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Peru to finish building Lima's electric train - Private companies dismissed

Living in Peru
Israel Ruiz

After years of postponing the announcement of the company that is to continue building Lima's electric train, Peru's Ministry of Transportation and Communications has announced that it will do the job.

Several bidding processes were held to grant the concession of the electric train to international companies but a concessionaire was never agreed upon.

In an emergency decree set forth by Garcia's administration, Peru's Ministry of Finance was told to release the funds to have the train system finished.

Furthermore, the decree stated that Provías Nacional would be in charge of completing construction. The train is to be built from Atocongo Bridge until Grau Avenue in downtown Lima.

Once finished, the train track will be 19.9 kilometers long and will run through the districts of Villa El Salvador, Villa María del Triunfo, San Juan de Miraflores, Surco, Surquillo, San Borja, San Luis, La Victoria and Lima.

It was reported that since the State would be in charge of running it, fares would be as low as 1.80 soles.

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# Rachel in Peru says :
4 March, 2009 [ 20:55 ]

Hahahaha...This must be the joke of the week, right?

No, make that the joke of the quarter century!

I don't think anyone is holding their breathe on this one.

Hopefully they'll do what they say and do it the right way while they're at it.

# Kenneth says :
4 March, 2009 [ 21:19 ]

"Once finished, the train will be 19.9 kilometers long....." - that must be the absolutely longest train in the world!!!!!

# Bruno says :
4 March, 2009 [ 22:10 ]

even if all this goes through and they do what they say they will just imagine how it's gonna look after a year of using it. it's gonna be just like all the other buses in this city. dirty, smelly and broken seats and windows. i hope that's not the case though.

# Paul says :
4 March, 2009 [ 22:23 ]

Something fishy here. 

Howcome they couldnt agree with the private companies?  Normally I am in favour of keeping such services in house, but in the case of Peru, almost everything kept in the public sector is a bit of a disaster riddled with corruption.  There is no incentive towards efficiency .

I predict... if it gets completed it will suffer from long term under funding, be unreliable, become rundown, turn into a political football  and be full of bureacrats.  The civil servants will make money from back handed selling off private contrsuction contracts. 

Why expand the public sector when the current one is completely rundown, chaotic, underfunded and out of control.

Go on Alan.. prove me wrong.

# Stu Booth says :
4 March, 2009 [ 23:57 ]

Ha ha ha ha, what a joke

# David says :
5 March, 2009 [ 07:31 ]

Every major project that a City/State requires is done with outside contracting. City personal just don't have the expertise needed for a job of this magnitude.

Then wait for the first derailment and who are they going to blame it on? The plans the former contractors left behind.

# Rachel in Peru says :
5 March, 2009 [ 09:41 ]

Another question to ask is if they will be using the same engineering from 20+ years ago?

Engineering has made many advancements since then.

# David N says :
5 March, 2009 [ 11:35 ]

Peru makes DEvancements, not advancements. By the time work gets underway, Peruvian technology would have regressed to 1920s levels.

# Editor says :
5 March, 2009 [ 12:05 ]

LOL! Thanks Kenneth.

# Kenneth says :
5 March, 2009 [ 12:09 ]

Hahaha!! Israel, do you mean to tell that the train will not be 19.9 km's long?? What a disappointment!!! ;)

# Israel says :
5 March, 2009 [ 12:32 ]

Don't lose hope yet, you never know what Peru could do.

We hold records for the biggest ceviche in the world, the biggest chocoteja in the world, the biggest water fountaina park in the world, the biggest pair of pants in the world ..........

# SA says :
5 March, 2009 [ 13:31 ]

I will believe it when I see it.  Sadly, the existing train rarely runs.  I remember so many in Lima saying that Alan started it and did not finish it.  I hope tat this is not history repeating itself.  I pray that Lima would have a truely modern efficient transportation system for the public.  I pray that this will be secure also.  If these things are done then it could transform southern Lima and change the lives of many.  I can only dream of this.

Regretably, I have little if any confidence in the Peruvian government's ability to do this based upon their past work.  Sadly, many of the comments posted here are true and justified.

I will, however, continue to dream of such a modern train in Peru.

# David N says :
5 March, 2009 [ 22:45 ]

David N says :
5 March, 2009 [ 11:35 ]

Peru makes DEvancements, not advancements. By the time work gets underway, Peruvian technology would have regressed to 1920s levels


>>AH YES, NICE TRY IMPOSTER, BUT HIJACKING SOMEONE'S MONIKER AND IMPERSONATING THEM IS PATHETIC.

As for the subject at hand...there's nothing wrong with the government taking another shot at mass transit in Lima. Anything to put a few combis and taxis out of business.

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