Railroad Arica - La Paz, Tourist attraction in Arica.. Arica - CHILE

Direccion: Av. Brasil 117, Maestranza Chinchorro, Arica
Phone: +56 2 25855360

The 1904 peace treaty between Chile and Bolivia eliminated that nation's access to the Pacific Ocean; In compensation, Chile built a railroad between Arica and La Paz, which was to serve Bolivian foreign trade traffic.

The work was a serious technological challenge, since the route had to overcome a steep slope, the largest that any railway at that time had overcome. The difficulty was resolved with the use of a rack system on the steepest section of the terrain and the line could be opened in 1913.

The Arica-La Paz railway was built by Chile in its 440 km extension to the Bolivian capital.

The Arica-Visviri section was incorporated into EFE in 1943, which was administered until 1997, when it was leased to the Sociedad Administradora del Ferrocarril de Arica a La Paz S.A. (AFCALP), with Bolivian capital.

The latter filed for bankruptcy in December 2005, ending the lease in March 2006. Since then, it has been out of operation, and EFE has regained control of the railway.