Buenos Aires Western Railway

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The Buenos Aires Western Railway (BAW) (in Spanish: Ferrocarril Oeste de Buenos Aires) was one of the Big Four 5 ft 6 in (1,676 mm) broad gauge British-owned companies that built and operated railway networks in Argentina. The company operated west of the city of Buenos Aires, between the zones served by two other British-owned companies, the Buenos Aires Great Southern and the Buenos Aires and Pacific railways. The BAW covered the western part of Buenos Aires Province, part of the La Pampa Province and extended in the direction of the Andes across agricultural and cattle country to the vine and fruit region of Mendoza Province. It also had an important section serving the suburbs of the city of Buenos Aires.

The story began in 1855 with the Ferrocarril del Oeste company building Argentina’s first railway line between Plaza Parque station in Buenos Aires, opposite the old Teatro Colón opera house, and La Floresta station in Flores, a distance of 10 km. British engineer, William Bragge built the first line^[1] that opened to the public 29 August 1857 and the first train was hauled by a locomotive, named La Porteña, which was built by the Hunslet Engine Company of Leeds in England, and was a veteran of the Crimean War. No fewer than 15,000 passengers were carried in the first fortnight. The line was extended to Ramos Mejia in 1859, Moron and in 1860 to Moreno giving a total length of 39 km. With government help the line arrived at Chivilcoy in 1866, a distance of 159 km from Buenos Aires, and various branch lines were added.

In 1878, the Buenos Aires terminus was moved to Estación Once and in 1886 Plaza Parque station was demolished and its place taken by a new Teatro Colón opera house.

By the time Ferrocarril Oeste was sold to the British in 1890 it operated its services over 1,014 km of track. Under the new name BAW the railway was extended from the centre of Buenos Aires Province to La Pampa Province and as far as the south of Mendoza Province.

Grain, cattle, wine, and general merchandise formed the bulk of the railway’s goods traffic. Coal suitable for locomotive working was not available locally and therefore a large proportion of locomotives were designed to burn oil.

In 1933, the administration of the company was combined with that of two other British-owned railway companies Buenos Aires Great Southern, and Buenos Aires Midland .

When the entire Argentine railway network was nationalised in 1948, during Juan Peron's presidency the BAW, with 3096 km of track, became part of the state-owned company Ferrocarril Domingo Faustino Sarmiento.

[edit] References

• Purdom, D.S. British Steam on the Pampas, Mechanical Engineering Publications Ltd, London, 1977.
  
• Lewis, Colin M. British Railways in Argentina 1857-1914: A Case Study of Foreign Investment, Athlone Press (for the Institute of Latin American Studies, University of London), 1983.