page_title: Mitre Line
section_title: Privatisation: TBA
hierarchical_section_title: Mitre Line / History / Privatisation: TBA
caption_attribution_description: Español: Tren eléctrico Toshiba detenido en la estación Colegiales, del barrio homónimo, Línea Mitre, Buenos Aires, Argentina. English: Toshiba electric unit stopped at Colegiales train station, of the homonymous neighborhood. Mitre Line, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
context_page_description: The Mitre line is an Argentine broad gauge commuter rail service in Buenos Aires Province as part of Ferrocarril General Bartolomé Mitre. The service is currently operated by State-owned company Operadora Ferroviaria Sociedad del Estado after the Government of Argentina rescinded contract with Corredores Ferroviarios in March 2015.
context_section_description: FA operated the trains until 1991 when residual company FEMESA temporarily took over all the urban services prior to be privatized. After the Government of Carlos Menem privatized the urban railways services private company Trenes de Buenos Aires (TBA) took over Mitre Line.
  When the Government of Argentina decided to privatize all the urban railway services in 1992, the Mitre Line was given in concession to Trenes de Buenos Aires (or TBA, which also took over Sarmiento Line) through Decree N° 730/95.
  During the first two years of concession, TBA met the requeriments specified on the contract, about the frequency of the service, with an average of 98%. By February 1999 the consortium had invested US$200 million including the reconstruction of 220 Toshiba wagons, the remodelation of 13 stations and workshops. In addition, a new ticket selling system was introduced with the installation of vending machines.
  One of the most notable improvements was the introduction of "Puma" coaches in the Retiro-Tigre branch. This coaches were built by local factory Emprendimientos Ferroviarios S.A. (EMFER) and featured air conditioning, ABS brakes and computer-supervising systems.
  In 1997 the Government decided to modify the contracts of concession with a plan of modernization for US$2.5 billion. The future investments required to acquire 492 brand-new electric multiple units, refurbishing of more than 100 km of existing tracks, and the installation of new signalling, among other improvements.
  Nevertheless, the Government of Fernando De la Rúa (who had come to power in 1999) made changes to the original project, reducing the amount of the budget to US$1.3 billion. To a compensation to the companies, the State granted subsidies to TBA (and the rest of the private operators) as a way to compensate the losses and avoid tariffs to increase.
  Due to this politic and the lack of investments in Mitre Line, the quality of the service decreased considerably. TBA operated the line until the 2012 Once station rail disaster happened. As a result, the National Government revoked the concession granted to TBA and gave the Mitre and Sarmiento to State operator UGOMS, that run the line until 2014 when it was given under concession to Corredores Ferroviarios.
caption: Toshiba multiple unit at Colegiales.
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