Andelectric motor car which has been in use for 81 years, continues to function as a kind of "living fossil" of the Cuban Railways.
In the group ofFacebook Let's save the only electric train in Cuba, the user Juan Carlos Hernández proudly shared the recognition that the Commission for Evaluation and Classification of Railway Records of the National Railway Museum of Cuba made to theElectric Motor Car No. 703.
"It is an honor for me to have participated on November 17 in the ceremony to present the Records to the longest-running teams, where two of our cars were awarded," said Hernández.
He noted that this recognition "is thanks to the efforts of several generations (of railway workers) who, with their knowledge and will, have managed to maintain this equipment for almost 100 years."
HeElectric Motor Car No. 703, UT-400, was manufactured in Spain in 1942. It currently belongs to the UEB Camilo Cienfuegos of the Mayabeque province, Empresa Ferrocarril Oeste.
The commission ruled that Car No. 703 has a special record as: "Oldest motor car in operation of the Cuban public railway; andsecond oldest electric motor car in use".
The first train trip in Cuba took place on November 19, 1837. The country became the first in Latin America to incorporate this technological advance.
Currently, Cuba is one of the countries with the worst conditions for transporting people. The crisis especially affects the railway sector where workers have had to show off their creativity to keep the archaic cars running.
The Cuban state has promised on numerous occasions that it will make an investment in the railway sector but it is always postponed for various reasons.
On Havana's 500th anniversary, four years ago, the government restored the Railway Museum where the largest collection of Cuban and Caribbean railway heritage is located.
Among its pieces stands out asingular locomotive, La Junta, the oldest preserved in Cuba and is considered a National Monument.
What do you think?
SEE COMMENTS (3)Filed in: