a regular (at least daily) goods traffic between the port city of Toamasina and the capital city of Antananarivo. There are daily passenger trains on the Madarail system. Very occasionally there are special chartered trips on restored

Micheline Michelines were a series of rubber-tyred trains developed in France in the 1930s by various rail companies and rubber-tyre manufacturer Michelin. Some Michelines were built in the United States by the Budd Company. Most Michelines were self-pr ...

railcars for tourists. The southern line has a regular daily passenger train, which provides a slow but picturesque alternative to the recently rehabilitated road in the region.

Interfaces

Continuous Brakes A railway brake is a type of brake used on the cars of railway trains to enable deceleration, control acceleration (downhill) or to keep them immobile when parked. While the basic principle is similar to that on road vehicle usage, operational ...

: Air/Vacuum/Unbraked ? *

Couplers Coupler may refer to: Engineering Mechanical * Railway coupler, a mechanism for connecting rolling stock in a train device ** Janney coupler ** SA3 coupler ** Scharfenberg coupler for multiple unit passenger cars * Quick coupler, used in constru ...

: Centre buffer and two side hooks and chains.

RailwaysAfrica ''Railways Africa'' is a publication covering railways in Africa. It is published 6 times per year in print and weekly online. See also * List of railroad-related periodicals A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also re ...

1/2008 FCover

Cities served by rail

* Antananarivo - national capital * Toamasina - chief seaport

Expansion plans

Talks are going for extending Madagascar Railway operated by Madarail. The Malagasy Government signed a pact with Indian Railways & South African Railways to extend their railway services up to Antsiranana, Antalaha & Andapa in the north, up to

Mahajanga Mahajanga (French: Majunga) is a city and an administrative district on the northwest coast of Madagascar. The city of Mahajanga (Mahajanga I) is the capital of the Boeny Region. The district (identical to the city) had a population of 220,629 i ...

& Maintirano in the west. Again southwest, south & southeastern extension of

Fianarantsoa Fianarantsoa is a city (commune urbaine) in south central Madagascar, and is the capital of Haute Matsiatra Region. History It was built in the early 19th century by the Merina as the administrative capital for the newly conquered Betsileo king ...

- Manakara Railway Line up to Morondova, Morombe, Toliara & Tolanaro is being planned. After extension, the length of the Madagascar Railway operated by Madarail will stand at connecting all of Madagascar.

References

Notes

External links

UN map
* Interactive map of Madagascar railway system {{DEFAULTSORT:Rail Transport In Madagascar