Working Steam in Brazil

More news from Hose Beraldo:

Here is a resumed account of the last steam operation in Brazil, working on a "commercial" basis, differing of the other steam traction, which operates as tourist atractions.

The small railway is run by CODESP (Companhia Docas do Estado de São Paulo) which is the operator of the Port of Santos, in São Paulo. The railway was built to convey workers to the power station at Itatinga, a remote place which is only reached by the railway.

The power station was built in 1910 to supply eletricity to the port's electric cranes and apparatus, but now, as there is a power surplus to the port, part of the energy generated at Itatinga is distributed to São Paulo's main power lines. The line is 7 km. long and is electrified, worked by a pair of trams, but the reserve power is nothing more than a pair of 0-4-0 steam engines, built by Krauss, named Lavoura and Itapema of which, I am including the pictures.

The site is considered a security area, so the visits are strictly under control by CODESP, which only allows visitors with a written permission. I personally made only two visits to Itatinga and was lucky to make the round trip by steam power on the last occasion, because one of the electric trams were out of service. The steam engines are used only for shunting duties at Itatinga and occasionally are put on main line service, when the power line is cut off or when the trams are being repaired.

At Itatinga there is also a curious funicular that climbs besides the huge pipes, that feed water to the power generating turbines. A visit to Itatinga is worthwhile and I hope to come back soon to the place where you can never hear the roar of traffic or the smell of gazoline.