Modes of

transport Transport (in British English), or transportation (in American English), is the intentional movement of humans, animals, and goods from one location to another. Modes of transport include air, land ( rail and road), water, cable, pipel ...

Gabon Gabon (; ; snq, Ngabu), officially the Gabonese Republic (french: République gabonaise), is a country on the west coast of Central Africa. Located on the equator, it is bordered by Equatorial Guinea to the northwest, Cameroon to the north ...

include rail,

road A road is a linear way for the conveyance of traffic that mostly has an improved surface for use by vehicles (motorized and non-motorized) and pedestrians. Unlike streets, the main function of roads is transportation. There are many types of ...

water Water (chemical formula ) is an inorganic, transparent, tasteless, odorless, and nearly colorless chemical substance, which is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known living organisms (in which it acts as ...

, and

air The atmosphere of Earth is the layer of gases, known collectively as air, retained by Earth's gravity that surrounds the planet and forms its planetary atmosphere. The atmosphere of Earth protects life on Earth by creating pressure allowing for ...

. The one rail link, the

Trans-Gabon Railway The Trans-Gabon Railway (french: Transgabonais) is the only railway in Gabon. It runs east from Owendo port station in Libreville to Franceville via numerous stations, the main ones being Ndjolé, Lopé, Booué, Lastoursville and Moanda. ...

, connects the port of Owendo with the inland town of

Franceville Franceville is one of the four largest cities in Gabon, with a population of 110,568 at the 2013 census. It lies on the Mpassa River and at the end of the Trans-Gabon Railway and the N3 road. It grew from a village named Masuku when Pierre Savo ...

. Most but not all of the country is connected to the road network, much of which is unpaved, and which centres on seven "national routes" identified as N1 to N7. The largest

seaport A port is a maritime law, maritime facility comprising one or more Wharf, wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge Affreightment, cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can a ...

s are

Port-Gentil Port-Gentil () or Mandji is the second-largest city of Gabon, and it is a leading seaport. It is the center of Gabon's petroleum and timber industries. The city is located on a delta island in the Ogooue delta with no bridges to the mainland. Nea ...

and the newer Owendo, and 1,600 km of inland waterways are

navigable A body of water, such as a river, canal or lake, is navigable if it is deep, wide and calm enough for a water vessel (e.g. boats) to pass safely. Such a navigable water is called a ''waterway'', and is preferably with few obstructions against dir ...

. There are three international

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, eight other paved airports, and over 40 with unpaved runways. Nearly 300 km of pipelines carry

petroleum Petroleum, also known as crude oil, or simply oil, is a naturally occurring yellowish-black liquid mixture of mainly hydrocarbons, and is found in geological formations. The name ''petroleum'' covers both naturally occurring unprocessed crude ...

products, mainly crude oil.

Rail transport

Until the 1970s Gabon had no permanent railroads, though temporary Decauville rail tracks were in use in the logging industry as early as 1913 (Gray and Ngolet, 1999, pp.102). In 2003, the railway began the process of installing a satellite based telecommunications system. As of 2004, Gabon State Railways totalled 814 km of standard-gauge track. ''total:'' 814 km (

Gabon State Railways The Trans-Gabon Railway (french: Transgabonais) is the only railway in Gabon. It runs east from Owendo port station in Libreville to Franceville via numerous stations, the main ones being Ndjolé, Lopé, Gabon, Lopé, Booué, Lastoursville and ...

or OCTRA)
''standard gauge:'' 814 km 1.435-m gauge; single track (1994)

Maps

UN Map - shows line to Franceville

UNHCR map - does not show line to Franceville

TravelPortal map - shows major rivers

UNJLC Rail map of Southern Africa - does not show line to Franceville

Cities served by rail

; Existing * Libreville - capital * Owendo - port *

Sahoué Sahoué is a port in Gabon. It is served by the Trans-Gabon Railway. It is located northwest of the capital at the extreme end of the Santa Clara peninsula. See also * Transport in Gabon Ports and harbours in Africa Transport in Gabo ...

- port *

railhead In the UK, railheading refers to the practice of travelling further than necessary to reach a rail service, typically by car. The phenomenon is common among commuters seeking a more convenient journey. Reasons for railheading include, but are ...

Ndjolé Ndjolé is the capital town in the Abanga-Bigne Department in Gabon, lying northeast of Lambaréné on the Ogooué River, the N2 road and the Trans-Gabon Railway. It is known as a base for logging and as a transport hub. Ndjolé is the last ...

* Lopé *

Booué Booué is a small town in central Gabon. It is situated in Lopé Department, southwest side of the Ogooué-Ivindo Province. The town lies just 6.6 miles to the south of the Equator and is the province's only Department capital in the Souther ...

- likely junction for branchline to

Makokou Makokou is the regional capital of the Ogooué-Ivindo province in Gabon. Its coordinates are . Its altitude is 308 m. Its population in 2004 is around 16,600. The city lies on the Ivindo River and the N4 road. It grew around iron ore min ...

Lastoursville Lastoursville or Mandji is a city in east-central Gabon, lying on the Ogooué River, the Trans-Gabon Railway and the N3 road. It was founded as a slave depot named ''Mandji'', renamed ''Maadiville'' in 1883 and finally took its current name ...

Moanda Moanda is one of the largest towns in Gabon, lying on the N3 road in Haut Ogooué. It is also one of the most important manganese mining towns in the world, under the auspices of the '' Compagnie Minière de l'Ogooué'' (COMILOG), which beg ...

* Ntoum - proposed junction for iron ore traffic to Santa Clara * Kango * Four-Place *

Mounana Mounana is a town in Gabon. It lies on the N3 road and from 1958 until the 1990s was a major uranium mining centre. The mine is now closed, and it is now primarily a centre for agriculture Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultiva ...

