Railways in Yemen
Some notes complied by Eljas Pölhö.
Aden - Sheikh Othman military railway
(1 000 mm gauge military railway) 1916.01-1922
Aden Railway
(1 000 mm gauge railway) 1922-1929.08.01
History
A military railway was built by the Royal Engineers in 1915-1916 from Aden to Sheikh Othman to supply British forces fighting against the Ottoman Empire forces. In 1919 the Aden Government gave permission to a railway from Maala, a township near the Port of Aden, to Lahej, in the West Aden protectorate, with an intermediate station at Sheikh Othman, on the border. The line was made available for public traffic in 1922. Aden was then part of the Indian Empire and material was derived from the Bombay, Baroda & Central India Railway (BBCIR) and the Eastern Bengal Railway EBR). The Arabian system was worked by the North Western of India under one of its officers designated Engineer-in-Charge.
The railway carried passengers, grass, charcoal, green vegetables, potatoes, skins and other goods from Yemen to Aden, and also large quantities of water for the army outpost at Sheikh Othman, which included a mobile force of cavalry and a camel corps. To carry water, the railway was extended to Hassaini Gardens, 13 kms noth of Lahej. Upkeep of the permanent way proved very expensive, and the line was closed in 1929 and dismantled in 1930.
- Lines:
- 47 km Maala-Sheikh Othman, 1916.01 Sheikh Othman-Lahej, 1919.02 Lahej-El Khudad, 1920.01
- Locomotives and railcars:
- 7 locomotives, 1 railcar.
References
- Middle East Railways, by Hugh Hughes (CRC 1981, ISBN 0950346977), p 76, 83
- Railway Magazine # 798 (Oct 1967) # 898 (Feb 1976) # 900 (Apr 1976) (letter by Hugh Hughes)
Ottoman Hodeidah - Sana'a and Branch Line Railway Co.
(1 055 mm gauge military railway) 1911-1912.02, only 7 km completed before total abandonment.
History
The Ottoman government planned in 1906 to construct a deep water harbour at Ra's Kathib, approximately 17km north of Hodeidah and effectively an island, but joined to the mainland by a long sand spit. The new harbour was to be connected to the mainland by railway and a contract was given to a French syndicate headed by the Banque Française pour le Commerce et de l'Industrie.
Work commenced in 1911 from the Ra's Kathib end of the line, and 7km of track had been completed across the sand spit by February 1912 when work was interrupted by a bombardement of Hodeidah by the Italians. Construction never resumed. The first survey began in February 1909 under the direction of the French engineer Beneyton. The line was to run from the deep water harbour at Ra's Kathib to Hodeidah, then inland to Bajil at the foot of the western mountains, Obal, Wadi Siham, Fersh and on to Sana'a. From there it would would have run northwards to Amran. The Ottoman Gowernment, however, only approved the route as far as Obal.
In 1911 the Ottoman Government promoted a railway from Ra's Kathib to Hodeidah, then across the tropical Tihama plain and into the western mountain slopes to Hodjile, near the city of Manakha, 2200 metres above sea level at the centre of the Harez mountains. The second survey started in January 1911 and extended from Ra's Kathib to Hodeidah, Bait al Faqih and Zabid with the fortress city of Ta'iz in the south (alt. 1400m). From there the railway was to turn northwards to Ibb, capital of the green province, and through Yarim, Dhamar, Ma'bar and finally into the capital city of Sana'a. It was decided that no gradient would be steeper than 25" and no curve would be less than 100m radius Lines: 7 km between Ra's Kathib and Hodeidah completed before abandonment.
- Locomotives:
- 2
References
- Continental Railway Journal 80, p 229-231: A Gem in the Sand by Philip J Ashford
- Continental Railway Journal 82, p 321: letter by Hugh Hughes
