![]() In the 1940s, the mining industry collapsed, partly due to the mineral depletion. The trains were mostly used by the mining companies. It was encouraged by the then Bolivian President Aniceto Arce, who believed Bolivia would flourish with a good transport system, but it was also constantly sabotaged by the local indigenous people who saw it as an intrusion into their lives. The rail construction started in 1888 and ended in 1892. The engineers were invited by British-sponsored Antofagasta and Bolivia Railway Companies, which is now Ferrocarril de Antofagasta a Bolivia. The train lines were built by British engineers who arrived near the end of the 19th century and formed a sizable community in Uyuni. The town served in the past as a distribution hub for the trains carrying minerals on their way to the Pacific Ocean ports. It is located 3 km outside Uyuni and is connected to it by the old train tracks. One of the major tourist attractions of the area is an antique train cemetery. ![]() Currently, two local airlines are flying regularly to the city from La Paz, Sucre and Rurrenabaque: Amazonas and Transporte Aéreo Militar. The city is also served by the Joya Andina Airport. Uyuni is connected by road to Oruro - La Paz, Sucre, Villazón (border with Argentina) and Ollagüe, Chile. Four lines join here, respectively from La Paz (via Oruro), Calama (in Chile), Potosí, and Villazón (on the Argentine border, where the line now ends). It is an important transport hub, being the location of a major railway junction. It lies at the edge of an extensive plain at an elevation of 3,700 m (12,139 ft) above sea level, with more mountainous country to the east. įounded in 1890 as a trading post, the city has a population of 29,672 (2012 official census). Agriculture in the area is generally limited to quinoa, llamas, and sheep. The city also acts as a gateway for commerce and traffic crossing into and out of Bolivia from and to Chile, and there is a customs and immigration post downtown. Each year the city receives approximately 60,000 visitors from around the globe. ![]() Uyuni primarily serves as a gateway for tourists visiting the world's largest salt flats, the nearby Uyuni salt flat. ![]() ![]() Uyuni ( Aymara, uyu pen (enclosure), yard, cemetery, -ni a suffix to indicate ownership, "the one that has got a pen", "the one with a pen") is a city in the southwest of Bolivia. ![]()
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