EFE Sur Talca (Photo: Karl Kull)

How to reach Restaurant Sternen:

From Winterthur main station take bus No.3 towards Rosenberg, get off at the bus stop Bachtelstrasse, go across the street crossing and then go down along Bachtelstrasse towards Veltheim town centre, turn left into Löwenstrasse, and the Sternen Restaurant is just across the street from a school building.

Salta province plans to rehabilitate the section Salta - Cerrillos of the C-14 line in the second half of 2010 to finally introduce the long awaited suburban service, which was formally inaugurated in 2009 and for which an ex-FEVE (Spain) railcar was then delivered. Test journeys operated until the diesel fuel reserve of the railcar was finally used up.

SEFECHA of Chaco province will finally get up to APS100 millions from the Federal Government for infrastructure rehabilitation and rolling stock refurbishment. With these measures SEFECHA hopes to introduce an interurban service between Resistencia and Presidencia Roque Saenz Peña, reintroduce a railcar service to Taco Pozo and increase services of the Resistencia suburban service.

Entre Rios: From May to July 2010 a free trial service with a new Materfer built railcar operated on a weekly base between Paraná and Concepción del Uruguay and it was well received by the population. Until some time in August this traffic is now withdrawn for refurbishment of the railcar; after this period a regular service, with tickets sales, will be introduced. Furthermore preparative work for a suburban service around Paraná are under way and the Paraná - Villa Federal line is currently under rehabilitation for a regional service which may be later introduced.

State president C. Fernandez de Kirchner secured a Chinese loan over USD9,5 billions for infrastructure projects. One important investment will be the rehabilitation of 1700 Kilometres of the metre gauge Belgrano network. Furthermore locomotives and passenger coaches, the latter able to run at speeds of 160 km/h, may be acquired from China. With the new coaches a passenger train between Buenos Aires and Neuquén should start in 2012.

The Chinese credit includes the fact that the Argentine government should pay 15% of each project in which Chinese money may be involved. Many provinces are hoping to get also some railway rehabilitation from this money.

After many successful extra passenger trains between Buenos Aires and Mendoza, a regular weekly service may be launched over this more than 1000 km long line, from October 2010 on.
 

Aracajú, capital of Sergipe local state decided to use existing rail lines to install a suburban train service to São Cristovão to the South and Socorro to the North, using Bom Sinal built diesel railcars. Detailed planning and looking for finances may occur during 2011.

EFE, METROTREN, Santiago - Rancagua - San Fernando: no news

EFE, TERRASUR, Santiago - Talca - Chillán: 
Traffic is still limited to the Santiago - Curicó section. Reconstruction of the line to Chillán needs more time than planned.

BIOTREN, Concepción: Traffic resumed on both lines (to Hualquí and San Pedro) but with a reduced offer of trips

CORTO DE LAJA, Talcahuano - Laja:
Full traffic with four pairs of daily trains is back, the Laja - Renaico section has been closed definitively.

BUSCARRIL, Talca - Constitución: no news

TREN DEL VINO, San Fernando - Santa Cruz: no news

Victoria - Temuco
The municipalities along this line don’t want to accept the suspension of the rail passenger service. Under the initiative of Lautaro mayor Renato Hauri all municipal governments along the line are asking immediate reintroduction of the passenger service, repair of the earthquake damages between Victoria and Perquenco and introduction of an hourly service to offer a real urban service to the city of Temuco. State railway EFE and operator Fesub (Biotren) are sustaining this project, but the municipalities have to pay for the operation. In mid July Fesub reinstated traffic between Temuco and Victoria with two daily round trips.

UFC rehabilitated an ex-East German railbus train and are is using it for Habana local services. Furthermore the Habana - Batabanó local service has been reintroduced.

Between Morón and Florencia in Ciego de Avila province a local passenger service has been introduced.

The new Chinese built diesel locomotives have now all been delivered and distributed over the entire network, except to Pinar del Rio, Camagüey and Bayamo.

Closure for the Devil’s Nose line Alausí - Sibambe due to reconstruction may take more time than anticipated. News from Ecuador indicates that the line may not be reopened before December 2010. Salinas - Primer Paso was closed.

On all lines new schedules have been published:

Riobamba - Palmira: daily at 06.30
Tambo - Coyoctor: Sat. & Sun. 5 trips from 09.00 to 15.30
Ibarra - Salinas: Wed.-Sun. 08.30
Quito - Latacunga: Thur.-Sun. 08.00

On June 30, 2010 the section between Durán and Yaguachi has been reopened; regular traffic may resume later this year; there is only one steam locomotive available for traction. Currently new station yard tracks are under construction at Yaguachi. Details: http://www.fahrplancenter.com/AIFFLAEcuador03.html 

Recently a freight train derailed near Chahuites on the railway from Chiapas to Veracruz. A lot of paperless people coming from Central America had been on board. Two have been injured. Stones and poles put on the rails derailed the locomotive of the train. According to Oaxacan newspapers 10 Prostitute have disappeared from the train during this event. It seems that a group of procurers was responsible for the derailment to get the women.
 

Since April 2010 all traffic of the Tacna - Arica Railway is withdrawn because of a technical default on the only operational railcar. The railway itself is not in the financial position to buy the necessary part for repairing the nearly 80 year old vehicle and the provincial government does not show interest in helping out. AIFFLA is now contacting the authorities and other national administrations to change this situation. The longer the railway is not operating, the more difficult would it be to reinstate traffic.