Transport in

Panama Panama, officially the Republic of Panama, is a country in Latin America at the southern end of Central America, bordering South America. It is bordered by Costa Rica to the west, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north, and ...

covers a vast network of routes predominantly traversed by cargo trucks and buses. The country's railway system, known as the Panama Canal Railway, facilitates the transportation of both passengers and goods. With a total of 15,137 km of roads, its four expressways—Corredor Sur, Corredor Norte, Autopista La Chorrera, and Colón Panama—are the arteries that link various parts of the country. Tocumen International Airport (PTY) is the key hub for international travel, ranking among the largest and most important airports in

Latin America Latin America is the cultural region of the Americas where Romance languages are predominantly spoken, primarily Spanish language, Spanish and Portuguese language, Portuguese. Latin America is defined according to cultural identity, not geogr ...

. Additionally, the renowned

Panama Canal The Panama Canal () is an artificial waterway in Panama that connects the Caribbean Sea with the Pacific Ocean. It cuts across the narrowest point of the Isthmus of Panama, and is a Channel (geography), conduit for maritime trade between th ...

links the mere 60 km that separate the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...

and

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the ...

, offering an alternative route for maritime cargo transportation, avoiding the need to sail around

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...

. Buses, the metro, taxis, and private car rental companies compose the urban transportation system. The introduction of the Metrobus has gradually replaced the colorful "Diablo Rojo" buses, which once transported passengers around the city and its surrounding areas. Long-distance buses connect different regions within the country, departing from the Albrook Bus Terminal, next to the

Albrook Mall Albrook Mall is a large shopping mall and leisure complex located in Panama City, Panama. As of July 2022 it was the 25th largest mall in the world and second largest in the Americas. History The mall was opened in 2002 on the site of Albrook ...

. Nearly all major cities in Panama are interconnected via a network of bus terminals, with interstate and international routes extending into

Central America Central America is a subregion of North America. Its political boundaries are defined as bordering Mexico to the north, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest. Central America is usually ...

, including

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

. The Panama Metro covers a significant portion of

Panama City Panama City, also known as Panama, is the capital and largest city of Panama. It has a total population of 1,086,990, with over 2,100,000 in its metropolitan area. The city is located at the Pacific Ocean, Pacific entrance of the Panama Canal, i ...

and is operated by Metro de Panamá S.A. This environmentally friendly railway system operates on electricity and inaugurated its first line in 2014. Despite the weather conditions, the transportation infrastructure in Panama facilitates both domestic and international travel.

Rail transport

The Panama Canal Railway is the only passenger and freight

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...

in the country. It is a

standard-gauge A standard-gauge railway is a railway with a track gauge of . The standard gauge is also called Stephenson gauge (after George Stephenson), international gauge, UIC gauge, uniform gauge, normal gauge in Europe, and SGR in East Africa. It is the ...

railway running for 76 km between Colón on the Atlantic coast and Corozal (just outside the capital,

) on the

Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is bounded by the cont ...

coast. These are the only two stations on the line. Additionally, a

broad-gauge railway A broad-gauge railway is a railway with a track gauge (the distance between the rails) broader than the used by standard-gauge railways. Broad gauge of , more known as Russian gauge, is the dominant track gauge in former Soviet Union countrie ...

exists alongside the locks of the

. It is used by electric locomotives ( "Mules") that assist in ship handling. The Panama Metro is a

rapid transit Rapid transit or mass rapid transit (MRT) or heavy rail, commonly referred to as metro, is a type of high-capacity public transport that is generally built in urban areas. A grade separation, grade separated rapid transit line below ground su ...

system in Panama City. Two lines are currently operational (opened in 2014 and 2019), with further lines planned.

Road transport

* Total: 15,137 km ** ''paved:'' 6,351 km (including 149 km of expressways) ** ''unpaved:'' 8,785 km (2010) Panama has well-developed highways in particular, there are four main expressways: *Corredor Sur:

to the Tocumen International Airport, 26 km (

toll road A toll road, also known as a turnpike or tollway, is a public or private road for which a fee (or ''Toll (fee), toll'') is assessed for passage. It is a form of road pricing typically implemented to help recoup the costs of road construction and ...

). *Corredor Norte: Panama City to Tocumen, 30 km (toll road). *Autopista La Chorrera: Panama City to La Chorrera, 44 km (formerly a toll road, but free from tolls since 2009). *Colón Expressway: Panama City to Colón, 59 km (toll road). Because of recent upgrades, the

Pan-American highway The Pan-American Highway is a vast network of roads that stretches about 30,000 kilometers (about 19,000 miles) from Prudhoe Bay, Alaska, in the northernmost part of North America to Ushuaia, Argentina, at the southern tip of South America. I ...

has four lanes that run from Panama City to Santiago de Veraguas. Also, a small section of the Pan-American highway from Tocumen to

Pacora Pacora is a town and corregimiento in Panamá District, Panamá Province, Panama Panama, officially the Republic of Panama, is a country in Latin America at the southern end of Central America, bordering South America. It is bordered by ...

, counting for 18 km has been upgraded to a freeway. The same is true for the Pan-American stretch between

David David (; , "beloved one") was a king of ancient Israel and Judah and the third king of the United Monarchy, according to the Hebrew Bible and Old Testament. The Tel Dan stele, an Aramaic-inscribed stone erected by a king of Aram-Dam ...

and Capacho, on the border with

Costa Rica Costa Rica, officially the Republic of Costa Rica, is a country in Central America. It borders Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the northeast, Panama to the southeast, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, as well as Maritime bo ...

