It was the year of 1821 when Costa Rica got its independence from Spain, as a plan to develop the economy the new government stated giving free land in the Central Valley, an area with a very rich soil due to its volcanic origins and a perfect altitude and weather for this product originally brought in from Jamaica at the beginning of the 1800's to all of those who would grow coffee a product in a great demand in Europe and the United States.

As a new, faster and more economic way of exporting the product to these markets, the idea of opening a Railroad to the Caribbean from the Central Vallery and later to the Pacific became a priority, we will attemp to follow their first steps on the development of this project in four different segments.

  1. Atlantic Railroad.
  2. Pacific Railroad.
  3. The Fusion of the Railroads( Fecosa ).
  4. Instituto Costarricense de Ferrocarriles ( Incofer ).

It was the year 1866 when Dr. José Maria Castro Madriz started with the first steps on the construction of the Atlantic railroad, although the task could not be achieve it is written in the history books as the first attempt on this project. In the year 1871 during Mr. Tomas Guardia Gutiérrez government, a contract was made to start the construction of a railroad from Alajuela to Limón passing through San José, the costruction of a railroad from section from Alajuela to San José was finished and operated in the beginning of 1873 and later contined until Cartago with a total of 42 Kms. It should be mentioned that all the necessary materials and the equipment were brought in from Puntarenas to Alajuela by oxen pulled carts. The Limón section was stopped in 1874 at the Matina river with 35 Kms. due to insufficient funds and reinitiated 1875 up to the Pacuare river.

By the year 1879, a new contract was made to extend the railway to Carrillo at the Sucio River, been finished in 1882 and through the Soto - Keith contract it was authorized to the Ferrocarriles de Costa Rica company to extend the already existing railways: Alajuela - Cartago and Río Sucio. This way the railroad will be from Limón to Alajuela, passing through Río Sucio, Carrillo, Cartago, San José y Alajuela.

 

However, this project was not concluded due to the difficulties that the Sucio River presented, and it was constructed from Cartago at the side of Reventazón River and connecting with the already existing railway close to the town of Siquirres. This way the section Siquirres - Rio Sucio stay as an additional line nowadays known as the old line, later was wxpanded until the Rio Amarillo, been these the railways for exportation on the rairoads of that times.

The section Alajuela - Limón started operations on December 7. 1890 during administration of Mr. José Joaquín Rodríguez ( 1890 - 1894 ) .

During the presidential period of Mr. Rafael Iglesias Castro ( 1894 - 1902 ), more specifically on September 4th, 1897 Mr. H. Lynn, contractor for the railroad in a symbolic meeting gave the initial work for the historic and Big National Enterprise.

The Work has been going on with great enthusiasm until arriving at the side of the Río Grande de Tárcoles where they were suspend due to the need for the construction of a bridge 208 mts long stanting at a height of 93 mts adove the river level, to be able to continue over the obtacle that the big canyon represented, It was until 192 when the North American Company of Milliken Brothers finished the constuction of the bridge at a cost of $131.981.26 (Gold Costa Rican pesos at time).

 

The ideal primal construction contemplated a rail way from San José to Tivives for the original ammount of $2.998.971.43 (Americal gold coins) the first 67 kms from San José to Orotina were constructed with a cost of ¢6.500.000.00 colones, including all the equipment contracted.

Due to political reasons the work was paralyzed at the beginning of the new gobernment and reinitiated later but with the political influence and personal interests the railway was deviated and taken into El Roble, passing throungh inadequate areas. The big number of technical errors, the inadequate areas and final price of the work, that required since then several changes previous to the electrification the was needed for the new era of the railroad.

At Mr. Ascensión Esquivel ( 1902 - 1906 ) administration on January 23rd of 1903, the first Railroad offices were open to the public in a second floor of the Alambrada building in San José. The Railroad was Officially inaugurated on July 23rd 1910. When the first locomotive Maria Cecilia departed from Puntarenas to San Jo´se with passengers and cargo.

En un mensaje al congreso del señor presidente Don Rafael dice:

" Una de las obras cuya ejecución habrá de servir de poderoso auxilio al desarrollo de la riqueza publica, es, sin duda alguna la del ferrocarril al Pacifico, pues ella esta llamada a habilitar zonas feraces de nuestro territorio a ensanchar y hacer mas expeditas nuestras comunicaciones con aquel litoral y a establecer en fin un nuevo transito ferroviario a través del Continente."

Spanish