The Ferrocarril Central de Uruguay connects Paso de los Toros, in the country's interior with the port of Montevideo, spanning 273 km. The new infrastructure will cut down travel times by 50% and will increase the capacity for cargo load. It will have a positive impact on the growth of agricultural, forestry, and industrial production in Uruguay. The railway is primarily aimed for cargo load, but is also appropriate for passenger trains and includes a new signalling and rail monitoring system.
The Grupo Via Central (GVC) consortium, led by Sacyr, with the participation of Uruguayan firms Saceem and Berkes, and the French firm NGE, is responsible for financing, designing, build, operation and maintenance of the railroad for 15 years.
3,500 people were directly involved at the height of the project, with 90% of the workers being locally sourced. This development required the installation of 343 km of new track, as it features multiple sections with more than one track to facilitate the passage of trains. Additionally, 25 stations and passenger stops, 128 concrete bridges and 6 trenches, two of which make a nearly 4 km long rail path.
Construction used the latest available technologies such as track welding, anti-noise and anti-vibration protection. Over 37,500 tons of tracks were installed, 567,000 concrete sleepers, 12.5 million m3 in earthworks were excavated, and 1 million tons of ballast used.
