Countries of the World/COUNTRYS.BIN/dp/0016/00163.txt

Text File | 1991-06-24 | 29KB | 471 lines

$Unique_ID{COW00163}
$Pretitle{273}
$Title{Argentina
Chapter 3C.   Transportation}
$Subtitle{}
$Author{Robert S. North}
$Affiliation{HQ, Department of the Army}
$Subject{percent
area
export
million
crops
increased
agricultural
government
prices
total}
$Date{1987}
$Log{Figure 7.*0016301.scf
}
Country:     Argentina
Book:        Argentina, A Country Study
Author:      Robert S. North
Affiliation: HQ, Department of the Army
Date:        1987

Chapter 3C.   Transportation

     In the mid-1980s the transportation system was the most extensive in
Latin America (see fig. 7). Transportation played a key role in the
integration of the interior provinces into the national economy and the
development of the export sector. The surface transportation of freight was
carried 49 percent by road, 18 percent by river and coastal transport, 22
percent by natural gas and petroleum pipelines, and only 11 percent by the
railroads. Export products, on the other hand, were transported 91 percent by
oceangoing vessels, about 5 percent through oil and gas ducts, 3 percent by
trucks, and barely 1 percent by a combination of rail, air, and other methods
of transportation. In 1983 the transportation sector contributed approximately
US$7 billion to the gross National product (GNP-see Glossary), and freight
revenues were estimated at US$12 billion.

     In 1983 Argentina possessed six separate railroad lines that extended
over 34,100 kilometers throughout the country. Most lines radiated from the
ports in the cities of Buenos Aires, Rosario, Santa Fe, and Bahia Blanca on
track that was not of unifrom gauge; four lines were of broad gauge, one of
standard gauge, and another of narrow gauge track. Consequently, passenger and
cargo traffic traveling between regions generally had to be routed through
Buenos Aires and transferred to another line with a different gauge of track.
About 19 million tons of freight and 300 million passengers were transported
annually on the railroad system. Approximately 47 percent of the total
railroad network was considered to be in good condition, while the remainder
was in fair to poor condition. Moreover, continued operating deficits,
featherbedding, poor maintenance, and outdated equipment constrained the
efficient operation of the railroad system, which was managed by the state-
owned enterprise, FA. FA planned to standardize the rolling stock, speed up
the process of maintenance and repairs, increase the overall use of the
system, and convert part of the system to electrification. Any improvements
would necessarily take place over an extended period, however, owing to
government budgetary constraints.

[See Figure 7.: Transportation System, 1983]

     The Buenos Aires subway system provided an important means of
transportation throughout the metropolitan area. It began operating in 1913
and was the first such system in Latin America. In 1983 it extended over 34
kilometers on a network that consisted of five subway lines. Between 1960 and
1980 the number of passengers declined from 300 million to about 201 million.
In 1982 the number of annual riders had dropped to less than 182 million.

     The road network extended over 1 million kilometers, of which about
55,000 kilometers consisted of paved roads. In 1982 there were about 5 million
vehicles in use. In major urban centers the preferred method of transportation
was by private automobile, which accounted for more than 38 percent of total
passenger traffic annually. Buses and trains carried 37 and 15 percent,
respectively, while other means of transportation carried the remaining
passengers. The government planned to rehabilitate part of the existing road
network; expand the major interurban corridor that stretched from La Plata to
Buenos Aires, Rosario, Santa Fe, and Cordoba; upgrade the unpaved portion of
the national road network; and improve access highways between remote
provinces and major urban centers.

     In early 1983 the merchant fleet consisted of nearly 200 ships with a
total capacity estimated at 3.1 million gross tons, of which the state-owned
merchant marine fleet accounted for 23 percent of the total. Some 60 tankers
accounted for almost one-third of the total tonnage, about 20 grain ships
comprised an additional 30 percent, and other kinds of freighters accounted
for the remaining tonnage. The state oil company operated 25 tankers. In 1983
about 42 percent of Argentine imports and 13 percent of its exports were
carried by Argentine vessels.

     Principal ports on the Atlantic coast included Bahia Blanca, Comodoro
Rivadavia, and Quequen. Major ports on the Rio de la Plata included Buenos
Aires and La Plata. The most important ports along the Rio Parana were San
Nicolas, Campana, Rosario, San Lorenzo, and Santa Fe. Over three-fourths of
the country's international freight tonnage was handled in these 10 ports.
The port of Buenos Aires, alone, accounted for about 40 percent of the total.
A majority of ports specialized in the handling of a particular cargo; Buenos
Aires handled most kinds of cargo and grains. Bahia Blanca, Quequen, Rosario,
and Santa Fe primarily handled grain. Comodoro Rivadavia, San Nicolas, San
Lorenzo, and La Plata primarily handled mineral and petroleum products.

     River transport operated largely on the 3,000-kilometer navigable inland
water network consisting of the Rio de la Plata estuary and its tributaries,
the Rio Parana, Rio Uruguay, Rio Paraguay, and Rio Alto Parana. These
important trade routes generally excluded large vessels or their loading
capacity was restricted because of shallow depths and silting channels.

     Owing to vast territorial expanses between urban centers, a large
potential existed for expanding the domestic air transportation system.
Although domestic air service developed rapidly over the past three decades,
only about 6.4 percent of total interurban passenger traffic and 0.02 percent
of all freight were carried by airplanes. The most important state-owned
airline, Argentine Airlines, maintained an extensive domestic air service
network that linked all provincial capitals and many other cities with Buenos
Aires. In 1983 about 50 percent of all domestic air routes were operated by
Argentine Airlines. Other smaller national, state-owned airlines that provided
similar services included Austral Airlines, Air Chaco, and State Airlines. A
1983 law required that all international air freight that was destined for the
provinces had to be unloaded in Buenos Aires and thereafter carried on
national airlines.

     In 1982 approximately 4.7 million passengers were transported by national
air carriers, of which about 43 percent traveled on international flights.
Argentine Airlines was estimated to have flown almost 5.2 billion
passenger-kilometers, of which 54 percent were international.

     Argentina had over 200 airports and landing fields in 1982; of these, 25
were used for international flights. The Ezeiza International Airport, located
to the south of the city of Buenos Aires was the largest. The busiest airport
was the Aeroparque, located in downtown Buenos Aires, which primarily served
all domestic air routes and international flights to Uruguay and Paraguay.

Agriculture

Public Agricultural Policies

     Argentina was endowed with a vast agricultural potential, which derived
from some of the richest soils in the world and climate conditions that were
conducive to the cultivation of most temperate zone crops (see Topography and
Climate, ch. 2). In the mid-1980s agriculture continued to be the backbone of
the nation's economy. The country was self-sufficient in almost every category
of agricultural production and was a major exporter of grains, oilseeds, and
beef. Agricultural production alone accounted for over 15 percent of GDP.
Associated agroindustrial activities in processing, transport, sales, and
other services raised the total share of agriculture-based output in GDP to
about 30 percent. The agricultural sector contributed food and labor to the
industrial u