The railway was inaugurated in February 1888 by Guzman Blanco's successor Hermógenes López. Profitability was affected by the unstable political situation in Venezuela at the end of the 19th century; matters were particularly bad during the "revolucion legalistica", the Venezuela civil war of 1892 which brought Joaquín Crespo to power for the second time. The railway sought compensation for damage caused by civil war. Failure to pay such damages was one of the causes of the Venezuelan crisis of 1902–1903.