Description
The history of Ushuaia and the Train revolves around the Prison. The engineer Catello Muratgia began definitive construction of an adequate prison in 1902. The prison was built using local materials, and labor was provided by the convicts.
For the transport of materials, a XILORAIL was mounted, that is to say, a train which circulates upon wooden rails. At the end of 1909 the first railway movements were recorded. The “Decauville” rails with a 60 centimeter gauge were put into service and the work of the “Prison Train” began.
In 1952 the “Prison Train” was decommissioned and with it the rude voices of those inmates faded away. Forty two years after its last service, in 1994, the southernmost train in the world, the “Prison Train”, retakes its historic path.
The “Ferrocarril Austral Fueguino” (FCAF) is situated outside the city of Ushuaia, continuing on National Route nº3 (15 minutes from the city center), on the way to the Tierra del Fuego National Park.
The “Estación del Fin del Mundo” (End of the World Station) is the headquarters of the railway and is situated in a valley between Mount Susana and the Le Martial mountain range, next to the Pipo´s River. The End of the World Station is located at the beginning of the railway. It is found continuing National Route Nº 3, 8 km. west of the city of Ushuaia. It is made up of an 450 m2 area, housing ticket offices, boutique, waiting area, bathrooms and offices.
