Côte d'Ivoire

• Treichville station^[4]
• Abidjan-Lagune station, which was the terminus until the construction of the Houphouët-Boigny Bridge.
• Plateau station which closed in 1930.^[5]
• Abobo station, also known as Gare Nord or Le Banco, the original terminus^[6]
• Adjamé station
• Anyama station^[7]
• Azaguié station, 41 km from the terminus.
• Grand Yapo.^[8]
• Agboville station, 82 km from the terminus.
• Rubino station, 101 km from the terminus.
• Céchi station, 125 km from the terminus.
• Anoumaba station, 140 km from the terminus.
• Tiémélékro station, 162 km from the terminus.
• Dimbokro station, 183 km from the terminus.^[9] Inaugurated on 11 September 1910 along with the Viaduc du N'Zi (255 m).^[10][11]
• Nofou station
• N'do Kouassikro station
• Boli station
• Raviart station
• Kan station
• Bouaké station
• Ferkessédougou station

Burkina Faso

• Niangoloko station, at the Burkina Faso border
• Banfora station
• Bobo-Dioulasso station
• Zamo station
• Ouagadougou station, inaugurated in 1945.

State ownership

Following independence in 1960, the Abidjan-Ouagadougou railway was managed and operated by the Régie des chemins de fer Abidjan-Niger (RAN), a public enterprise jointly owned by Côte d'Ivoire and Upper Volta. RAN, which was financially viable until the mid 1970s, prioritised public transport, with 2.6 million passengers in 1967, 4 million in 1978 and 3.8 million in 1979. This policy allowed local people to engage in commercial activities over a far wider area for the first time.

However, from the mid 1970s, operational and financial performance declined because of inadequate funding, bad management and increasing road competition. By the 1980s, RAN was facing critical financial difficulties, and in 1989 it split into two separate state-owned companies, the Société Ivoirienne des Chemins de Fer (SICF) and the Société des Chemins de Fer du Burkina (SCFB). This separation only exacerbated the inefficiencies and led to an even greater shift to road transport.

Privatization

Faced with this crisis, and under pressure from the IMF and the World Bank, the two governments handed over the management of the entire line to the "Sitarail" consortium, an Ivorian private operator.^[20] Originally, the state-owned corporations, newly renamed the Société Ivoirienne de Patrimoine Ferroviaire (SIPF) and the Société de Gestion du Patrimoine Ferroviaire du Burkina (SOPAFERB) administered railway infrastructure while the state still owned the real estate. They also owned all rolling stock which they leased to Sitarail. These companies were eventually liquidated and Sitarail commenced its first year of operation in 1995. Sitirail rehired only 1815 staff out of a total workforce of 3470.

Sitarail is technically and financially responsible for (a) the operation of freight and passenger services; (b) the maintenance (and in part the renewal) of rail infrastructure (track, structures, buildings, signaling, and telecommunications equipment); and (c) the current management of the real estate. Sitarail placed a new emphasis on the transportation of merchandise, which increased in value from 22 to 27 million CFA francs between 2006 and 2009. Of the 66 original railway stations, only 8 were retained.

Traffic supervision is currently managed by the Bollore Group.^[19][21][22]

Current and future plans

Because of extensive track degradation and outdated rolling stock, the Ivorian and Burkinabe governments have drawn up various plans to renovate and improve the railway line:

In 2013, a plan to renovate the railway, with the aim of preserving and developing the rail transportation of goods and people between the two countries in satisfactory conditions of safety and comfort.^[23] The project involved renovating at least 50% of the rails at curves, and any weak tracks on straight sections; improving track maintenance efficiency; ensuring the continuous availability and safety of the track; and identifying the speed of trains.

In 2014, a plan to extend the line from Ouagadougou to Tambao, a lucrative manganese mine in the far north east of Burkina Faso. The plan was made in conjunction with the French transportation company Bolloré^[24] and the international mining and engineering company Pan African Minerals^[25][26]

In 2017, a signed agreement to renovate the line.^[27]

The original plan to create a rail loop that would also encompass Niamey, Cotonou and Lomé has not yet materialised.^[21]