Despite certain countries smear campaign against Eritrea on political reasons to hamper the flow of tourists to the country, the number of steam enthusiast and other railway fans is increasing, says Mr. Amanuel Ghebresillasie, Project Coordinator at the Eritrean Rail Way. “In the past three months of 2009, the Eritrean Rail Way received three batches of railway enthusiast, each batch on the average comprised of 35 foreigners who came from different parts of the globe. These steam engine enthusiasts normally stay onboard from 8 up to 10 hours a day in a week in the trains. This helped the authority to generate hard currency and boost the tourism activities in the country.” Beside the antique steam engines trains, the rail line to the port city of Massawa is punctuated by magnificent sceneries of mountain ranges, valleys and gorges, scenic landscapes, steep grades and vegetations. And this adds color to the journey, says Mr. Hagos Weldu, head of investment and promotion section at the Ministry of Tourism.

The Eritrean Railway is also organizing Sunday programs to promote domestic tourism and the response has been encouraging. To that end, to accommodate the increasing demands, the administration is rehabilitating railcars (a.k.a Litorina) and some of steam engines are functioning when demands for chartering rises, he says. “Sunday Program, a half-day long journey which starts in Asmara and ends in Nefasit, is designed to cater steam engine journey at a reasonable cost,” he said.

Though the steam engine enthusiast begun to visit the Eritrean Railway in 2000, followed the completion of Asmara-Massawa rail network in February 2003, the influx of enthusiasts increased greatly. This was due to the prominence of the Eritrean railway in the steam engine community, Mr. Amanuel said. “Eritrea often stood as one of the best destination for steam engine experiences and it is of no wonder to find Eritrea at the top ten destinations in the global steam engine community,” he noted.

“The Eritrean railway journey has been of a trio experience to many visitors,” says Mr. Amanuel Ghebresillasie. Primarily it has been a showcase to the Eritrean beauty of photogenic landscapes, secondly the century old authentic steam engines staffed by a skilled manpower, some of them well above retirement age and their workmanship; thirdly the fascinating tunnels, bridges and the existence of structures which eases severe gradients. The thirty plus tunnels in which the longest being 372 meter and the shortest 35 meters; 65 bridges and viaducts and an incline of 1:30 is an engineering master piece, he added.

The Eritrean rail way is equipped with different kinds of locomotives and railcars. Four ‘Mallet 442’ trains built by Ansaldo in Genova in 1938 are sill existing and three of them are in running order. These are the prime main-line steam locomotives of the railway, and are in high demand for tourist services. Built by Ansaldo in 1915, the antique true Mallet locomotive ‘Mallet 440’ has been enthusiast natural choice and still is in good shape. Also the administration possesses six small standard shunter locomotives trains named as Breda built between 1927 and 1937 by the firm of Breda in Milan used for pulling trains for short distances. Besides, the Eritrean Rail Way owns two diesel locomotives that have been of significant help during the rehabilitation process and two Fiat built railcars which are in working order. Moreover, there are several passenger cars, freight cars and most of them awaiting restoration. “As most of their spare part is obsolete, the railway technicians modify the same for use in which the creativity and innovations keep the Eritrean Railway afloat” says Mr. Amanuel Ghebresillasie.

The construction of the Eritrean Railway was commenced in 1887 and was finalized 41 years after under the supervision of an Italian engineer Mr. Emelio Oliver. The total length of the railway from the port city Massawa to Agordat via Asmara and Keren was 306.4 kms. Its route ascends from sea level -Massawa- to an altitude of 2394 meters in Asmara and descends to an altitude of 606 meters in Agordat. These sharp fluctuations in altitude within a short distance coupled with the beautiful scenery make the journey so captivating. “This [The Eritrean Railway] is one of the most spectacular rail lines in the world, and climbs almost 2400 metres in only just over 100 kilometres amidst breathtaking mountainous scenery,” wrote worldsteam.com, a website dedicated to steam engine enthusiasts.

The Eritrean Rail Way had a positive impact on the Eritrean economic activities. For instance the Massawa – Asmara line was used to transport 200.000 tones of freight per year. At its peak 38 trains run in a span of 24 hours in each direction carrying large quantities of supplies for the Italian war effort in Ethiopia. In the year 1965 the line was carrying nearly half a million passengers a year.

The Eritrean Railway gradually weakened and was stopped operation in 1975 and finally was closed in January1976. Most of its equipments was dismantled and sold by the Ethiopian regime. Its iron rails and wooden trucks tore up to build fortifications and trenches; well equipped workshops were dismantled and plundered, and its rolling stock was left to dilapidation. Steel sleepers salvaged from the railway were re-used as fences. Most of its workers left their job and shift to another.

The rail way had well equipped workshops (Foundry, Machine shop, wood workshop, wagon shop, boiler shop, forgery), diesel and steam loco sheds to perform general overhauling and running repair and maintenance. Moreover, it had very efficient and effective communication network, exchange and dispatching system, which is confirmed by its accident-free handling of traffic throughout its history.
After Eritrean independence, recognizing its role in the reconstruction endeavors, the Eritrean government formed a taskforce to investigate the condition of the rail way infrastructures in 1994. The task force after through investigation came up with a recommendation that the Eritrean railway could be rehabilitated by internal capacity. To that end, veterans who had worked previously during the colonizing era were called upon to utilize their skills in the rehabilitation endeavour. “One of the basic objectives put by the Eritrean Government was to equip the young generation with the know-how through intermingling with the veterans and later the youth take the responsibility by themselves,” says Mr. Amanuel. Followed a through study, the Government begun to rehabilitate the Eritrean Rail Way system in 1994. As the cost for the refurbishment of the whole rail network was high, the Government prioritized the Asmara- Massawa rail line and it was finalized and started operation in February 2003.

“The younger generation had a visible impact in all sectors of the railway department and the results were remarkable,” says Mr. Amanuel. Currently most of the workshops, foundries, and traffic departments are run by them and to upgrade their skill the administration conducts regular trainings, he added.

Mr. Siyum Kidane, 77, began work in the Eritrean Railway in 1945 in the Boiler department. During the Italian colonization and subsequent years, the skilled jobs were monopolized by the Italians. The Eritreans acquired such skill after constant strive and later they began to replace them, he said. Now it is the veteran’s responsibility to transfer their skills to the younger generation, Mr. Siyum added. After regular education in Sawa and Eritrean Institute of Technology, I assigned to the Eritrean Railway, says a 24 old year Habtom Mihretab. It is a privilege to work along the veterans of the rail way and we are acquiring a skill that would help us in pursuing our career in the field, he added.

“But we should keep updating ourselves with the existing fast moving railway technology so as to easily immerse ourselves in the career later.”

Currently the Eritrea Railway is working on involving in the mining industry in the country. Several requests by mining companies were made and preparations are in the pipeline, says Mr. Amanuel. Also the renovation of the westbound mainline toward Bisha is getting underway. To accommodate the transportation of freight, the rail way administration will buy trains in the coming future, he added.

When in full swing, however, the Eritrean Railway will be more than just a freight and passenger service: It will also be a symbol of self-reliance. And for railway enthusiasts, looking for a new adventure, the Eritrean Railway promises to provide one of the worlds most spectacular journeys.