Puente Alsina railway station
Encyclopedia
Puente Alsina railway station, (Estación Puente Alsina in Spanish
) is an Argentine
railway station in the Greater Buenos Aires
neighbourhood of Valentín Alsina
in the Lanús
partido
of Buenos Aires Province
. The neighbourhood was named after Valentín Alsina
, a lawyer and politician who in 1852 had a brief term of office as governor of the city of Buenos Aires. The station takes its name from the nearby bridge of Puente Alsina over the Riachuelo River
. On the other side of this bridge lies the neighbourhood of Nueva Pompeya
within the city of Buenos Aires
.
Built by the British-owned Buenos Aires Midland Railway
(BAM), the station was opened in about 1910 as the terminus for their metre gauge
line to Carhué
, in the southwest of the province. The original plan was to boost the importance of the line by extending it from Puente Alsina into the centre of the nearby city. However, the fact that the company held a concession from the province, meant that it was unable to enter the Federal Capital. When the entire Argentine railway network was nationalized
in 1948, during Juan Peron
's presidency, the BAM became part of the state-owned company Ferrocarril General Manuel Belgrano
.
As part of the privatization of the Argentine railways in 1990’s the private company Metropolitano
was granted a concession to operate the service, part of the Linea Belgrano Sur
, as far as General Belgrano
, from 1 May 1994. In spite of the large state subsidies received by the company, a serious decline in the standard of its services led to the concession being revoked on 22 May 2007, after which the line has been run by UGOFE
.
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
) is an 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 station in the Greater Buenos Aires
Greater Buenos Aires
Greater Buenos Aires is the generic denomination to refer to the megalopolis comprising the autonomous city of Buenos Aires and the conurbation around it, over the province of Buenos Aires—namely the adjacent 24 partidos or municipalities—which nonetheless do not constitute a single administrative...
neighbourhood of Valentín Alsina
Valentín Alsina, Buenos Aires
Valentín Alsina is a city in the Lanús Partido of Buenos Aires Province, Argentina. It is located next to Buenos Aires city in the Gran Buenos Aires urban area....
in the Lanús
Lanús Partido
Lanús is a partido in Buenos Aires Province, Argentina, located at the south of the Gran Buenos Aires urban conglomerate neighbouring Buenos Aires city.The partido has an area of , and a population of 453,500 . Its capital is the city of Lanús....
partido
Partido
A partido is an administrative subdivision of the . They are formally considered to be a single municipality, and usually contain one or more population centers...
of Buenos Aires Province
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...
. The neighbourhood was named after Valentín Alsina
Valentín Alsina
*For the city, see Valentín Alsina, Buenos Aires.Valentín Alsina was an Argentine lawyer and politician.Alsina was born in Buenos Aires and studied law at the University of Córdoba. He occupied diverse posts in government, and had a successful civil career as an advocate and professor of law at...
, a lawyer and politician who in 1852 had a brief term of office as governor of the city of Buenos Aires. The station takes its name from the nearby bridge of Puente Alsina over the Riachuelo River
Matanza River
The Matanza River is known by several names, including, in Spanish, Río de la Matanza , Río Matanza , Río Mataderos , Río de la Manzana , El Riachuelo , or simply Riachuelo...
. On the other side of this bridge lies the neighbourhood of Nueva Pompeya
Nueva Pompeya
Nueva Pompeya is a neighbourhood in the city of Buenos Aires, Argentina. Located in the South side, it has long been one of the city's proletarian districts steeped in the tradition of tango and one where many of the first tangos were written and performed....
within the city of 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...
.
Buenos Aires Midland Railway
The Buenos Aires Midland Railway was a British-owned railway company which operated in Argentina where it was known as Ferrocarril Midland de Buenos Aires. The company built and operated the line between Estación Puente Alsina and Carhué in Buenos Aires Province...
(BAM), the station was opened in about 1910 as the terminus for their metre gauge
Metre gauge
Metre gauge refers to narrow gauge railways and tramways with a track gauge of . In some African, American and Asian countries it is the main gauge. In Europe it has been used for local railways in France, Germany, and Belgium, most of which were closed down in mid 20th century. Only in Switzerland...
line to Carhué
Carhué
Carhué is an Argentine town in the Province of Buenos Aires, head of the Municipality of Adolfo Alsina. Carhué is about 561 km to the west of the city of La Plata and about 520 km from Buenos Aires...
, in the southwest of the province. The original plan was to boost the importance of the line by extending it from Puente Alsina into the centre of the nearby city. However, the fact that the company held a concession from the province, meant that it was unable to enter the Federal Capital. When the entire Argentine railway network was nationalized
Railway Nationalisation in Argentina
In 1948, during President Juan Perón’s first term of office, the seven British-owned and three French-owned railway companies then operating in Argentina, were purchased by the state...
in 1948, during Juan Peron
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 presidency, the BAM became part of the state-owned company Ferrocarril General Manuel Belgrano
Ferrocarril General Manuel Belgrano
Ferrocarril General Manuel Belgrano , named after the Argentine politician and military leader Manuel Belgrano, was one of the six state-owned Argentine railway companies formed after President Juan Perón's nationalisation of the railway network in 1948...
.
As part of the privatization of the Argentine railways in 1990’s the private company Metropolitano
Metropolitano
Metropolitano S.A. was a privately owned consortium formed in 1994 to take over concessions granted by the Argentine government, through the state-owned company FEMESA as part of railway privatisation during the presidency of Carlos Menem for the operation of commuter rail services in Buenos Aires...
was granted a concession to operate the service, part of the Linea Belgrano Sur
Línea Belgrano Sur (Buenos Aires)
The Belgrano Sur line is a commuter rail service in the city of Buenos Aires, Argentina run by the private company Transportes Metropolitanos Belgrano Sur S.A. , a subsidiary of Metropolitano, between 1 May 1994 and 22 May 2007...
, as far as General Belgrano
General Belgrano, Buenos Aires
General Belgrano is a town in Buenos Aires Province, Argentina. It is the head town of the General Belgrano Partido....
, from 1 May 1994. In spite of the large state subsidies received by the company, a serious decline in the standard of its services led to the concession being revoked on 22 May 2007, after which the line has been run by UGOFE
Unidad de Gestión Operativa Ferroviaria de Emergencia
Unidad de Gestión Operativa Ferroviaria de Emergencia is a temporary consortium of Argentine companies formed on 7 January 2005 by Ferrovías, Metrovías and Trenes de Buenos Aires to take over the running of commuter railway services in Buenos Aires after concessions granted to Metropolitano in...
.