An illustrated history of the Gezira Light Railway in Sudan. The railway began during the construction of the Gezira Scheme; one of the largest irrigation projects in the world, found in the area to the south of the confluence of the Blue and White Nile rivers.
Following the construction, the region was used to grow cotton and the railway was used and expanded to serve the industry. At its peak, the Gezira Light Railway included over 1,000km of track, at least 1,800 bogie wagons and 140 locomotives.
The Gezira Light Railway covers the history of the line, from the building of the railway through to the railway's peak in the 1970s. The decline from the 1970s onwards is also covered, which was largely as a result of the decline of the British cotton industry.
Chapter List:
- Inception to 1925: Managing the River
- 1925-1950: The Sudan Plantations Syndicate Era
- 1950-1975: The GLR at its Zenith
- 1975-2009: The Long Decline
- Operation and Maintenance
- Locomotives of the GLR
- Rolling Stock
- Permanent Way
- Alan Keef's Visit in 1997
Appendices also cover some of Sudan's other private railways. Well illustrated throughout with archive black & white photographs, more recent colour photographs, maps and diagrams. 128 pages.