Canadian  Pacific  Railway  Employee  Magazine  Article
Public Relations and Advertising Department
Windsor Station Montreal Que. H3C 3E4
 

Volume 10   Number 2

February. 6, 1980


Shipping Bananas in Costa Rica Means $16 Million Job for CPCS
By Shirley Whittet


Track Liner:  Standing by a Fairmont track liner with Northberg lining device. Charlie Kennedy takes a breather from supervising work on new trackage in Costa Rica.

Bananas grown in Costa Rica are going to reach world markets faster than before because of CP Consulting Services' expertise with railways in far-away places.
 
It's a long way from a metropolis like Montreal to the tropics of Costa Rica, but that's where CP Rail experts are hard at work supervising the laying of new ballast, cement ties, and welded rail over 110 kilometres of narrow gauge (3'-6") line, four kilometres of which are new construction.
 
The original railway was built about 100 years ago with English capital and under American management. It's now owned by the Costa Rican government.
 
CPCS won the two-year contract for the $16 million job in stiff competition with American, British, German, and French companies.
 
The line, which is mainly used to transport bananas from interior plantations to shipside on the Atlantic Coast, is expected to be completed by the end of this summer. The costa Rica project is under the direction of T.V. Kennedy, assistant regional engineer, Pacific Region, on loan to CPCS. Mr. Kennedy is headquartered in San Jose.
 
Giving him a hand is C.F. "Charlie" King of Winnipeg, retired supervisor, maintenance of way - system, located in Limon as field manager in charge of the track rehabilitation.
 
Others involved in the project are Pat Brown from CP Rail, Calgary; Alvin Hastman and Fred R. Zazalak, both from Brandon Division, Winnipeg. They work under Charlie King, who oversees the construction work, instructs in the use and maintenance of the machines and exercises quality control.
 
CPCS people working on the Montreal end of the contract are R.H. Ballantyne, assistant general manager, and George J. Stavrou who say the success of the job is due to the efforts of Mr. Kennedy, Mr. King, and their staffs.
 
The two-year contract has met with great acclaim. When the first section of re-conditioned track was completed, the president of Costa Rica visited the site and laid a commemorative marker. An observer remarked, "he was tickled pink with the results".
 
The re-construction work began in January, 1979, shortly after the first of two ships arrived with equipment. Preliminary planning was carried out by W.M. "Mac" Price of the office of the chief engineer. Later on, Ed H. Taylor, supervisor of track design, spent some time in Costa Rica instructing native workers in the intricacies of thermite welding.
 
The tropical terrain and shortage of suitable wood called for the use of concrete ties. The ties were designed in the office of the chief engineer and are being manufactured locally for the new trackage. The Costa Rican Railways may eventually replace all the existing wooden ties with concrete ones of this design.
 
The rail used is 85-pound standard CP Rail section continuous welded rail manufactured by Sydney Steel Corp., Sydney, N.S. It is anchored to the ties with pandrol fastenings.
 
The improved road is expected to speed up the job of getting the perishable bananas from plantation to shipside. Even with the old bumpy road great care was taken that the fruit was transported immediately after picking to arrive at a waiting ship.
 
The old track, in most areas, was also used as the road for vehicles, animals, and pedestrians as it ran through the main streets of towns and villages. The clacking noise of an approaching train gave sufficient notice to those on the track to clear the way.
 
Now that the new trackage allows for greater speed and efficiency, a good many Costa Ricans may have to be re-educated in safety.


This CP Rail News article is copyright 1980 by Canadian Pacific Railway and is reprinted here with their permission. All photographs, logos, and trademarks are the property of the Canadian Pacific Railway Company.

 
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