Ferrocarril General Urquiza (FCGU), named after the Argentine general and politician Justo José de Urquiza

Justo José de Urquiza

Justo José de Urquiza y García was an Argentine general and politician. He was president of the Argentine Confederation from 1854 to 1860.He was governor of Entre Ríos during the government of Juan Manuel de Rosas, governor of Buenos Aires with powers delegated from the other provinces...

, was one of the six state-owned Argentine

Argentina

Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...

 railway companies formed after President Juan Perón

Juan Perón

Juan Domingo Perón was an Argentine military officer, and politician. Perón was three times elected as President of Argentina though he only managed to serve one full term, after serving in several government positions, including the Secretary of Labor and the Vice Presidency...

's nationalisation of the railway network in 1948. The six companies were managed by Ferrocarriles Argentinos

Ferrocarriles Argentinos

Ferrocarriles Argentinos was a public company that managed the entire Argentine railway system for nearly 45 years. It was formed in 1948 when all the private railway companies were nationalised during Perón's first presidential term, and transformed into the Empresa de Ferrocarriles del Estado...

 which was later broken up during the process of railway privatisation

Railway Privatisation in Argentina

Following a prolonged period of hyperinflation in the 1980s, accompanied by a steep increase in fiscal deficit and a sharp fall in reserves, the Argentine government, under the presidency of Carlos Menem from 1989, initiated a series of neoliberal reforms which included the privatisation of...

 beginning in 1991 during Carlos Menem

Carlos Menem

Carlos Saúl Menem is an Argentine politician who was President of Argentina from 1989 to 1999. He is currently an Argentine National Senator for La Rioja Province.-Early life:...

's presidency.

The FCGU incorporated the British-owned Entre Ríos Railway

Entre Ríos Railway

The Entre Ríos Railway was a British-owned railway company that built and operated a railway network in Entre Ríos Province, between the rivers Uruguay and Paraná, in Argentina...

 and Argentine North Eastern Railway

Argentine North Eastern Railway

The Argentine North Eastern Railway was a British-owned railway company, founded in 1887, that operated a railway network in the provinces of Entre Ríos, Corrientes and Misiones in Argentina...

 companies and its principal lines departed from Federico Lacroze railway terminus in Buenos Aires

Buenos Aires

Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...

 to the north east through the provinces of Buenos Aires

Buenos Aires Province

The Province of Buenos Aires is the largest and most populous province of Argentina. It takes the name from the city of Buenos Aires, which used to be the provincial capital until it was federalized in 1880...

, Entre Ríos

Entre Ríos Province

Entre Ríos is a northeastern province of Argentina, located in the Mesopotamia region. It borders the provinces of Buenos Aires , Corrientes and Santa Fe , and Uruguay in the east....

, Corrientes

Corrientes Province

Corrientes is a province in northeast Argentina, in the Mesopotamia region. It is surrounded by : Paraguay, the province of Misiones, Brazil, Uruguay, and the provinces of Entre Rios, Santa Fe and Chaco.-History:...

, and Misiones

Misiones Province

Misiones is one of the 23 provinces of Argentina, located in the northeastern corner of the country in the Mesopotamiсa region. It is surrounded by Paraguay to the northwest, Brazil to the north, east and south, and Corrientes Province of Argentina to the southwest.- History :The province was...

.

With the dissolution of Ferrocarriles Argentinos

Ferrocarriles Argentinos

Ferrocarriles Argentinos was a public company that managed the entire Argentine railway system for nearly 45 years. It was formed in 1948 when all the private railway companies were nationalised during Perón's first presidential term, and transformed into the Empresa de Ferrocarriles del Estado...

, the interurban and long-distance services have ceased to run, but in recent years, Trenes Especiales Argentinos

Trenes Especiales Argentinos

Trenes Especiales Argentinos is a private railway company in Argentina set up during railway privatisation from 1991.From its base at Federico Lacroze Station in Buenos Aires, TEA operates long-distance passenger rail services into northern Argentina to the city of Posadas in Misiones Province on...

 have returned the Gran Capitán (The Great Captain), a passenger rail service from Buenos Aires to Posadas

Posadas, Misiones

Posadas is the capital city of the Argentine province of Misiones, located at the south of the province, on the left-hand shore of the Paraná River, opposite Encarnación, Paraguay. The city has an area of 965 km² and a population of 323,739 ....

, capital of the Province

Provinces of Argentina

Argentina is subdivided into twenty-three provinces and one autonomous city...

 of Misiones

Misiones Province

Misiones is one of the 23 provinces of Argentina, located in the northeastern corner of the country in the Mesopotamiсa region. It is surrounded by Paraguay to the northwest, Brazil to the north, east and south, and Corrientes Province of Argentina to the southwest.- History :The province was...

. Some interurban services in the Province of Entre Ríos

Entre Ríos Province

Entre Ríos is a northeastern province of Argentina, located in the Mesopotamia region. It borders the provinces of Buenos Aires , Corrientes and Santa Fe , and Uruguay in the east....

 also do exist. The transport of freight, previously also administered by Ferrocarriles Argentinos, is handled by the Brazilian company América Latina Logística, who also operates the cargo shipment of Ferrocarril General San Martín

Ferrocarril General San Martín

Ferrocarril General San Martín , named after the former Argentine general José de San Martín, was one of the six state-owned Argentine railway companies formed after President Juan Perón's nationalisation of the railway network in 1948...

.

Suburban branch

In the metropolitan sector of the City of Buenos Aires there is an electrified commuter branch that operates from the Federico Lacroze terminus in the Buenos Aires neighbourhood of Chacarita, to the General Lemos station in suburban San Miguel

San Miguel, Buenos Aires

San Miguel is situated in the northwest region of Greater Buenos Aires, 30 km from the capital . It is the head town of the San Miguel Partido. Since the early 2000s its been a part of Greater Buenos Aires. According to the 2001 census the number of inhabitants was about 157.532...

.