Which countries/territories have abandoned railways altogether?

[Roast Veg]

I’m afraid that, for now and for some time to come, Syria falls into this category. Not sure it will ever come back, given the extent of damages. Have you ever noticed that when any sort of civil unrest takes place in a country, railways are amongst the first things to go away, and amongst the last ones to come back when peace returns, if ever ? It requires a high degree of social organization to operate a railway...

What state are the railway stubs into Afghantistan?

 

[61653 HTAFC]

Wikipedia is adamant that there was never any railway in Andorra. However I do remember in the 1960's and 70's the magazine World Steam giving details of a mineral line in the country which made no external connection. I don't think many people visited it, I know I didn't.

Andorra is probably unique in having a station (in France) but no railway...

Do any of the ski resorts have a funicular?

 

[Giugiaro]

The archipelagos of Azores and Madeira both have had railways, though a single line rather than a network.

The Azores had a 10km railway connecting the mines at Pranchinha to the breakwater of Ponta Delgada maritime port. It was used for the construction and maintenance of the breakwater.
There was a proposal for the construction of a network connecting Ponta Delgada to Furnas and Ribeira Grande, but the project never went ahead.

At Madeira there was a 3,9km long rack railway between Funchal and Terreiro da Luta.

 

[LNW-GW Joint]

What state are the railway stubs into Afghantistan?

At least one line only just opened earlier this year:
Railway opening forges ‘bonds of friendship’ between Afghanistan and Turkmenistan | News | Railway Gazette International

Those who thought that building a network of railways in Afghanistan was impossible need to reconsider their perspective’, said President Ashraf Ghani during the inauguration of the line from Aqina on the Turkmen border to the northern town of Andkhoy on January 14.

Some trains still running amid Taliban takeover | News | Railway Gazette International

AFGHANISTAN: Newly-appointed head of the Ministry of Public Works Rumi Bakht-ur-Rehman Sharafat held an initial meeting with ministry staff and the Afghanistan Railway Authority on August 21 following the Taliban’s takeover of the country.

The acting minister said the Taliban leadership was committed to the rehabilitation of the transport infrastructure, technical staff were still required and salaries would be paid. Pictures shared on social media show various road construction works underway.
AfRA officials provided the minister with details of work which they said needs to be done for the benefit of the country.

Meanwhile, Turkmenistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on August 18 that it was in regular contact with the new regime regarding border issues, and trains were continuing to operate through the Aqina and Towraghondi border crossings to freight terminals inside Afghanistan.

 

[Gag Halfrunt]

Nicaragua had a smallish public rail system, on 3ft. 6in. gauge; but that is all now defunct, as from about end of 20th century, I think. I believe Costa Rica is in more-or-less identical case -- 3ft. 6in. there too; am reckoning that I might have heard of some preservation attempt there, or could have imagined that !

Trains are running in Costa Rica.

 

[Calthrop]

Wikipedia is adamant that there was never any railway in Andorra. However I do remember in the 1960's and 70's the magazine World Steam giving details of a mineral line in the country which made no external connection. I don't think many people visited it, I know I didn't.

I would much suspect that that reference is not to Andorra in the Pyrenees; but to the other place of that name -- in less-dramatic but still scenic surroundings, south-east of Zaragoza. The industrial line would be the one which went by the name of Andorra -- Escatron (I think the name was that way round): Spanish broad gauge, connecting with RENFE -- stayed in action and steam-worked (own locos -- big 4-8-4Ts) well after the end of RENFE steam.

 

[52290]

I would much suspect that that reference is not to Andorra in the Pyrenees; but to the other place of that name -- in less-dramatic but still scenic surroundings, south-east of Zaragoza. The industrial line would be the one which went by the name of Andorra -- Escatron (I think the name was that way round): Spanish broad gauge, connecting with RENFE -- stayed in action and steam-worked (own locos -- big 4-8-4Ts) well after the end of RENFE steam.

I think you are right. It's a good job I decided not to go there as I would have been in the wrong country!

 

[Calthrop]

Trains are running in Costa Rica.

Have yet to watch; but -- thanks: looks like good news. Had got it firmly set in mind that railways anywhere in Central America east of Mexico, were effectively extinct.

I think you are right. It's a good job I decided not to go there as I would have been in the wrong country!

Not so badly as the couple who by mistake flew to Sydney, Nova Scotia instead of Sydney, Australia -- still, preferably something not to do...

 

[Gag Halfrunt]

This is the line shown in the videos.

Interurbano Line (Costa Rica) - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

There are or were plans to modernise and electrify the line with elevated sections replacing the many level crossings. According to Wikipedia the current average speed is 12 mph.

 

[MarcVD]

What state are the railway stubs into Afghantistan?

