COLOMBIA has reopened a 30km section of line in the northeast of the country to regular passenger services. Trains began running again on September 28 on the Paipa - Sogamoso section of the Bogotá - Belencito line in the Boyacá region.
The government is promoting the service, branded Train of Life and Hope, as a tourist experience, combining heritage vehicles and modern comfort. The rolling stock includes a restored 60-seat vintage coach, complemented by three refurbished passenger coaches offering first class accommodation and a total of 156 seats.
The service, with a journey time of around 2 hours, is operated by Acerías Paz del Río, the Boyacá-based mining and steel company that already runs freight trains between its facilities at Nobsa, Corrales, and Paz de Río. The company invested nearly Pesos 2bn ($US 518,265) to refurbish the passenger coaches which it is now maintaining and sees the initiative as a platform for developing local rolling stock production.
“In the past, this train ran only during the Christmas season between Duitama and Sogamoso,” says transport minister, María Fernanda Rojas. “Now we are celebrating two milestones: a permanent passenger service and the train’s return to Paipa for the first time in 50 years.”
Although parts of its internal network retain overhead electrification, and Acerías Paz del Río operates Colombia’s only active electric locomotive, built by Alsthom in 1962, the revived passenger service is hauled by the company’s GE U10B diesel-electric locomotives.
Acerías Paz del Río currently runs around 37,800 freight trains and 1460 passenger trains a year. In June 2024, the company obtained formal certification as a freight and passenger rail operator, enabling it to operate on the national network beyond its own industrial lines.
Bogotá - Belencito corridor
The Paipa - Sogamoso service is the first phase of the planned upgrade of the 308km Bogotá - Belencito line, a key regional route. Work on the 40km section between Tuta and Belencito is currently in progress, divided into two contracts awarded by the government: one worth Pesos 180bn for the management, operation, and maintenance of the line, running from December 2022 to January 2026, and the other worth Pesos 150bn for infrastructure renewals, scheduled for completion by February next year.
The Bogotá - Belencito line is one of six key lines prioritised by the government in its Pesos 94bn rail improvement plan.
