Transport in Ivory Coast
Railways
As of 2004, the nation’s railway system consisted of a state-controlled 660 km section of a 1,146 km narrow gauge railroad that ran north from Abidjan through Bouaké and Ferkéssédougou to Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.
total:
660 km
narrow gauge:
660 km, 1,000 mm (3 ft 3 3⁄8 in) gauge; 25 km double track (1995 est.)
Railway links with adjacent countries
-
Burkina Faso - yes - 1,000 mm (3 ft 3 3⁄8 in) -
Ghana - no - break of gauge 1,000 mm (3 ft 3 3⁄8 in)/1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in) -
Mali - no - same gauge -
Guinea - no - same gauge -
Liberia - no - break of gauge 1,000 mm (3 ft 3 3⁄8 in)/1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) and 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in)
Maps
Towns served by rail
- Abidjan - former national capital and port
- Agboville
- Bouaké
- Katiola
- Tafire
- Ouangolodougou (Wangolodougou) - near Burkina Faso border
- Ferkessédougou - near Burkina Faso border.
Towns proposed to be served by rail
- San Pedro - port
- Mount Nimba - iron ore, near border of Guinea
Highways
total:
50,400 km
paved:
4,889 km
unpaved:
45,511 km (1996 est.)
The Trans–West African Coastal Highway provides a paved link to Ghana, Togo, Benin and Nigeria, with paved highways to landlocked Mali and Burkina Faso feeding into the coastal highway. When construction of roads and bridges in Liberia and Sierra Leone is complete, the highway will link to another seven Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) nations to the west and north-west.
Waterways
980 km navigable rivers, canals, and numerous coastal lagoons
Ports and harbors
Harbor activity is concentrated at Abidjan (West Africa’s largest container port), which has facilities that include a fishing port and equipment for handling containers, and San Pedro, a deepwater port that began operations in 1971. There are also small ports at Sassandra, Aboisso, and Dabou. Two nationalized shipping lines serve West Africa and Europe.
Merchant marine
As of 1998, the merchant marine had one oil tanker (1,000 GRT or over) totalling 1,200 GRT. However, in 2002, there is no merchant marine. There are 980 km (56 mi) of navigable rivers, canals, and numerous coastal lagoons.
total:
1 ship (with a volume of 1,000 gross register tons (GRT) or over) totaling 1,200 GRT/1,500 tonnes deadweight (DWT)
ships by type:
petroleum tanker 1 (1999 est.)
Airports
36 (1999 est.)
The main international airport in the country is Port Bouet Airport near Abidjan. It is the hub for Air Côte d'Ivoire, the national carrier of Ivory Coast. Recently formed from the failed Air Ivoire, the airline operates an aging fleet of Western-built aircraft. It is owned by Air France and the U.S. Finance company AIG. Air Ivoire was forced to cease operations a number of times due to technical and financial difficulties.
Security and safety concerns
There is rampant corruption among airport officials in Ivory Coast. Immigration officials have been known to ask for bribes to 'expedite' processing the forms, or to offer to fill out the customs forms prior to demanding a 'fee' for doing so. The anti-French sentiment, peaking in early 2003, spilled over onto airports when 1,500 French nationals were trapped in Abidjan's airport by an anti-French mob.
Airports - with paved runways
total:
7
10,000 ft (3,048 m) and over:
1
8,000 to 9,999 ft (2,438 to 3,047 m):
2
5,000 to 7,999 ft (1,524 to 2,437 m):
4 (1999 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways
total:
27
5,000 to 7,999 ft (1,524 to 2,437 m):
8
3,000 to 4,999 ft (914 to 1,523 m):
12
under 3,000 ft (914 m):
9 (1999 est.)
See also
References
This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the CIA World Factbook.
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