I personally saw one train on the line from Termez to the afghan border when I went there in 2016. The one from Iran to Herat is still not finished. The two ones from Turkménistan, I don’t know.

 

[davetheguard]

Cyprus. Closed in 1951 according to Wikipedia. 76 miles (122 km) long, narrow gauge.

 

[Shimbleshanks]

Barbados
Bermuda
Jamaica

I think Jamaica still has mineral lines, but not public railways. Are any of the lines in Paraguay still operating?
I believe at one time the whole of the once quite extensive Nigerian rail network was defunct but there have since been new standard gauge lines built and possibly some of the old narrow gauge routes revived. Ghana may also have been/still be in a similar situation.

 

[daodao]

Are any of the lines in Paraguay still operating?

The Posadas-Encarnación international train crosses a bridge into Paraguay (which replaced the train ferry) and is operated by an Argentinian railway company. The rest of the Paraguayan rail network appears to be defunct, although there are plans to revive a local service in Asunción.

 

[Baxenden Bank]

What state are the railway stubs into Afghantistan?

Not sure of their current status since Taliban, but @LNW-GW Joint mentions them in his post.

I recommend the following website/blog for details of current and historic railways in Afghanistan: Andrew Grantham web link Very comprehensive indeed.

These are the line details, recently refreshed:

Iran - Herat Railway	built	status	sectional km
Torbat-e Heydarieh	-	-	-
Khaf	-	-	-
Shamtigh	opened October 2017	-	-
Iran / Afghanistan border	-	-	76.80​
Chah-e-Sorkh	-	operational	-
Ghoriyan	-	-	-
Rozanak	opened December 2020	operational	61.20​
Robat Paryan	-	proposed	43.00​
Herat	-	proposed	20.00​

Turkmenistan - Toraghundi Railway	built	status	sectional km
Serhertabat	-	-	-
Turkmenistan / Afghanistan border	-	-
Torghundi	opened possibly 1960's	operational	3.00​

Turkmenistan - Andkhoy Railway	built	status	sectional km
Ymamnazar	-	-	0.00​
Turkmenistan / Afghanistan border	-	-	1.00​
Aqina	November 2016	-	2.00​
Andkhoy	January 2021	operational	31.00​

Uzbekistan - Hairitan Railway	built	status	sectional km
Galaba near Termiz/Termez	-	-	-
Uzbekistan / Afghanistan border	-	-	0.00​
Hairitan	May 1982	-	3.70​
Jairatan	-	-	-
Taza Omid	-	-	-
Naibabad	-	-	-
Gur-e-Mar (18 km east of Mazar-i-Sharif)	-	-	-
Mazar-e-Sharif Airport	February 2012	operational	74.00​

I think Jamaica still has mineral lines, but not public railways. Are any of the lines in Paraguay still operating?
I believe at one time the whole of the once quite extensive Nigerian rail network was defunct but there have since been new standard gauge lines built and possibly some of the old narrow gauge routes revived. Ghana may also have been/still be in a similar situation.

Nigeria:
I don't believe that the Nigerian network ever closed completely, although it became very dilapidated and some sections of the network were out of use. Lines have been / are being refurbished.

Standard Gauge:
Abuja Idu to Kaduna Rigasa, 186km, opened 2016.
Lagos Ebute-Metta to Ibadan, 156km, opened this year (possibly late 2020).
Warri - Itakpe, about 300km, opened October 2020 - only started construction in 1987!

Metro / Light Rail lines operational in Abuja (the capital).
Metro lines under construction in Lagos.

Other lines may, or may not, be under construction. Little news from Nigeria seems to be reliable so until it appears on Google Aerial (or similar) I tend to be wary.

Ghana:
Sections of line are operational.
Refurbishment then conversion to standard gauge is underway on the main loop: Takoradi - Kumasi - Accra.
A new standard gauge line is under construction from Tema northwards to Mpakadan.

 

[181]

San Marino had a -- regrettably very short-lived -- 950mm gauge electric line: "lower terminus" Rimini in Italy. Opened 1932: badly damaged late in World War II and never restored. (I have a notion that there may nowadays be preservation activity on a very small scale, at the San Marino end.)

There's a Wikipedia page here and a YouTube video (no moving trains, I'm afraid) here. (@Calthrop, if I remember rightly your computer doesn't do videos, but others may find it interesting). Apparently about 800m have been restored, with ambitions for more.

Trains are running in Costa Rica.

The November Railway Magazine has a short report that Costa Rica '...is planning several projects to rebuild existing lines and to build an entirely new 84km line in the country's central valley serving the capital San Jose. The new line and some of the rebuilt ones...will be electrified.', although it goes on to say that given the economic effects of Covid and concern over the costs, '...it is unclear how much of the ambitious rail investment plan will happen in the short term.'

