The Portuguese railway in time and space – mapping phases of growth, stagnation, and decline (1845–2015)

This paper aims to analyse the development of the Portuguese railway in time and space, between 1845 and 2015. The development of the railway in mainland Portugal was a subject of interest to several stakeholders, including politicians, private investors, constructors, and the state itself. This article aims to explore what actors were involved in the development of the Portuguese railway, their respective goals and planning mechanisms. Focus is placed on the Portuguese state’s attempts to specifically shape the rail sector in its national infrastructure, while confronting it with the interests of the private initiative. By discussing the transformations seen in the urban and countryside spaces on which the railway network was built, this paper provides an overview of the effects that the railway had on the Portuguese territory and its urban areas. A comparative analysis of the railway system in the past and present reveals that the current layout of the Portuguese railway network does not differ greatly from that of the early twentieth century. Finally, it is shown that the history of the Portuguese railway coincided with different periods of significant socio-economic changes.