Re: Papua New Guinea Rail

[rfm <rfm@enternet.com.au>]

Peter Ware wrote:
> 
> peter berrett wrote:
> >
> > Hi All
> >
> > Has anyone seriously contenplated a railway line from Cairns to Port
> > Moresby?
> 
> No - for the very good reason that PNG would be the world's worst place
> for railway construction. The same reason why the interior of the
> country was still a question mark on the maps until the 1930s. The
> mountain barriers were (and still largely are) impassable.
> 


>From Bob McKillop:
It is often a good idea to examine historical experience in order to find 
out what might possible work in future. With regard to railways in Papua 
New Guinea, my colleague Mike Pearson and myself have done this in our 
recently published book "End of the Line: a history of railways in Papua 
New Guinea" (UPNG Press, Port Moresby, 1997). We have documented 150 
different railways which have been constructed in the country over the 
years, together with the many hair-brained schemes to build grander 
railways. 

In the end, our key conclusion it is not that it is technically difficult 
to build railways in the country, but that the state of political, 
institutional and economic development in the country is such that it 
would not be possible to manage the thing in an efficient and sustainable 
manner. Selection of the book title "end of the line" just about sums it 
all up. 

If anyone is interested in the book, it is currently only available from 
UPNG Press, but we are trying to get stock for ARHS Sales in Sydney and 
LRRSA Sales in Melbourne. Reviews will appear in forthcoming issues of 
"Light Railways" and an ARHS publication.

Bob McKillop