Dakar–Saint-Louis railway

The railroad linking Dakar (Senegal) to Saint-Louis (French: Chemin de fer Dakar-Saint-Louis) was the first railroad line in French West Africa when it opened in 1885.[1] It is no longer in service.[2]

Dakar–Saint-Louis Railway
The line shown on a 1901 map
The line shown on a 1901 map
Overview
Native nameChemin de fer Dakar-Saint-Louis
Termini
StationsDakar, Thiès, Louga, Saint-Louis
Service
TypeHeavy rail, disused
History
Opened5 June 1885
Closed2003?
Technical
Track length265 km (164.66 mi)
Number of tracks1
Track gauge1,000 mm (3 ft 3+38 in) metre gauge
Route map

262.5 km
Saint-Louis
230.6 km
Mpal
320.8 km
Linguère
280.1 km
Daraa
222.4 km
Koki
192.3 km
Louga
155 km
Kébémèr
119.6 km
Mékhé
108 km
Taïba
phosphate mine
92 km
Tivaouane
70 km
Thiès
29.6 km
Rufisque
0 km
Dakar
The train linking Dakar to Saint-Louis waiting for departure at Dakar railway station in 1991

History

edit

Like other railways constructed by the French colonial authorities in French West Africa, scholars have argued the line was inspired by American "pioneer" railways, to help authorities govern settlement and economic development, rather than to help existing populations move people or goods around.[3] The line was referred to as the "peanut railroad", due to the peanut export sector and the growth of it around the route.[4] The main route was completed around 1915.[5]

Extensions to the line were built in the 1920s, finishing in 1933 with a 46 km single track line between Diourbel and Touba.This line a commercial success, unlike other lines in the network.[6]

The line was amalgamated with other colonial railroads in French West Africa, and after 1948 was operated by the Dakar Niger Railway. The route was still operating by 1991 and privatised in 1995, but seems to be no longer operational by the time Transrail took over as concession operator in 2003.[5]

References

edit
  1. ^ Thilmans, Guy (1992). "Lat Dior, Cheikh Saad Bou et le Chemin de Fer". Revue Saint-Louis, Lille Liège Dakar: 41 p.
  2. ^ "Le chemin de fer" [Railways]. au-senegal.com. 19 January 2009. Retrieved 7 November 2010.
  3. ^ Pheffer, Paul Edward (1975). "Railroads and Aspects of Social Change in Senegal, 1878-1933". Publicly Accessible Penn Dissertations. 2135: 8–9.
  4. ^ Starostina, Natalia (2010). "Ambiguous Modernity: Representations of French Colonial Railways in the Third Republic". Proceedings of the Western Society for French History. 38. ISSN 2573-5012.
  5. ^ a b Bullock, Richard (2005). "Results of Railway Privatization in Africa" (PDF). World Bank Group Transport Papers.
  6. ^ Pheffer, Paul Edward (1975). "Railroads and Aspects of Social Change in Senegal, 1878-1933". Publicly Accessible Penn Dissertations. 2135.

Further reading

edit