Dangerous deterioration of the elevated structures at the Central Train Station in Old Havana.

The elevated railway structures leading to the Central Train Station in Old Havana are in a dangerous state of disrepair, as shown in a video published this Monday by CiberCuba.

The deterioration is evident in the metal structure of the railway bridge, through which trains depart and arrive at the La Coubre terminal and the Central Railway Station, inaugurated on November 30, 1912, and reopened in July 2022 after years of renovation and a multimillion-dollar investment, initially undertaken with the participation of Russian companies.

Built in the early 20th century, the elevated structures are over a century old and have been designated, along with their surroundings, as a Heritage Site of Havana since November 2, 2002 (Resolution No. 184).

Its current condition, after decades of neglect and lack of maintenance, is practically a ruin, with the columns and the entire steel structure corroded by saltpeter and the absence of proper paints and treatments for its preservation.

Rust has taken over a unique engineering work, regarded as one of the most important of its kind in Cuba, which has preserved its original function to this day. Trains run along the elevated tracks, connecting the Cuban capital with the rest of the country.

Bejucal, Santiago de Cuba, Mariel, Holguín, Bayamo, Manzanillo, Sancti Spíritus, Cienfuegos, Pinar del Río, Playas del Este, and Guantánamo are some of the destinations served by the fragile railway system.

For the operations of the Central Railway Terminal, it was necessary to construct an elevated railway track that would connect the station's rail yards and its eight platforms with the city’s outgoing tracks, overcoming elevation changes and traversing marshy terrain.

"Alongside the construction of the Central Railroad Station in the capital of Cuba and the access roads to its port, the Havana Terminal Railroad Company also built an elevated passage for train transit, a steel framework designed to allow trains to travel above the streets from the station to just beyond the Castillo de Atares, without disrupting the local road traffic. The structure still stands and is in use today," explains the study 'Railroad, History, Space, and Heritage in Cuba,' edited by Antonio Santamaría García in 2020 with funding from the European Union.

Currently in operation, the elevated railway bridge located on Avenida del Puerto in Havana is one of the many architectural gems of the city and the country that is at risk of disappearing, at best. In the worst-case scenario, its collapse could lead to tragedy.

According to the aforementioned study, “to achieve the objectives outlined in the renovation of Cuba's Central Train Station, modern materials and rehabilitation techniques are being used, and its space and services are being equipped with a new communication system, at least to the extent that available resources have allowed.”

"All of this work is carried out with the aim of respecting the heritage essence of its infrastructures and the elements that compose them, taking into account what has been established by various organizations, authorities, and experts, whose purpose is to safeguard the tangible and intangible heritage of humanity, as well as its necessary prior study and valuation."