Ramal Talca-Constitución - Misplaced Pages

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The Ramal Talca-Constitución also known as the "Ramal de Maule" is the last remaining narrow gauge ramal train in Chile.. Lying in the depths of Chile, the 88km long journey borders the north bank of the Maule River covering the communes of Talca, Maule, Pencahue and Constitución with Constitución being the last station on the line.The journey offers scenic views of the Andean foothills as well as those of the Pacific Ocean. The line is built strong enough to support a train running at a speed of 50 miles per hour (80km p.h). The railway once the best method of transportation is now facing a major threat of closure due to inactivity and increased preferences of private transport..

The line has several features that make it special: It is the last meter gauge dedicated to passenger travel (in Chile) and runs through an area not served by any other means of ground transportation. Not only that, the bridge of the railway over the Maule River - The Banco de Arena Railway Bridge was designed by the famous architect Gustave Eiffel and was built between 1908 and 1915 by Schneider and Co. On May 25, 2007 the line was declared a National Monument, which meant that it was a valued asset to the country and can not be destroyed.

History

Railway lines first came to the Maule Region when the North and South American Companies began construction in 1889. The line opened on August 13, 1892 and the first train ran between Talca and Curtiduría (another commune in Chile) . The next part of the proposed line was completed on November 1, 1894 and furthered the line from Curtiduria to Pichamán(yet another commune) . In 1902 construction progressed towards the northern bank of the Maule River, opposite Constitución where on a sand bank the first station of Constitución was established. However this station was not easy to reach: people had to cross the river in boats to reach the other side, from where another convoy took them to the Constitución station. This station functioned for 13 years until 1915 when the current Constitución station was opened.

Old Route

Originally the train followed the coast in Constitución to the so-called "Sea Baths" (abandoned now), which was a popular tourist resort where people since Victorian times had come to enjoy. Later another stop was added, just prior to the station for the pulp mill Celco. However quite intriguingly in order to get to the Celco plant, trains had to travel through the streets of Constitución. This created a lot of problems and was banned by the Municipality in the early 1970's, though trains continued to function even in 1990's against municipality orders.

Technical Details Of The Train

Name - Ramal Talca-Constitución or Ramal de Maule
Home Station - Talca Station
Last station - Constitución Station
Location - Talca Province, Maule Region
Route Distance - 88km
Opening Date - August 1892, 13 (13 -08-1892Tage)
Status - Operating
Type - Passenger
Operator - Empresa de los Ferrocarriles del Estado
Gauge - Narrow (1000 mm)
Fuel Type - Diesel (Previously Steam)
Rail car - Models of German made Ferrobús/Buscarril rail car, such as the ADM 253 , ADM 255 and ADM 256.
Maximum speed - 60km/h
Specifications - Weight - 30.3 tons, Length - 25.5 meters.

Dependent Communities

File:Talca retake.png

The City Of Talca

A vast majority of villages which are connected by the Ramal Talca-Constitución line, are not well connected to the main cities/communes via roads (on an average they are separated by 35 kilometers from main cities like Talca and Curepto). As a result the Ministry of Transport and Telecommunications of Chile requested tenders for a transportation systems that could connect remote locations like villages in Chile. Empresa de los Ferrocarriles del Estado (the company that now manages the Raml-Talca Constitución line) won the tender.. As a result Empresa de los Ferrocarriles del Estado got the railway line constructed that reached out to thousands of local inhabitants, therefore locals have an explicit priority on the line over tourists or other users.

Journey

The Journey Route

Talca: It is the home station of the train where every day the trains start at 7:30 and 16:45 (Chilean time). *
Colín: Located at 12km from Talca station it's name was derived from the bird - "Colines" that once abounded here.
Rauquén: Today works only as whereabouts, located ahead of the bridge that crosses the Rio Claro.
Corinto: Formerly called 'Pocoa' it is located at 27km from Talca and is named after a Greek businessman. A church is in this area is a significant landmark here and Dec 8 each year has a great pomp and show due to the celebration of the Immaculate Conception.
El Morro: It got its name from Morro de Arica which is located in a very similar area. It lies near the mouth of the River Light and River Loncomilla.
Curtiduría: The train briefly stops here. The first ever train on this line ran between this station and Talca.
Los Llocos: This station lies at a distance of 36km from Talca and lies inside a village of the same name.
Tricahue: Lies at a distance of 38km from Talca, in what once was a Monastery.
El Peumo: This station lying ahead of Tricahue is 41km away from Talca.
González Bastías: This is the station located at 44km from both Talca and Constitution. In simple language it is the mid-point. It was previously known as Infiernillo.
Toconey: Located at 48km from Talca it was previously called San Antonio and then Tanhuao. It is one of the busiest stations on the Ramal. *
Pichamán Oriente: Lying at 50.5km from Talca.
Pichamán: The name literally means "little condor." It located at 52km from Talca.
Los Romeros: It is one of the busiest station and lies at 55km from Talca.
Los Maquis: At 57.5km from Talca it lies approximately 3km ahead of Los Romeros.
Forel: Located at 62km from Talca it owes its current name to Swiss biologist François-Alphonse Forel who lived here for several years.
Huinganes: Located at 68km from Talca it is one of the best preserved stations. The station was named after the shrub Huingan that abounds here.
Los Digüeñes: This station being the 5th from last, lies after the Huinganes station.
Maquehua: It is located at 74km from Talca and is the 4th last station.
Astillero: It is located at 78km from Talca and is the 3rd last station.
Banco de Arena: Lying at 83km from Talca it was the the terminus of the branch line until 1912.
Constitución: It is currently the terminus of Ramal Talca-Constitución linestation of the section. Trains depart from here at the same time as from Talca

González Bastías Station

González Bastías is a small town which marks the halfway point at 44km, and an obligatory stop for the trains in both directions, as there is only one track, and this is where they change directions. During a stop-over here people usually buy rescoldo- a hearty bread with pork sausage and hard boiled eggs. This place is also a storehouse for abandoned rail cars here.. González Bastías was originally called Infiernillo (little hell) for the suffocating summer heat and the dismal winter isolation.. The town was later renamed in honor of a local poet, which is why the station is also known as Estación Poeta

Political History

The construction of this line took almost 25 years and was therefore constructed under 7 governments, namely the following:

Jose Manuel Balmaceda (1886- 1891).
Jorge Montt Alvarez (1891- 1896).
Federico Errazuriz Echaurren (1896-1901).
Germán Riesco (1901-1906).
Pedro Montt Montt (1906-1910).
Emiliano Figueroa (Sep 1910 - Dec 1910).
Ramon Barros Luco (1910- 1915).
Juan Luis Sanfuentes (Line Opened on Dec 19, 1915)

Time Table

These are the official departure times of trains on the Ramal Talca-Constitution line:

Morning:

Talca - Constitution: 7:30 (Chilean Time -4 UTC)
Constitution - Talca: 7:30 (Chilean Time -4 UTC)

Evening:

Talca - Constitution: 16:45 (Chilean Time -4 UTC)
Constitution - Talca: 16:45 (Chilean Time -4 UTC)

Extra Information

Since November 2002 the entire area covered by the line has electricity.
The area covered by the line lacks a number of services like banks, gas stations, pharmacies, newsstands etc. Signal strength for cell phones is very poor along most of the route especially between the stations of Corinth and Banca de Arena.
The line experienced a small tourism boom following a documentary "The Last Ramal" that was aired by several channels around the world and when the Televisión Nacional de Chile (Televisión Nacional de Chile) made a report on December 2005 named the "Fruit of the Country"