SNTF
≈ 4 min read
Names in other languages
No names in other languages are held for this entry yet.
Article bodies are English and are not machine-translated. A name in another language is not a translation of the article.
The SNTF ( , ; , ) is Algeria's national railway operator. SNTF, a state-owned company, currently has a monopoly over Algeria's rail network of , and it is currently utilising of that (about 90 per cent). Out of the total railway network, are ( of these are electrified) and are narrow gauge (as of 2008).
The SNTF ( , ; , ) is Algeria's national railway operator. SNTF, a state-owned company, currently has a monopoly over Algeria's rail network of , and it is currently utilising of that (about 90 per cent). Out of the total railway network, are ( of these are electrified) and are narrow gauge (as of 2008).
History
The beginnings
train station (19th century postcard)]] The history of the railway in Algeria began with the colonisation of the country by France. On 8 April 1857, a decree ordered the creation of of railways, beginning with the construction of a standard gauge line from Algiers to Blida, which started on 12 December 1859. The French private company Compagnie des chemins de fer algériens started working on the line with the help of the French army on 11 July 1860. Around the same time, the company obtained permission to create an Oran-Sig line and a Constantine-Skikda line. However, due to economic difficulties, only the Algiers-Blida line was finished, and it was subsequently opened to the public on 8 September 1862. Afterwards, 5 other companies started the construction of new lines: La Compagnie Bône - Guelma (BG) La Compagnie de l'Est Algérien (EA) (Eastern Algeria) La Compagnie Paris - Lyon - Méditerranée (PLM) La Compagnie de l'Ouest Algérien (OA) (Western Algeria) La Compagnie Franco - Algérienne (FA) Between 1857 and 1878, the following lines (or parts of them) were finished, totalling , which exceeded initial expectations: Annaba - Berrahal Annaba - Bouchegouf - Guelma El Khroub - Oued Zenati Constantine - Skikda Constantine - Sétif Algiers - Thénia Algiers - Oran Arzew - La Macta - Mohammedia Mohammadia - Mécheria Oued Tlélat-Sidi Bel Abbès
Post-Independence
On 30 March 1976, the SNCFA split into the following companies: SNTF, for the operation and maintenance of the lines; SNERIF, for the renewal and extension of the network; SIF, for the engineering and modernisation of the infrastructure. This reorganisation was intended to improve the railway network and services in Algeria, however it proved unsuccessful, and the two latter companies were reintegrated into the SNTF. In 1980, a convention for the relations between the Algerian state and the SNTF was signed, officially called decree N° 88-128 of 28 June 1988. This convention is still in effect and regulates the salaries of the workers and the maintenance of the infrastructure, and bears similarities with the June 1959 convention. In December 1990, the SNTF became an Établissement Public à caractère Industriel et Commercial (EPIC).
Recent investments
Large investment programs were launched after 1980 to improve the Algerian railway network, such as the construction of the Jijel-Ramdane-Djamel line ( ), the Béni Saf area railway, providing transportation for its cement plant ( ), and in the Saïda (23 km) and Aïn Touta areas ( ). In addition to that, about of track were replaced, both the track ballast and the railway ties, as well as the duplication of the tracks of the Rocade Nord in Algiers (about ). Many train stations all over the country were modernised or even reconstructed, and there were also many improvements to the railways in the vicinities of Algiers and Annaba. A new, separate organisation, Anesrif, has been created to manage infrastructure investment whilst SNTF concentrates on day-to-day operations. Anesrif has awarded a series of contracts to build new infrastructure and upgrade existing lines, including the construction of a single-track line from Relizane to Tiaret and Tissemsilt, forming part of the High Plateau line.
Rolling stock
As of 2017, SNTF's rolling stock inventory consisted of: 258 Locomotives 10,129 Railway cars 380 Passenger cars 17 Alstom Coradia - built at De Dietrich Ferroviaire plant in Reichshoffen, France 17 CAF TDMD S/599 64 Stadler Flirt File:SNTF ZZe-02 - Metz - 2018.jpg|Mainline train Alstom Coradia ZZe-02 File:Train Automotor diésel ZZ 2202 de la SNTF (Algérie).jpg|CAF Regional rail "Inter-villes" Autorail TDMD S/599 File:Swiss Flirt for SNTF Algeria.jpg|Commuter rail Stadler Flirt File:SNTF Train in El Asnam, on the Algiers-Skikda line.jpg|Locomotive GT36HCW with passenger cars File:SNTF Class 060DR, Gare d'Oran.jpg
Affiliations
The SNTF is a member of the following organisations: African Union of Railways Arab Union of Railways Comité du Transport Ferroviaire Maghrebin (CTFM) (has its headquarters in Algiers) International Union of Railways (UIC)
External links
The Railways of Morocco, Tunisia, and Algeria (Internet Archive)
Text derived from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1372538418 under CC BY-SA 4.0; modifications have been made.