CARTAGENA TO LOS NIETOS - FEVE
CARTAGENA - LA UNION - EL ESTRECHO - LLANO DEL BEAL - LOS NIETOS
The FC de Cartagena a La Union y Los Blancos was of 1067mm gauge. It was built between 1874 and 1897 by British and subsequently Belgian companies to serve the many local mines. The mining activities slumped in the first quarter of the twentieth century, and the line was taken over and run by the state in 1931.
As freight declined, so passenger traffic increased, and in 1972/3 the line was reincarnated as a metre gauge passenger line running from Cartagena to Los Nietos, the section from El Estrecho to Los Blancos being abandoned, and the new terminal at Los Nietos finally opening in 1976.
Today the line is run by a mixture of traditional M.A.N. and newer railcars, and is thriving, many trains leaving Cartagena with standing room only, a situation which is helped by the very low fares. A mainly half hourly service is run. In the winter, only alternate trains run beyond El Estrecho to Los Nietos.
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