, adding 55 km of freeway. The newly built freeway between

and Bajo Boquete, extends for 38 km. This also applies to the

Chitré Chitré is the capital of the Panamanian province of Herrera. Located in the northeast of the Azuero Peninsula, the district of Chitré has a population of 60,500 inhabitants. At present, approximately 100,000 inhabitants live in the metropolita ...

- Las Tablas freeway that extends for 30 km. Panama's roads, traffic, and transportation systems are generally safe, however, non-functioning traffic lights are common. Driving is often hazardous and demanding due to dense traffic, undisciplined driving habits, poorly maintained streets, and a lack of effective signs and traffic signals. On roads where poor lighting and driving conditions prevail, night driving is difficult. Night driving is particularly hazardous on the old Panama City – Colon highway. Buses and taxis are not always maintained in a safe operating condition due to lack of regulatory enforcement, and since 2007 auto insurance has been mandatory in Panama. Traffic in Panama moves on the right, and Panamanian law requires that drivers and passengers wear seat belts, but airbags are not mandatory. Flooding during the April to December rainy season occasionally makes city streets unusable for most vehicles, and washes out some roads in rural areas. In addition, rural areas are often poorly maintained and lack illumination at night. Such roads are generally less traveled and the availability of emergency roadside assistance is very limited. Road travel is more dangerous during the rainy season and from the time of Carnival through to

Good Friday Good Friday, also known as Holy Friday, Great Friday, Great and Holy Friday, or Friday of the Passion of the Lord, is a solemn Christian holy day commemorating the crucifixion of Jesus and his death at Calvary (Golgotha). It is observed during ...

. Carnival starts the Saturday before

Ash Wednesday Ash Wednesday is a holy day of prayer and fasting in many Western Christian denominations. It is preceded by Shrove Tuesday and marks the first day of Lent: the seven weeks of Christian prayer, prayer, Religious fasting#Christianity, fasting and ...

and goes on for four days.

Water transport

Exclusa Miraflores Canal de Panama Panorama

There are 800 km of

waterway A waterway is any Navigability, 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 ways. A first distinction is ...

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. Navigability is also referred to in the broader context of a body of water having sufficient under ...

by shallow

draft Draft, the draft, or draught may refer to: Watercraft dimensions * Draft (hull), the distance from waterline to keel of a vessel * Draft (sail), degree of curvature in a sail * Air draft, distance from waterline to the highest point on a v ...

vessels. The

runs for 82 km across the country and is an important route for international freight ships traveling between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.

Pipelines

The

Trans-Panama pipeline The Trans-Panama Pipeline () is an oil pipeline across Panama near the Costa Rican border from the port of Chiriqui Grande, Bocas del Toro Province, Bocas del Toro on the Caribbean Sea, Caribbean coast to the port of Charco Azul on the Pacific coa ...

carries

crude oil Petroleum, also known as crude oil or simply oil, is a naturally occurring, yellowish-black liquid chemical mixture found in geological formations, consisting mainly of hydrocarbons. The term ''petroleum'' refers both to naturally occurring u ...

for 130 km.

Ports and harbors

Atlantic

* Manzanillo (part of Colón province) *

Coco Solo Coco Solo was a United States Navy submarine base and naval air station near the Panama Canal, active from 1918 to the 1960s. History The submarine base at Coco Solo was established May 6, 1918. The site corresponds with modern-day Cativá i ...

Pacific

* Balboa

Merchant marine

Panama has an extensive international ship register, comprising 7,860 ships. Most are owned by foreign countries, with Panama being a

flag of convenience Flag of convenience (FOC) refers to a business practice whereby a ship's owners Ship registration, register a Merchant vessel, merchant ship in a ship register of a country other than that of the ship's owners, and the ship flies the civil ens ...

. As of 2019, the ship types were:

Bulk carrier A bulk carrier or bulker is a merchant ship specially naval architecture, designed to transport unpackaged bulk cargo—such as Grain trade, grain, coal, ore, steel coils, and cement—in its cargo holds. Since the first specialized bulk carrie ...

(2,567),

container ship A container ship (also called boxship or spelled containership) is a cargo ship that carries all of its load in truck-size intermodal containers, in a technique called containerization. Container ships are a common means of commercial intermodal ...

(609), general cargo (1,325),

oil tanker An oil tanker, also known as a petroleum tanker, is a ship designed for the bulk cargo, bulk transport of petroleum, oil or its products. There are two basic types of oil tankers: crude tankers and product tankers. Crude tankers move large quant ...

(798), and others (2,561).

Air transport

Tocumen International Airport is the primary

international airport An international airport is an airport with customs and border control facilities enabling passengers to travel between countries. International airports are usually larger than domestic airports, and feature longer runways and have faciliti ...

, located just east of Panama City. It is the hub of flag carrier

Copa Airlines Compañía Panameña de Aviación, S.A., branded as Copa Airlines, is the flag carrier of Panama. It is headquartered in Panama City, Panama, with its main hub at Tocumen International Airport. Copa is a subsidiary of Copa Holdings and a member o ...

. Scheduled services operate to destinations in the

Americas The Americas, sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North America and South America.''Webster's New World College Dictionary'', 2010 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio. When viewed as a sing ...

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

Asia Asia ( , ) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which ...

and the

Middle East The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq. The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...

. There are 117 airports across the country, 57 with paved runways and 60 with unpaved runways.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Transport In Panama