Had got it firmly set in mind that railways anywhere in Central America east of Mexico, were effectively extinct.

The Panama Canal Railway still runs, and indeed was thorougly rebuilt in 2000-2001.

The rest of the Paraguayan rail network appears to be defunct, although there are plans to revive a local service in Asunción.

If you look around the website there is some information (in Spanish) indicating that this indeed an active project.

 

[Gag Halfrunt]

Panama City has a metro, opened in 2014.

There is a short cross-border service (currently suspended) between Encarnación in Paraguay and Posadas in Argentina, operated with Wadloper DMUs from the Netherlands. The route is only 8 km (5 miles) long and there are no intermediate stops.There are two trains per hour in each direction, with a journey time of only eight minutes.

Posadas-Encarnación International Train - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[Calthrop]

There's a Wikipedia page here and a YouTube video (no moving trains, I'm afraid) here. (@Calthrop, if I remember rightly your computer doesn't do videos, but others may find it interesting). Apparently about 800m have been restored, with ambitions for more.

I have -- long-term situation -- "vision but not sound"; as you say, in those circumstances: no moving trains = a bit of a disadvantage !

The Panama Canal Railway still runs, and indeed was thorougly rebuilt in 2000-2001.

I worded things "effectively extinct", having the Panama Canal line in mind. That one has always been an outlier and exception in various ways; including having been 5ft. gauge until the rebuilding including standard-gauging, of 2000 - 2001.



In general: one could feel that the subject of this thread overall, is fairly beset with assorted grey areas. There's the issue of polities with their public railways largely abandoned, which have nonetheless still got a bit of same, active under preservation. Also, nowadays -- raised in the thread -- especially island nations, which once had conventional public railways, abandoned sometimes a lifetime ago; but which are now actively in the business of modern urban light rail. And if one takes into consideration -- again, raised in the thread -- the assorted varieties of non-public railways (industrial / agricultural / plantation / military / wharfage / "portage" railways): it can be reckoned that there are indeed few countries / territories on earth which have always been totally railway-less (I've read that even Papua New Guinea has had a plantation line or two !).

 

[Cloud Strife]

Cyprus is very notable: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Narrow-gauge_railways_in_Cyprus

The closure of the Cyprus Government Railway always seems surprising for me, given that it connected Famagusta, Nicosia and Morphou.

 

[Calthrop]

Cyprus is very notable: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Narrow-gauge_railways_in_Cyprus

The closure of the Cyprus Government Railway always seems surprising for me, given that it connected Famagusta, Nicosia and Morphou.

The picture I get, is that as soon as road motor transport got into its stride -- relatively soon after the advent of the CGR -- the (2ft. 6in. gauge, not very speedy) railway's days were numbered. The more so, in that things so fell out that its envisaged serving of the copper and chrome mines at its western end, basically did not meaningfully come to pass. Even if the railway, or part of it, had lived on post- its 1951 real-life closure; the division of the island consequent on the 1974 hostilities, ran pretty much along the east-to-west line followed by the railway -- what with the bitterness of that conflict, one would reckon that the railway's unfortunate situation there would mean the end -- for good -- of any surviving services on it.

 

[Cloud Strife]

The picture I get, is that as soon as road motor transport got into its stride -- relatively soon after the advent of the CGR -- the (2ft. 6in. gauge, not very speedy) railway's days were numbered. The more so, in that things so fell out that its envisaged serving of the copper and chrome mines at its western end, basically did not meaningfully come to pass. Even if the railway, or part of it, had lived on post- its 1951 real-life closure; the division of the island consequent on the 1974 hostilities, ran pretty much along the east-to-west line followed by the railway -- what with the bitterness of that conflict, one would reckon that the railway's unfortunate situation there would mean the end -- for good -- of any surviving services on it.

I could be wrong, but I think that 1974 may not have been the end of the line if it had survived. The line ran along the current Nicosia-Famagusta "motorway" (it's called a motorway locally, although it's just a dual carriageway), and it ran as far as Mia Milia/Haspolat within the current Turkish occupied territory. It wouldn't have been too difficult for them to reroute the line into the occupied part of Omorfita, I suppose.

Although this ignores the fact that North Cyprus was really economically dead from 1974 until the latter part of the 2000's, and that there wouldn't have been much demand for such a service. Even today, traffic is very light between Famagusta and Nicosia during the quiet seasons.

 

[Calthrop]

I could be wrong, but I think that 1974 may not have been the end of the line if it had survived. The line ran along the current Nicosia-Famagusta "motorway" (it's called a motorway locally, although it's just a dual carriageway), and it ran as far as Mia Milia/Haspolat within the current Turkish occupied territory. It wouldn't have been too difficult for them to reroute the line into the occupied part of Omorfita, I suppose.

