The Panama-David Railway Route on Paper is Now Complete 

Henry Faarup, head of Panama’s National Railway Secretariat, revealed this Monday, May 5, that the first stage of this line will begin in Panama Pacifico and extend to Divisa.  This stage will be approximately 210 kilometers long, and the passenger train will reach a speed of 180 kilometers per hour. The freight train will travel at 100 kilometers per hour.  Faarup indicated that, in Panama Pacifico, the railway will be connected to Line 3 of the Panama Metro. A station with a special platform for passengers will be built there.  He clarified that, although the project plans to begin in Albrook, that section will be developed at a later stage, as a bridge must first be built near the Centenario Bridge, which is exclusively for this railway. He added that the train is also planned to have a route near the Ciudad de la Salud. 

Earthworks are expected to begin in 2026, once the technical studies and ongoing institutional arrangements are completed, according to Faarup.  For his part, the President of the Republic, José Raúl Mulino pictured below, noted that this project includes a total of 475 kilometers of railway between Panama Pacifico and David, in the province of Chiriquí. It will have 14 stations located in Ciudad de la Salud, Albrook, Panama Pacifico, La Chorrera, Chame/Coronado, Río Hato, Penonomé, Divisa, Santiago, Soná, San Félix, David, Bugaba, and Paso Canoas–Frontera.  “The project will employ more than 50,000 Panamanians,” he emphasized.  According to Faarup, they plan to contract mostly Panamanian companies for the construction work and international companies for specialized work.  He explained that the sections will be divided, meaning there will be parallel work along the entire route. “The country will be under construction,” he said.