Mogadishu-Villabruzzi Railway
| Mogadiscio-Villabruzzi Railway | |
|---|---|
| Overview | |
| Status | Inactive |
| Locale | southern Somalia |
| Termini |
Mogadishu Villabruzzi (modern day Jowhar; originally to Afgooye) |
| Stations | 7 |
| Operation | |
| Opened | 1914 |
| Closed | 1941 |
| Operator(s) | Somali railway |
| Technical | |
| Line length | 114 kilometres (71 mi) |
| Track gauge | 950 mm (3 ft 1 3⁄8 in) |
The Mogadiscio-Villabruzzi Railway (Italian: Ferrovia Mogadiscio-Villabruzzi) is an historical railway system that ran through southern Somalia. It was constructed between 1914 and 1927 by the colonial authorities in Italian Somaliland. The railway connected the capital city Mogadishu with Afgooye, and subsequently with Villabruzzi (present-day Jowhar). The line was later dismantled by British troops during World War II. Plans for re-establishing the railway were tabled in the 1980s by the Siad Barre administration, but were aborted after the regime's collapse.
The railway was initially built for the surrounding area of Mogadishu (Mogadiscio in Italian), after World War I in 1914. In the 1924, it was extended to Afgooye. In 1927, it was extended again by H.R.H. Principe Luigi Amedeo, Duca degli Abruzzi, a senior member of the Italian Royal Family, had the railway extended to the Shebelle River colonial villages he was then developing.
The line, 114 km long, reached Villabruzzi (then in full "Villaggio Duca degli Abruzzi", now "Jowhar") in 1928. The original proposal was for the railway to go on from Villabruzzi to the Somali border with Ethiopia and into the Ogaden, but the Second Italo-Abyssinian War in 1936 stopped further construction.
...
Wikipedia