Although this ignores the fact that North Cyprus was really economically dead from 1974 until the latter part of the 2000's, and that there wouldn't have been much demand for such a service. Even today, traffic is very light between Famagusta and Nicosia during the quiet seasons.

Fair enough -- I've never been to Cyprus, and am no student of the place in absentia. Just have the feeling that -- very regrettably -- cute narrow-gauge railways have long had little or no meaningful place in modern nations; unless as "tourist-and-gricer-bait".

 

[Shimbleshanks]

I suppose if we're talking regions rather than countries, there's also the Peloponnese railway in Greece, which I think remains shut.

 

[181]

I have -- long-term situation -- "vision but not sound"; as you say, in those circumstances: no moving trains = a bit of a disadvantage !

Many YouTube videos these days have subtitles; some are automatically generated, but on that video I think it's a real transcript added by a human. If you hover the cursor over the picture you should see a rectangular symbol at the bottom, just to the left of the cogwheel symbol, and can click that to turn the subtitles on (it's also how you turn them off if they appear by default, as sometimes happens in my experience). Obviously it's not much use for listening to steam trains or music, but for narration it may be quite useful.

 

[Cloud Strife]

Fair enough -- I've never been to Cyprus, and am no student of the place in absentia. Just have the feeling that -- very regrettably -- cute narrow-gauge railways have long had little or no meaningful place in modern nations; unless as "tourist-and-gricer-bait".

Oh yes, in this sense, absolutely. I've found a timetable here - https://ne-np.facebook.com/CVAR.Sev...-1938cvarseveris-foundation/2931448367108838/ - and it's not a surprise that it couldn't last with such lengthy journey times.

 

[Calthrop]

Many YouTube videos these days have subtitles; some are automatically generated, but on that video I think it's a real transcript added by a human. If you hover the cursor over the picture you should see a rectangular symbol at the bottom, just to the left of the cogwheel symbol, and can click that to turn the subtitles on (it's also how you turn them off if they appear by default, as sometimes happens in my experience). Obviously it's not much use for listening to steam trains or music, but for narration it may be quite useful.

Thank you -- I'll experiment.

Oh yes, in this sense, absolutely. I've found a timetable here - https://ne-np.facebook.com/CVAR.Severis/photos/cyprus-government-railway-timetable-1938cvarseveri
foundation/2931448367108838/ - and it's not a surprise that it couldn't last with such lengthy journey times.

Thanks; most interesting. And this was, heaven help us, after the introduction in the mid-1930s, of internal-combustion railcars -- also, the service shown, is so meagre... (by my understanding, by the way -- with Famagusta to Nicosia shown only, in these timetables: passenger west of Nicosia had been withdrawn in 1932; freight continued west of Nicosia; but, it would seem, not a great deal of freight traffic on offer there).

It would appear that -- as happened in those years in many places -- the CGR got something of a "boost" from World War II: many British troops stationed there for "secondary" purposes, much fetching-and-carrying needed to be done for them. Had the war not happened; one wonders whether the railway would have lasted even as late as 1951.

 

[stuu]

I think Jamaica still has mineral lines, but not public railways.

Youtube has this from May 2021

 

[dutchflyer]

Think NEPAL can also be added- but I am not 100% sure if also goods have been abandoned now.
The part of Malaysia called Sarawak has also lost its railways. Its in some view a semi-independent state.

 

[Stonesourscotty]

What about Tasmania? Pretty sure all Passenger lines are gone but there might be some small freight there?

 

[daodao]

What about Tasmania? Pretty sure all Passenger lines are gone but there might be some small freight there?

There is still an extensive freight network on Tasmania run by the government-owned Tasrail, running from 3 ports on the Bass Strait in the north of the island; Hobart port is no longer served by an active rail line. A rail map is available at Activity Map - TasRail

In addition, there are a number of heritage operators that run vintage passenger trains on short lines.

 

[Gag Halfrunt]

Think NEPAL can also be added- but I am not 100% sure if also goods have been abandoned now.

The line from Jayanagar in India to Kurtha in Nepal has been rebuilt to Indian broad gauge but isn't open yet.

Nepal not to allow third country nationals to travel to India via Kurtha-Jayanagar railroad

Nepal will notify India about the passengers boarding the train to ensure seamless security clearance at the border

www.thehindu.com

Editorial | Railblock ahead

Delay in operating the Janakpur-Kurtha rail is a masterclass on how not to run projects.

kathmandupost.com

A new train last year was welcomed with much fanfare. It never ran

Political, legal and technical issues have prevented the brand new locomotives that Nepal bought from India from coming into operation—on a new track.

kathmandupost.com