Transport in Senegal: Difference between revisions

Latest revision as of 14:27, 20 May 2025

Various buses in Dakar

This article describes the system of transport in Senegal, both public and private. This system comprises roads (both paved and unpaved), rail transport, water transport, and air transportation.

Roads

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File:BaobabDakar.JPG

Route de Corniche, Dakar, 2016

File:Une charrette transportant de l'eau.jpg

A horse-drawn cart carrying water near Thiès

The system of roads in Senegal is extensive by West African standards, with paved roads reaching each corner of the country and all major towns.

International highways

Dakar is the endpoint of three routes in the Trans-African Highway network. These are as follows:

Cairo-Dakar Highway which crosses the edge of the Sahara
Dakar-Ndjamena Highway which links the countries of the Sahel, also called the Trans-Sahelian Highway
Dakar-Lagos Highway running along the West African coast and called by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) the Trans–West African Coastal Highway (though ECOWAS considers this route to start in Nouakchott, Mauritania).

Senegal's road network links closely with those of the Gambia, since the shortest route between south-western districts on the one hand and west-central and north-western districts on the other is through the Gambia.

Motorways

The country currently has two autoroutes: Template:Interlanguage link and Template:Interlanguage link.<ref name=":0">Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name=":2">Template:Cite web</ref> A third autoroute, Autoroute A3, is currently being planned.<ref name=":2" />

Autoroute A1 runs from Dakar to M'Bour via Blaise Diagne International Airport.<ref name=":2" /> The A1 was built via a public-private partnership between French civil engineering firm Eiffage (which has a majority ownership in its toll road portion), and the Senegalese government.<ref name=":0" />

Autoroute A2 runs from Dakar to Touba, via Thiès.<ref name=":2" />

The planned Autoroute A3 will run from Dakar to Saint-Louis, and will span about Template:Convert in length.<ref name=":2" />

National roads

The most important roads in Senegal are prefixed "N" and numbered from 1 to 7:

N1: Dakar – Mbour - Fatick - Kaolack – Tambacounda – Kidira – (Mali)
N2: Pout – Thiès – Louga - St-Louis – Richard Toll – Ouro Sogui – Kidira - (Mali)
N3: Thiès – Diourbel – Touba – Linguère – Ouro Sogui
N4: Kaolack – (Trans-Gambia Highway) – Bignona – Ziguinchor – (Guinea-Bissau)
N5: Bignona – Diouloulou – (Gambia) - Sokone - Kaolack
N6: Tambacounda – Vélingara - Kolda – Ziguinchor – (Guinea-Bissau)
N7: Ouro Sogui - Tambacounda – Niokolo-Koba – Kédougou – Guinea

Regional roads

Major incidents

Kaffrine bus crash (2023)

Railways

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File:Train Express Régional de Dakar.jpg

A pair of Train Express Regional Dakar-AIBD trains

According to the CIA World Factbook, Senegal had a total of Template:Convert of railways as of 2017, of which Template:Convert was operational, and all of which were Template:RailGauge gauge.<ref name=":3">Template:Cite web</ref> Since then, the first phase of the Train Express Regional Dakar-AIBD (TER Dakar) has begun operations in December 2021, adding Template:Convert to Senegal's railway network.<ref name=":4">Template:Cite web</ref> There are plans to add another Template:Convert to the TER Dakar, to connect it to Blaise Diagne International Airport.<ref name=":4" /><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Unlike the rest of Senegal's network, the TER Dakar uses standard gauge.

Other rail lines in Senegal include the partially-operational Dakar–Saint-Louis railway, which is used for freight, and the Dakar–Niger Railway. The Petit train de banlieue provided commuter rail service until 2016, and has since been replaced with the TER Dakar.

Maps

UN Map
[1]

Ground transport

File:Senegal Car rapide.jpg

A Car Rapide in Senegal, a common mode of transportation.

There were an estimated Template:Convert of paved roads and Template:Convert of unpaved roads as of 1996.

Dakar has a bus rapid transit (BRT) network: Sunu BRT, which currently has two routes in operation, with two more planned.<ref name=":1">Template:Cite web</ref>

Taxis (black-yellow or blue-yellow in color) are cheap, numerous and available everywhere in Dakar.<ref name="ccg" /> It is customary to negotiate the fare since most meters installed in the taxis are broken or missing.<ref name="ccg" /> For travel outside Dakar, public transportation is available but often unreliable and uncomfortable.<ref name="ccg" />

Waterways

Template:Convert total; Template:Convert on the Senegal river, and Template:Convert on the Saloum River.Template:Citation needed

Ports and harbours

Dakar - railhead
Kaolack, Matam, Podor, Richard Toll, Saint-Louis, Ziguinchor

Dakar has one of the largest deep-water seaports along the West African coast.<ref name=ccg/> Its deep-draft structure and Template:Convert access channel allows round-the-clock access to the port.<ref name=ccg/> Its current infrastructure includes tanker vessel loading and unloading terminals, a container terminal with a storage capacity of 3000 20-foot-equivalent units, a cereals and fishing port, a dedicated phosphate terminal and a privately run ship repair facility.<ref name=ccg/> The port's location at the extreme western point of Africa, at the crossroad of the major sea-lanes linking Europe to South America, makes it a natural port of call for shipping companies.<ref name=ccg/> Total freight traffic averages 10 million metric tons.<ref name=ccg/>