TRANSPORTATION
The only surface road linking all the countries of the region is a part of the Pan-American Highway (because of the mountains which are a real barrier for overland transportation).
Railroads:
Rail transport in Central America is represented by several isolated railroads with freight or passenger service. Panama Canal Railway Company is the most famous one. It is the oldest transcontinental railroad in the world, connecting Panama City with Colón since 1855.
Other railroads in Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama were built by private and public investors mainly to move the transport with local agricultural produce (bananas, coconuts, coffee) to export markets and harbors. Their profitability went down in the second half of the twentieth century and most rail lines have been closed by the end of 1990s.
In 2007 railroads operated locally in Guatemala, Honduras, Costa Rica and Panama only. In Belize, El Salvador and Nicaragua all rail transport has been suspended for some time. None of the operating railways crosses the national borders.
Ports:
Central America has several important seaports, such as:
- Santo Tomás de Castilla in Guatemala;
- Puerto Cortés in Honduras;
- Acajutla in El Salvador;
- Corinto in Nicaragua;
- Limón in Costa Rica;
- Balboa in Panama.
The Panama Canal is a very important shipping link between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. There is a petroleum pipeline across Panama which was completed in 1982.
Aviation:
Airlines provide transportation among the big cities of Central America and serve some remote mountain towns. Cheap flights are regularly available from the United States to Central America’s airports.
Juan Santamaría airport in Costa Rica gets flights from Europe and the US. Agusto C. Sandino International Airport in Nicaragua and Comalapa Airport in El Salvador also have many destinations.
Flights directly to Central America are very expensive so it is cheaper to fly via the US.