- ? ;Proposed *

- iron ore * Cape Santa Clara - proposed

deep water port A port is a maritime law, maritime facility comprising one or more Wharf, wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge Affreightment, cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can a ...

for

iron ore. *

Bélinga Belinga is a location in Gabon with as yet unexploited iron ore deposits. These ore deposits extend into neighbouring Cameroon and Congo. Mining The Belinga iron reserves were discovered in 1895.Douglas A. Yates, "Gabon", in ''Africa Yearbook: ...

- possible iron ore mine.

2006

* China signs a deal for an iron ore mine with associated rail and port upgrades from Belinga to Santa Clarabr>

2007

* New rail line from Belinga will go 450 km all the way to the coast, rather than to be a branch off an existing line. * Pan-African issuesRailway Corridors in Africa to be Connected

Road transport

''total:'' 7,670 km
''paved:'' 629 km (including 30 km of expressways)
''unpaved:'' 7,041 km (1996 est.) Roads in Gabon link most areas of the country, and many of the main roads are of a reasonable standard. However, remoter areas along the coast and in the east are often not connected to the road network. Major roads are denoted national routes and numbered, with a prefix "N" (sometimes "RN"): * N1 road (Gabon), N1 road: Libreville –

Kougouleu Kougouleu is a small town in Komo Department, Estuaire Province, in northwestern Gabon. It is an eastern suburb of Libreville and lies northwest of Kango Kango is a town in the Estuaire Province of Gabon, Central Africa, lying on the Komo River ...

– Bifoun –

Lambaréné Lambaréné is a town and the capital of Moyen-Ogooué in Gabon. It has a population of 38,775 as of 2013, and is located 75 kilometres south of the equator. Lambaréné is based in the Central African Rainforest at the river Ogooué. This rive ...

–

Mouila Mouila is the capital of the Ngounié region of Gabon. It lies on the Ngounié River and the N1 road and has a population of about 20,000 people. Its main sight is Lac Bleu, a lake known for its bright blue water. Mouila is very spread out a ...

– Ndendé – Tchibanga - (

Republic of Congo The Republic of the Congo (french: République du Congo, ln, Republíki ya Kongó), also known as Congo-Brazzaville, the Congo Republic or simply either Congo or the Congo, is a country located in the western coast of Central Africa to the w ...

) * N2 road: Bifoun –

Alembe Alembe is a small town in western Gabon Gabon (; ; snq, Ngabu), officially the Gabonese Republic (french: République gabonaise), is a country on the west coast of Central Africa. Located on the equator, it is bordered by Equatorial Guin ...

– Viate –

Mitzic Mitzic is a town located in Woleu-Ntem province, Gabon. Mitzic is located 322.71 km from Libreville, the capital of Gabon, and 111.47 km from Oyem, capital of Woleu Ntem. History The work of the late Moise Nkoghe Mvé, entitled ''The ...

– Bibasse –

Oyem Oyem is the capital of Woleu-Ntem province in northern Gabon, lying on the N2 road and the River Ntem. Geography The town lies on a plateau at an elevation of about . It is the administrative and transport center for the surrounding agricultur ...

– Bitam – Éboro – (

Cameroon Cameroon (; french: Cameroun, ff, Kamerun), officially the Republic of Cameroon (french: République du Cameroun, links=no), is a country in west- central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west and north; Chad to the northeast; th ...

) * N3 road:

– Kazamabika –

–

* N4 road: Viate – Ekonlong –

–

Mékambo Mékambo is a small town in north-eastern Gabon on the banks of the Zadié river. It is located in the Ogooué-Ivindo province of Gabon and is the seat of the Zadié Department. It has received international press for recent outbreaks of Ebola ...

* N5 road:

– Bibasse * N6 road: Mayumba – Tchibanga – Ndendé –

Lébamba Lébamba is a small town in south-western Gabon. It is the capital of Louetsi-Wano Department in Ngounié Province. It lies along the N6 road, 38.3 kilometres northeast of Ndendé. A Catholic Mission has long been established in Lébamba. Geog ...

Koulamoutou Koulamoutou is the capital of Ogooué-Lolo Province in east-central Gabon, with a population of around 16,000 people. It lies at the confluence of the Lolo River and the River Bouenguidi and on the N6 road. The town has an airport and had b ...

–

* N7 road:

– Bakwaka –

Okondja Okondja is a town in Haut-Ogooué province, eastern Gabon. It is the capital of the Sebe-Brikolo Department. According to the 1993 census it had a population of 5,193 and in 2013 it had an estimated population of 10,136 . It lies along Nationa ...

– Lékori - Akiéni – Ngouoni –

Water transport

Merchant marine

As of 2002, there was one merchant marine vessel, with a gross tonnage of 2,419/.

Waterways

Gabon has 1,600 km of perennially navigable waterways, including 310 km on the

Ogooué River The Ogooué (or Ogowe), also known as the Nazareth river, some long, is the principal river of Gabon in west central Africa and the fifth largest river in Africa by volume of discharge, trailing only the Congo, Kasai, Niger and Zambezi. Its wa ...

Air transport

There are three international airports: Libreville,

, and

Airports - with paved runways

''total:'' 11
''over 3,047 m:'' 1
''2,438 to 3,047 m:'' 1
''1,524 to 2,437 m:'' 8
''914 to 1,523 m:'' 1 (1999 est.)

Airports - with unpaved runways

''total:'' 45
''1,524 to 2,437 m:'' 9
''914 to 1,523 m:'' 16
''under 914 m:'' 25 (1999 est.)